Pokemon TCG: Destined Rivals leaks suggest the upcoming set won’t feature Team Rocket as prominently as its Japanese counterpart

James, Jessie, and Wobbuffet from Team Rocket crying

(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)

While the most recent Pokemon TCG set, Prismatic Evolutions, dropped less than a week ago, already players are looking forward to the next addition to one of the best card games. Thankfully, recent leaks suggest Pokemon fans won’t have to wait long before the next set – titled Destined Rivals – makes an appearance online and on store shelves.

These leaks, which come via PokeBeach, state that Pokemon TCG: Destined Rivals will release May 30, with prerelease taking place between May 17 and May 25. Also, according to the leaks, we’re set to see Pokemon from a variety of trainers. Team Rocket will make an appearance with Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex reportedly featuring. However, Destined Rivals (as the name suggests) won’t be a Team Rocket centric set as we’ll also see Steven’s Metagross ex, Marnie’s Grimmsnarl ex, Misty’s Gyarados, Cynthia’s Garchomp ex, and Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex.

Misty&rsquo;s Gyarados and Ethan&rsquo;s Ho-Oh ex, which leaks say will appear in Pokemon TCG: Destined Rivals — (Image credit: The Pokemon Company via Pokebeach)

According to Water Pokemon Master, a PokeBeach contributor, the reason why the upcoming set will see the spotlight shifted away from Team Rocket is that “modern English sets are huge and combine multiple Japanese sources”. While the Japanese market sees two distinct releases through Heat Wave Arena in March and The Glory of Team Rocket in April, Destined Rivals is supposedly set to mash the content of those sets into a single super-sized English language equivalent.

Recent history of the Pokemon TCG release schedule certainly seems to support this trend too. For example, Prismatic Evolutions combined cards from the two Japanese sets, Terastal Fest and Generation Start Decks, while Surging Sparks managed to cram elements of three different Japan-exclusive releases. So, it seems pretty clear: not only are the English equivalents of Pokemon TCG boosters a whole lot bigger than their Japanese counterparts, the sets they make up are too.

For recommendations on what to play next, check out our guide to the best board games. Looking for presents, on the other hand? Don't miss these essential gifts for gamers.

Abigail used to be a Tabletop & Merch writer at Gamesradar+ but has now spread her wings as a freelancer. She carries at least one Magic: The Gathering deck in her backpack at all times and always spends far too long writing her D&D character backstory. She’s a lover of all things cute, creepy, and creepy-cute.