Pokémon Officially Unveils Tropical Pikachu Redesign For Series' 30th Anniversary

The Pokemon Company Published Aug 19, 2026, 7:34 AM EDT James is a gaming writer from London who has spent thousands of hours exploring titles from every genre. Though he has a particular affinity for multiplayer titles like World of Warcraft, Destiny 2 and League of Legends, he has also put thousands of hours into single-player experiences, from deep RPGs to epic PC strategies. When he's not playing or writing, he can usually be found supporting his beloved Brentford FC. Sign in to your ScreenRant account The Pokémon Trading Card Game really has exploded in popularity beyond all recognition in recent years, with cards regularly valued in the thousands of dollars or beyond, even for relatively new sets. The last few sets have been relatively understated on that front, after the excitement of Prismatic Evolutions, but that's all about to change once again. In case you somehow hadn't noticed just yet, Pokémon is celebrating 30 years since its inception this year, and there are all sorts of exciting releases coming down the road to mark the occasion. As you'd expect, the TCG is no exception, with a bespoke set that's likely to be very difficult to get your hands on. Heading into its arrival, The Pokémon Company has begun to reveal some of the cards that are set to be included in the set, including a new Pikachu that's likely to draw a lot of attention from collectors. The Pokemon Company As first reported by ComicBook, the official Pokémon TCG Twitter/X page has been sharing a series of posts revealing some of the more interesting hits from the upcoming Anniversary set. Amongst those, fans got a first look at a new Pikachu card with an adorable hand drawn design, coming as part of the first wave of releases on September 16. The post comes with a caption referencing the iconic Pokémon reveling in the "Tropical vibes," which could easily be a subtle nod to the upcoming release of Winds and Waves in 2027. That card joins two genuinely stunning ex Special Illustration Rare Pikachu cards that were revealed the day before, both of which should command high prices when the market settles down after launch. Thus far, we have now seen 20 of the 30 total unique designs for the set, with the rest likely to be revealed over the next month or so. Happily, every 30th Celebration booster will include one of the Pikachu promo cards, though it's unclear if these will be weighted in a certain way to make some of them more rare and desirable. The set also introduces a brand-new card rarity to the Pokémon TCG for the first time in a long time, with Futuristic Rares likely to serve as some of the major chase cards this time around. The first confirmed cards that will be printed in that rarity are the Mewtwo ex and Mew ex, both of which look pretty awesome, once you get over how starkly different they are. Released April 10, 2000 ESRB e Developer(s) Hudson Soft Publisher(s) Nintendo Multiplayer Local Multiplayer Franchise Pokemon Genre(s) Digital Card Game, Strategy