You’d think by now that The Pokémon Company and GameStop would’ve learned their lesson — if something can be distributed digitally, it probably should be. But no, here we are again. A shiny new giveaway meant to celebrate Scarlet and Violet has turned into yet another mess, as scalpers swoop in like Murkrow at midnight to ruin the fun for everyone else.
Here’s what the event was supposed to be: between September 26 and October 15, fans could walk into participating GameStop or EB Games stores to grab a free code for either a Shiny Koraidon or Shiny Miraidon — the two Legendary Pokémon that appear on the covers of Scarlet and Violet. These variants have never been released before, making this a dream opportunity for collectors and shiny hunters alike. No purchase necessary. Just show up, ask nicely, and boom — free Shiny Legendary.
Codes Gone, Prices Up
Reports started flooding in within days of the launch: stores running out of codes, sometimes within hours. Some employees claimed they were told to give codes only with purchases, despite the official Pokémon website clearly stating otherwise. Others said their stores never received codes at all. And before long, those same codes started appearing on eBay, priced anywhere from a few bucks to $30 or more.It’s not hard to see what went wrong. These codes are printed on physical cards, which means supplies are limited — unlike digital distributions that can scale infinitely. Combine that with a new Pokémon TCG set dropping on the same day, and you’ve got a perfect storm for opportunists. People who showed up for cards walked out with every single code they could get, ready to flip them online for profit.
And while Pokémon is no stranger to brand synergy — timing game updates, TCG launches, and merch drops together — the move to make these shiny codes scarce feels shortsighted at best. Instead of rewarding loyal players, it’s rewarded the scalpers.
Fans are hoping more codes arrive before the event officially ends in mid-October, but as of now, it looks like GameStop underestimated the demand — again. For a company that’s been partnering with The Pokémon Company for years, you’d expect smoother coordination. Instead, this giveaway turned into another reminder that when it comes to Pokémon events, scarcity always finds a way to spoil the fun.
We can only hope that GameStop and The Pokémon APK Company manage to ship out more codes before the October deadline. Because sending enough stock for just one weekend's rush sounds less like a promotion and more like a colossal failure of planning.