CGC-certified Pokémon Playtest Cards Realize Impressive Prices in 2024 Alt Auctions

Throughout 2024, CGC Cards™ had the opportunity to certify hundreds of prototype, playtest and presentation Pokémon cards that illustrate the development process of the Pokémon TCG. CGC Cards verified the cards’ authenticity and history with the help of Takumi Akabane — one of the original developers of the Pokémon TCG — and encapsulated them in CGC Cards’ state-of-the-art holder. For more information about these proof of concept, prototype, playtest and presentation Pokémon cards, click here.

Many of these cards made their way to auction platforms after being certified. Alt Auctions, in particular, has been offering these CGC-certified Pokémon cards on their weekly auction platform since August 2024 (and they’re still offering them now!). Many have realized impressive prices. Here are some sales highlights from 2024:

Delta Playtest Charizard

A Charizard, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Delta Playtest graded CGC Gem Mint 10 realized $99,000 on October 24, leading the CGC-certified prototypes on Alt’s weekly platform. While many playtest and prototype cards are exciting and rare collectibles, it is no surprise that Charizard is among the most popular of these cards. The Delta Playtest phase of the Pokémon TCG’s development was the final playtest phase. The cards in this set are very close to how they appear in the final version of the game, as demonstrated by this Charizard card featuring Mitsuhiro Arita’s famous artwork.

Click images to enlarge.

Delta Playtest Blastoise

Also from the Delta Playtest phase of development, this Blastoise, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Delta Playtest graded CGC Gem Mint 10 realized $49,688 on October 24. The Blastoise artwork by Ken Sugimori is the same that appears in Base Set.

Click images to enlarge.

Other notable CGC-certified Pokémon playtest cards that sold on Alt in the last few months include:

• a Magikarp, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Alpha Playtest graded CGC 9 that realized $25,541 on August 29
• a Gyarados, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Alpha Playtest graded CGC 8 that realized $21,600 on August 29
• a Charizard, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Beta Playtest graded CGC 9 that realized $19,597 on November 14
• a Zapdos, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Alpha Playtest graded CGC Pristine 10 that realized $18,000 on August 29
• a Pikachu, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Alpha Playtest graded CGC 9 that realized $16,800 on October 24
• a Pikachu, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Beta Playtest graded CGC 9.5 that realized $15,600 on October 24
• a Charmander, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Beta Playtest graded CGC 9 that realized $15,006 on October 17
• a Bulbasaur, Pokémon (1996) Japanese Delta Playtest graded CGC 9 that realized $13,800 on November 28

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for TCGs, sports cards and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. The newest division of CGC, CGC Home Video, provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of home media, including Betamax tapes, DVDs and Blu-ray discs.