The Pokémon Trading Card Game takes place on TCG Island, where players will take on the role of Mark, who's crazy about Pokémon and Pokémon Cards! On TCG Island, there are no monsters, but there are Cards like the ones in real life. This game has card versions of all 151 Pokémon from Pokémon Red and Blue & Pokémon Yellow, including multiple versions of Mew & Mewtwo.
Locations[edit]
When accessing the map, a flashing indicator will allow you to select which of the 12 location to travel to. Selecting one will move your character to, and enter the location. Once inside, you can walk around the rooms and talk to the local characters. Some will give you information, or others will challenge you to a Trading Card Game Duel.
Dueling[edit]
A game of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, also referred to as a battle or a duel, consists of two players with 60 card decks taking turns battling with their Pokémon cards in the active spot and their bench, powering them up with Energy to use attacks, and using powerful Trainer cards to assist them and give them an extra advantage over their opponent.
Energy[edit]
Energy is the primary resource in the game. You need it for attacking and retreating with your active Pokémon. You are only allowed to play one Energy card from your hand per turn. The types of Energy in this game are Grass, Fire, Fighting, Lightning, Psychic, Water, and Colorless. They are often abbreviated to G, R, F, L, P, W, and C. Whenever you need to meet an Energy cost you must use the matching type and number, however Colorless is special and treated as a wildcard that any type can match.
Attacking[edit]
A card for a Pokémon will have one or more attacks listed on it. An attack has a name, an Energy cost represented by symbols next to the name, and usually has a damage value on the other side of the name, and may have additional text with an effect you perform after dealing damage. Only your Active Pokémon can make an attack, and the attack is always against your opponent's Defending Pokémon. You must have enough Energy cards attached to your active Pokémon to meet the energy cost to use the attack. Attacking will end your turn.
Retreating[edit]
You can switch out your Active Pokémon for another Pokémon on your Bench. To do so you must pay the retreat cost displayed on the Pokémon card. Retreat costs are always of the Colorless type, so you can use any type of Energy to retreat. Some Pokémon have very high retreat costs making it difficult to move them out of the active spot. Others have no retreat cost and you can retreat them without paying any cost. Try to keep Pokémon in danger of being knocked out on your opponent's turn out of the active spot by making strategic use of retreating. When a Pokémon retreats all effects currently affecting it go away. This includes effects from your Pokémon's attacks, your opponent's Pokémon's attacks, and special conditions affecting it. The rules during the time of this game allowed retreating as many times as you want per turn.
Evolving Pokémon[edit]
Some Pokémon are able to get stronger by changing their form. This is called Evolving and you are able to evolve a Basic Pokémon into a Stage 1 Pokémon that says it evolves from the Basic Pokémon. You can also evolve a Stage 1 Pokémon into a Stage 2 Pokémon that lists the Stage 1 Pokémon as what it evolves from. This usually gives the Pokémon more HP and stronger attacks, however you lose access to attacks and Pokémon Powers that are on earlier stage cards. You cannot evolve any Pokémon on your first turn, or on the turn you put a Pokémon into play, whether from your hand or by evolving.
Using Pokémon power[edit]
Some Pokémon have an effect called a Pokémon Power listed along with their attacks. Some Pokémon Powers are always active and you do what they say when the condition they list occurs, and others you have to choose to activate. These effects are often very powerful and careful use of them can put you in a very advantageous position. Usually a Pokémon Power is not in effect and cannot be activated if that Pokémon is currently affected by Sleep, Paralysis, or Confusion status conditions. It's usually a good idea to keep a Pokémon with a Pokémon Power on the bench to avoid getting these status conditions, but some powers need to be used while in the active spot so you may have to take that risk, or be able to switch back and forth easily with retreating or Trainer cards.
Ending your turn[edit]
You can end your turn either by using an attack, or by simply choosing to end your turn. If you don't have enough energy for an attack, or if your Pokémon is unable to act due to the Paralysis status condition you'll have to end your turn without attacking.
Win or loss of a duel[edit]
At the start of a duel, after you and your opponent have drawn your opening hands and placed your starting Pokémon, you both place a number of cards from the top of your deck to the side. These are called your Prize cards. In a normal game the number of prize cards is the size of your deck divided by 10. In this game your deck is always 60 cards, but the number of prize cards can be anywhere from 2 to 6. When you defeat an opponent's Pokémon you take one of your prize cards. Whoever takes their last prize card first wins. You can also lose if your active Pokémon is knocked out and you don't have any Benched Pokémon to replace it with, or if at the beginning of your turn your deck is empty and you are unable to draw a card.