TPCi Bans Sale of Graded Slabs at Events 🚫, Charizard G Lv. X Tin Sells for $8.2k 🔥, PSA 10 Japanese Unlimited Gold Star Charizard $119k ⭐️, 2014 Punch Cancelled Worlds No. 3 Sells for $31k 🥇

🔵 TPCi Has Banned Sales of Graded Slabs and Japanese Pokemon Center Products at Events

TPCi is no longer allowing partnered vendors to sell graded slabs at its events, including NAIC and Worlds, with the policy taking effect this weekend at Indianapolis Regionals. Vendors are also barred from selling items priced over $1,000 or most products from the Japanese Pokemon Center, including plush and TCG items. A public announcement is not expected.

The decision aligns with TPCi's growing effort to distance its events from the speculative side of the hobby, where graded chase cards regularly trade for hundreds to thousands of dollars. The Pokemon Center restriction also follows Pokemon Japan's recent move to require government ID verification for select TCG purchases on Pokemon Center Online, with TPCi likely wanting to avoid partnered vendors reselling marked-up Japanese products at international events while fans in Japan struggle to obtain them.

🔵 Creatures Issues Apology for Error on Golisopod Card Artwork

Creatures issued a public apology over the Golisopod card from Japan's Ninja Spinner set (released March 13, 2026), noting that the artwork incorrectly depicts three lines on Golisopod's purple abdomen instead of the standard two. The company said it is committed to strengthening product quality control to prevent similar errors going forward, and confirmed the artwork will not be corrected and card exchanges will not be offered.

This is not the first time Creatures has acknowledged an artwork oversight, with a prior apology issued for Chandelure VMAX over a line mistakenly extending from the side of its eyes. Creatures is responsible for maintaining Pokemon design accuracy and is known for enforcing strict model consistency with its artists.

🔵 PSA Pauses Value Tiers and Launches Public Backlog Tracker Amid Surge

Following PSA's May 14 announcement of a $200M infrastructure investment and updated turnaround times, collectors responded with a 20% spike in submissions, adding 1.6 million cards to an active backlog approaching 10 million. To protect existing orders and standards, PSA is temporarily pausing new submissions for Value Bulk, Value, Value Plus, and Value Max tiers effective June 2, 2026, with Regular service estimates extended to 40 to 60 business days. Regular, Express, Super Express, and Walk-Through tiers remain open.

The pause is tied to bringing the backlog down to 5 million units, which PSA projects will take up to four months, with monthly updates posted to a public Backlog Tracker on the announcement page. Collectors Club memberships active on May 14 will be extended for free for the full duration of the Value Bulk pause, and the $200M investment remains fully funded and in active deployment.

🔵 Japanese Dream League Booster Box Sells for $895

Dream League (SM11b) was a Japanese-exclusive Enhanced Expansion released August 2, 2019, designed as an enhancement of the 11th main expansion Miracle Twin.

Sealed Type - Year: Booster box - 2019
Contents: 30 packs
Sales History: Sealed Dream League boxes sold between $600 and $1,184 across July 2025 to May 2026, with most recent sales clustering in the $700 to $900 range (~+0% to ~+30% vs current).

🔵 Charizard G Lv. X Collector’s Tin Sells for $8.2k

The 2009 Fall Collector's Tin featured a Charizard G Lv. X Cosmos Holo promo (DP45). Standard sealed tins from this release generally contain 2 Platinum Supreme Victors and other DP era packs.

Sealed Type - Year: Tin - 2009
Contents: Charizard promo, DP packs
Sales History: A prior sealed tin sold for $1,500 in June 2024 (~+447% vs current).

🔵 PSA 10 Gameboy Promo Lugia Sells for $7k

The #249 Lugia holo was included inside copies of the Game Boy Color video game Pokemon Trading Card Game 2: The Invasion of Team GR!, released in Japan on March 28, 2001 alongside a Team Rocket's Mewtwo promo. It carries a "GB" symbol in place of an expansion symbol.

Singles Type - Condition: Graded - PSA 10
Set Name - Year: Japanese Game Boy Promo - 2001
Sales History: PSA 10 copies sold for $760 to $1,700 across April to June 2025, jumping to a cluster of $6,400 to $7,080 across April and May 2026 (~+312% to ~+820%).

🔵 PSA 10 Japanese Unlimited Gold Star Charizard Sells for $119k

This is the Unlimited print of the Gold Star Charizard (052/068) from the 2006 Japanese Dragon Frontiers set (Holon Phantoms). The Japanese set was released in both 1st Edition and Unlimited prints, with Unlimited being significantly scarcer.

Singles Type - Condition: Graded - PSA 10
Set Name - Year: Dragon Frontier - 2006
Sales History: A prior Unlimited PSA 10 sold at auction for $15,988 in April 2025 (~+644% vs current).

🔵 CGC 10 Punch Cancelled World Championships No. 3 Sells $31k

Punch-cancelled Pokemon prize cards are leftover surplus copies pulled from official events and rendered unplayable rather than distributed to winners. This No. 3 Trainer was originally intended as the third place prize at the 2014 World Championships held in Washington, D.C.

Origin Source - Year: World Championships - 2014
Sales History: A CGC 8.5 punch-cancelled No. 2 Trainer (different ranking and grade but a comparable World Championships punch-cancelled prize card) sold for $10,100 in February 2026 (~+207% vs current).

🔵 Base Set Green Wing Charizard Booster Box Sells for $45.1k

The Green Wing Charizard is the earliest Unlimited print of the 1999 Base Set booster box, bridging the 1st Edition run and the more common Blue Wing Unlimited boxes that followed. Its print timeline gives Green Wing boxes a chance of containing shadowless packs.

Origin Source - Year: Booster Box - 1999
Sales History: Another factory-sealed Green Wing box sold at auction in October 2025 for $24,260 hammer ($29,597 with 22% buyer's premium) (~+52% vs current).