The trading card game (TCG) genre kicked off in 1993 with the launch of Magic: The Gathering, created by the wonderful folks at Wizards of the Coast. This game took off like a rocket and became super popular, so much so that the company had a hard time keeping up with all the enthusiastic players wanting more! To meet the growing demand, they quickly expanded production and released new sets and additional prints, each one enjoying its own wave of success. By 1997, a whopping two billion cards had been sold, sparking interest from other companies eager to join the TCG fun.
Fast forward to 1996, and we see the Pokémon Trading Card Game making its debut in Japan, thanks to Media Factory. In 1998, Wizards of the Coast jumped in to take over production, bringing their expertise from Magic: The Gathering to turn Pokémon into an absolute sensation. They ramped up production significantly to keep all the fans happy. Today, the TCG industry is worth over £6 billion each year, which totally explains why we keep seeing new and exciting games hitting the shelves!