Hands on with PokÃ©mon Sun and Moon – Trading Card style!

With PokÃ©mon Sun and Moon well and truly settled in the 3DSs of many gamers out there, it’s only fitting that the Trading Card Game gets a healthy boost of new cards to match the updated running total of 802(!) PokÃ©mon in the franchise.

The Sun & Moon range of Trading Cards add another slice of depth to the game, allowing for new ways to inflict damage on your foes and seize the upper hand in-game. Thanks to the PokÃ©mon Company, GGS was invited to check out the new cards. Here’s how it went down!

Pikachu acting as Umpire…

Released now in the West, this expansion to the game adds 163 new cards to the collection, 40 of which are PokÃ©mon native to the Alola region. Legendary PokÃ©mon like Solgaleo and Lunala exist within the collection, as do some familiar PokÃ©mon with the Alolan touch. I encountered an Alolan Persian whilst casually browsing through my deck for example.

A particularly new aspect that the Sun & Moon expansion brings are GX abilities. These ultra-powerful single-use abilities have the potential to turn the tide of the game if you’re willing to take a gamble. GX abilities can only be triggered once per game and if a GX PokÃ©mon happens to be knocked out, then the opponent gets to claim two prize cards.

Here’s an example GX ability for Solgaleo GX:

Sol Burst GX – Search your deck for up to 5 Energy cards and attach them to your Pokemon. Then, shuffle your deck. (You canâ€™t use more than 1 GX attack in a game.)

How this will shake up the top-tier game remains to be seen, but from my eye as an amateur to the Trading Card Game I can see it having the potential to light a fire in what could be a one-sided game.

I enjoyed my time with the new cards. It amazes me still how it’s still possible to innovate in a game that’s existed for decades and still provide new and exciting ways to play. If you’re a PokÃ©mon fan then there’s certainly a lot for you to enjoy here. Similarly, the starter packs available in this new expansion does not discriminate, making for a grand way to get started in the Trading Card Game!