Pokemon TCG Temporal Forces ETB review: Pretty standard fare

Wondering whether to pick up the Pokemon TCG Temporal Forces Elite Trainer Box or not? Here, you’ll find our complete review of the ETB and everything inside it.

Pokemon TCG Temporal Forces has been an exciting and divisive set for the Pokemon community so far, with some gorgeous cards that are sure to be collector’s pieces for a good while.

The Elite Trainer Box is always one of the most popular Pokemon TCG products in a set release. Plus, the Temporal Forces ETB comes in two different designs – featuring Walking Wake or Iron Leaves, depending on your choice – and we’ve reviewed it here to help you decide whether it’s worth it or not.

Pokemon TCG – Temporal Forces ETB key details

• Price: $49.99-59.99
• Developer: The Pokemon Company
• Release date: 22nd March 2024

What’s in the box?

• 11 Temporal Forces Booster Packs
• A full-art foil promo card
• 45 Energy cards
• 65 card sleeves, featuring the Pokemon on the box
• A player’s guide to the set
• 6 damage-counter dice
• 1 competition-legal coin-flip die
• 2 plastic condition markers
• A solid box with dividers
• A code card for Pokemon TCG Live

Opening the treasure trove

Something that’s important to note before we jump straight into this is that this was our reviewer’s first time opening up an Elite Trainer Box.

Upon first glance, the product looked great and the packaging was sturdy. This is always a good sign, as badly packaged products usually have damaged cards inside. There was a little warping on the sleeve of the box thanks to the shrink-wrap, but it was nothing major.

Inside the ETB, everything was divided and packaged up quite nicely. There were cardboard dividers to keep everything separated where relevant, and most items were easy to spot at a glance.

This may sound like a silly critique, but going from unboxing the Paldea Adventure Chest to this item was a little underwhelming. The Adventure Chest offered an interesting opening experience, with hidden compartments and pop-ups, and this was just a box with extra steps.

Checking out the contents

One of the main selling points of an Elite Trainer Box is that they offer a lot of value inside. As listed above, there are plenty of TCG accessories included alongside the Temporal Forces Booster Packs.

It’s all themed very nicely, too. We picked up the Walking Wake box as the color scheme was very appealing to us and we were pleasantly surprised to find that the accessories inside matched the theming perfectly.

The featured promo card with Flutter Mane was a welcome addition – but unfortunately, it came wrapped in flimsy plastic and bent in the box. It wasn’t a major piece of damage, but it was disappointing to unwrap it and immediately spot a flaw.

There’s been a lot of debate about the pull rates with Temporal Forces so far, but we found a solid variety of cards in our box including a full-art Litten and a Hyper Rare Iron Leaves.

Verdict – 3.5/5

All in all, this was a decent unboxing experience. There was nothing remarkable about the Temporal Forces ETB – it did exactly what it said on the box and offered a good variety of products, allowing our reviewer a glimpse at a large portion of the expansion set.

The bending on the promo card was quite disappointing, hence the slightly lower score. It’s obviously hard to say whether this was a one-off or whether it’ll be the case in every ETB, but it has been known to happen with Pokemon products in the past e.g. the Holiday Calendar from 2023.

If you’ve already bought an Elite Trainer Box or two, this may not be the best choice for you out of the Temporal Forces line-up. Grab a Booster Bundle instead – there’s nothing majorly unique about this item, unless you’re keen on the featured Paradox Pokemon.

If you’re a new Pokemon fan and you’re trying to figure out which TCG product will show you the best bits of Temporal Forces while giving you plenty of packs to open, this could be a great pick for you. It’s a solid product and ideal for folk who’ve never picked up an ETB before.

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