Pokemon TCG Pocket fixed one of its biggest problems

Pokemon TCG Pocket moved shiny Pokémon to the sixth slot in booster packs. While this makes them rarer to find, fans seem happy that the developer made this change. Shiny variants were first introduced with the Shining Revelry expansion back in March 2025, and while these cards have always been popular, the way they appeared Pokemon TCG Pocket packs have long been a source of controversy.

For the uninitiated, Pokemon TCG Pocket uses a rarity system similar to physical Pokemon TCG. However, it also has a unique drop rate that decides what types of cards appear in each booster pack slot. Previously, shiny cards were more common in the fourth and fifth slots, where other rare cards and EX Pokemon also usually appear. Developer DeNA has now modified it for better balance card acquisition.

Pokemon TCG Pocket puts shiny cards in the sixth slot

With the latest extension, Pokemon TCG Pocket released a patch that addressed the shiny cards issue in the game. These glittery cards now only appear in the last slot of a six-card booster pack. These special decks are distributed randomly, with about an 8% chance of appearing among regular five-card decks. Before the update, the sixth slot in Pokemon TCG Pocket decks were often filled with baby Pokémon, but now shiny cards can also appear. While this change makes shinies rarer than before, fans seem pleased that DeNA has prevented them from ruining the drop rate of other cards.

One of the reasons many players disliked shiny cards was that they often took slots of more valuable rare cards, especially EX Pokémon, which are key to building decks in Pokemon TCG Pocket. Shiny cards were also fairly common in god packs, which many found disappointing since these rare boosters are supposed to contain the most exclusive cards like crowns, not shiny ones which are not as sought after by collectors. A recent update fixes this by ensuring that shiny cards no longer interfere with other rare drops, making them the cosmetic draws that many felt they should have been from the start.

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According to updated drop rates, “shiny one” cards are inserted Pokemon TCG PocketThe Mega Rising expansion now has a 6.818% chance to be drawn from six-card decks. The drop rate for shiny two cards is 7.955%.

Fortunately for fans, the October update also brings a few quality of life improvements. The level cap has been increased to 60, a long-requested change from the community. The pack limit has increased from 20 to 25, and players can now choose which booster packs from the game's growing lineup appear on the home screen. With these updates and shiny cards no longer getting in the way of competitive collectors, the overall sentiment for the game has noticeably improved. It remains to be seen if DeNA can build on this momentum and bring back more fans Pokemon TCG Pocketdwindling player base.