A little less than a month ago, I noted about "pack fatigue" in Pokémon TCGP, its implications, and what could be done about the situation. It seems the developers of the game may have listened and have now brought forth a somewhat unique solution for that situation. That solution could be said to be a new expansion - slightly ironically - but in some respects it may not qualify to be called that, and it further offers a bit of a "luxury" for the same efforts of opening packs to collect the cards that are contained within them.
The (not-)expansion is called the "Deluxe Pack ex", and its packs work a bit differently than those of prior expansions. Only four cards (instead of the usual five) are contained within each pack, but at least one of the cards will have a rarity of four Diamonds or higher. What makes it a "not-expansion" is that most of the cards in the packs are ones that have been featured in prior expansions, so it affords a good deal of "second chances" to collect them, especially the rare cards. In that case, the cards will be indexed in both the earlier expansion and this new one, even if the expansion may not be as such.
Because of the pack structure, a few things related to it work a little differently. One of them is Wonder Picks: by nature, they always cost three Wonder Stamina (at least), and they have an additional two Pack Hourglasses to make up for the missing card... which some might stumble upon if they're really unlucky. Furthermore, the (not-)expansion and its packs will only be available for a limited time, which would be the span of this month, after which things might just return to regularity. Speaking of regularity, even with fewer cards but a guaranteed higher-rarity card, the packs of this (not-)expansion still cost the regular 12 Pack Hourglass if more are desired to be opened beyond the limits of free openings.
For the cards that are unique to the expansion, a number of Pokémon have received cards with different art on them - including quite a few with full art - and some Legendary Pokémon also have their Shiny cards here as well. Several old cards also have new art that are of the Crown rarity, which are obviously even harder to get due to the massive number of cards in the numbered section here (over 350). Like previous expansions, there is a new three-Star card of the "immersive" variety, and it celebrates the first and all previous expansions with its art. At least in this respect, it really is one.
If the contents of this "not-expansion" are to be considered, the potential for catching up is quite high, but then there is also a good possibility of getting the extras that are included with it. As a solution to the "pack fatigue", it may very well be imperfect (including by its limited availability timeframe and other associated quirks), but it can still make for some headway while being entertained alongside the new content. That in itself could be said to be the "luxury" that is afforded by continuing to deal with this and other aspects of the game.
One year ago: The New Event Structure of Café Remix
Two years ago: Latest Pokémon Fun on Social Media
Three years ago: Surrendering in Pokémon Unite
Four years ago: Record-Keeping in Pokémon Games
Five years ago: Countermeasures for Pokémon Go: Taking Stands, Taking Chances
Six years ago: Someone Else's Points
Seven years ago: A Poké Ball Keychain
Eight years ago: Cosplay: Kisetsu no Matsuri
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