Reprint risk

Reprint risk is the possibility that the publisher prints a card or a set again, so that supply grows and the price of existing copies may be affected. The risk is a common topic among collectors, because the publisher decides what is printed and seldom announces it far in advance.

How reprints affect supply

The value of a card is connected, among other things, to how many copies exist. When a popular card is printed again, more copies become available, and some buyers choose the new card over the old one. How large the effect is depends on how the reprint differs from the original. A card with the same artwork and rarity may have a bigger impact than one with different illustration or a different print design. More on what a reprint is can be found in reprints.

What influences the risk

• Card age and print history: cards from older sets have been reprinted in special products and anniversary sets several times. One example is the Celebrations set from 2021, which contained reprints of well-known cards.
• Popular Pokémon: cards with the best-known Pokémon tend to get more variants and reprints.
• The publisher's print run: modern sets often have large print runs, and supply can be increased along the way, see print runs.
• The card's distinctiveness: printings that are unique to a particular edition, such as first edition and cards from the Wizards of the Coast era, cannot be repeated in the same way, even if the artwork is.

What a reprint does not change

A reprint is not the same card. Edition, print year and set are marked on the card, and collectors distinguish between the original and later versions. The value of a particular edition still depends on its own condition, scarcity and demand. Even so, a reprint can dampen interest in a design, raise interest in it, or make no difference. The outcome varies from card to card.

Types of reprint

Reprints come in several forms: as cards in new sets, in anniversary and collector products, or as cards with new artwork of the same Pokémon. They matter differently to collectors, depending on how easy they are to tell from the original and how many are printed.

Relating to the risk

Since the publisher controls printing, the risk cannot be removed. Collectors often look at whether a design has been printed several times, whether the publisher has announced products, and how earlier reprints affected the price, for example in price history. Price swings after such news are linked to Hype and price bubbles and volatility. This entry describes the risk and gives no assessment of individual cards.