Learning a trading card game that’s been around for a couple of decades can be daunting. Learning a board game, with a box filled with everything one needs and succinct rules, is much easier. So The Pokémon Company made the Pokémon Trading Card Game into a board game.
Launching worldwide towards the end of July, Pokémon Battle Academy presents the long-running trading card game in the simplest possible light. There are three pre-made 60-card decks featuring Mewtwo, Pikachu, and Charizard. Each deck has its own guide book. Battles take place on a special game board, designed to keep important card game information at players’ fingertips. If you can’t figure out the Pokémon Trading Card Game in this format, give up.
I’m feeling good about Pokémon Battle Academy as a means to finally get my kids into the card game. They understand boards and rules. They’ll probably still want to chew on the cards, but who can blame them? Those cards are tasty.