Anyone who has been into the Pokémon TCG for a bit knows that cracking a fresh booster never really gets old, but the physical cards are only half the fun now, because those little code slips are basically a second pack and, once you start using them with tools like the Pokemon TCG Pocket tool or in-game clients, you realise how much extra value you were just leaving on the table.
McDonald's collabs and Pocket rewards
One of the more unusual twists lately is how real world food runs are getting tied into digital rewards, and the McDonald's promo kicking off on 21 January 2025 is a good example of that, because if you grab a Happy Meal through the official app they'll email you a private gift code that does not just give you a standard booster but instead drops Hourglasses into your Pokémon TCG Pocket account, which matters a lot once you've hit that point where you're sick of staring at timers and just want to open more stuff right now.
Finding codes beyond sealed product
Most players still get codes the basic way, by buying sealed product, but if you care about squeezing value out of the game you start watching other channels too, so things like official newsletters, big-event livestreams and sponsored streams become worth keeping an eye on, because the company sometimes drops single use or short window codes during tournaments, and if you are not ready to punch them in straight away you miss out, while on the Pocket side things are weirder, since the app currently does not offer a normal in client redemption box and the team has not pushed public Pocket codes yet, so when they do hand something out you usually end up on an external official site, typing the code there and waiting for it to sync back into your account, which feels a bit clunky next to how smooth Live has become.
Redeeming in Pokémon TCG Live
When you are dealing with standard TCG Live codes, life is a lot easier, and while you can redeem on the website most people I know just do it in the client, heading to the shop tab and using the redeem option, and you really do not want to sit there keying in those long strings by hand if you can avoid it, because using your phone or webcam to scan the QR code is way quicker and cuts out the typo nonsense, though it is worth remembering that new stuff does not always land straight in your visible decks and may show up in your in game inbox first, so if you are wondering where your new cards went, check there before assuming something broke.
Making the most of your digital collection
The bit that catches a lot of players out is the limit system on redemptions, because once you hit around 400 codes for a specific expansion you stop getting fresh packs and start pulling coins instead, which is not always what you actually want if you are chasing pieces for a meta deck, and that is where a lot of regulars quietly move away from mass code dumping and towards buying targeted digital cards or curated bundles from trusted third party sellers that focus on trading card games, using places like RSVSR when they want to pick up in game currency or specific items without burning through another mountain of boosters, and it ends up saving both time and money if you already know exactly which list you want to play.
