Genetic Apex is the first booster pack trainers can open in Pokémon TCG Pocket. Unlike the traditional card game, it’s split between three sub-sets based on three Pokémon—Pikachu, Charizard, and Mewtwo.
Pokémon TCG Pocket handles its booster packs very differently to the physical Pokémon card game, so it can be tricky to understand how it works. Thankfully, the Pokémon Company invited us to an in-person event for the game at the start of September that showcased new information on how booster packs work in-game.
Genetic Apex Pokémon TCG Pocket set, everything we know so far
As we mentioned, the TCG Pocket Genetic Apex Pack is split into three versions, but that isn’t just a cosmetic choice. Each booster pack has certain cards that are unique to the different versions. It’s confusing, as Genetic Apex is considered a set, but each pack has specific cards to find, which makes finding rarer cards a chore.
There are three versions of Genetic Apex. Each pack has unique cards to find, with Pikachu ex-cards appearing in the Pikachu pack, for example. Which pack you choose matters.
It also makes choosing a pack important; if a super-strong card’s only available in the Mewtwo variant, why bother with the Pikachu and Charizard packs when each one costs the same amount?
Genetic Apex also has its regulation number, likely hinting that certain cards will eventually be taken out of rotation as more booster packs are released. Genetic Apex is A1, and it has over 200 cards to find. Each booster pack contains five cards, but as The Pokémon Company told us at the event, the number of cards in a pack may change.
When playing, we saw the offering rates of each card and found out the chance of getting a rare pack with a rare card is 0.050 percent. Equally, rarer cards on offer had a 0.04 percent chance of being pulled from a pack. There were around 10 of us at the event, and I remember only one person pulling one of the rare alternative artwork ex-cards out of hundreds of pack openings.
I am obliged to say these odds and the packs and cards we opened at the event were not finalized, and things might still change for the game’s official release. New expansions will be released on a regular cadent unique to TCG Pocket.
Future packs might also have different versions, like Genetic Apex.
