You can play Pokémon TCG Pocket one month early—but only if you live in this country

Prospective Pokémon TCG Pocket players in New Zealand were given a gift by The Pokémon Company this morning after the company announced a soft launch of the mobile title in the country one month before its global release.

From Sept. 26 at 7am CT, Pokémon TCG Pocket will launch in New Zealand on both iOS and Android. The rest of the world will gain access to the app on the original Oct. 30 launch date. The early launch is only happening in New Zealand, so other trainers must wait over a month to join the fun.

The soft launch in New Zealand will likely test the servers and ensure the game runs correctly before The Pokémon Company opens the floodgates to a worldwide audience. Trainers can circumvent the soft launch and get the game early on specific platforms by creating a New Zealand store account or using tools like a VPN to download the app from the region.

This isn’t the first time a mobile Pokémon game has soft-launched early. Pokémon Go initially launched as a soft beta in Japan and other countries in April 2016 before its worldwide release on July 6, 2016. Even Pokémon’s recent mobile venture, Pokémon Sleep, was released on July 17, 2023, before other countries could play a week later.

TCG Pocket’s early launch announcement also coincides with a worldwide embargo drop of content following recent in-person events across the globe. Dot Esports attended, and we got to try out the game’s unique battle system, check out what cards are in Genetic Apex, see all the different in-game currencies on offer, and learn how packs work.

The Pokémon Company revealed additional details about the game since, including a limit on the amount of money you can spend on the game per day. You can’t use more than 720 Poké Gold per day, equivalent to 120 packs of cards, or around $150.

The game is also banned in the Netherlands, Belgium, and other countries with strict gaming laws regarding monetizing games for children. As the packs are random, almost like Gacha or Loot Boxes, the game is unavailable for anyone in these countries and likely will never be available.