Today, The Pokémon Company International has broadly released the Pokémon Trading Card Game Battle Academy, the first-ever board-game adaptation of the best-selling Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG), at participating physical and online retailers around the world.
Designed for Trainers of all types, including parents and children who may be new to the Pokémon TCG, Battle Academy reimagines strategic Pokémon TCG gameplay as an easy-to-learn and fun-to-play experience for the whole family that comes in a classic board-game format.
“For more than 20 years, the beloved Pokémon Trading Card Game has connected people across the globe over their shared love of collecting cool cards, trading them with friends, and playing the official game,” said J.C. Smith, senior director of consumer marketing at The Pokémon Company International. “With Battle Academy, we are excited to give families a fun and accessible way to spend quality time together while bonding over something both kids and longtime fans of the franchise adore: Pokémon TCG cards.”
Including everything a Trainer needs to master the basics of the Pokémon TCG, each Battle Academy box comes with a two-player game board, three 60-card decks, tutorial guides, gameplay accessories, and a code card for the free-to-play Pokémon Trading Card Game Online on iOS, Android, and Pokemon.com.
Source: The Pokemon Company UK
“Free-to-play” not “free-to-start”?
If I remember correctly the only way to buy cards is to get the code cards from actual code packs. There is no mtx in the game itself.
*card packs
What about the 1999 board game, Pokémon Master Trainer?