DALLAS, TX.- A copy of the extraordinarily rare Prerelease Raichu — the sole example so far to be authenticated and encapsulated by PSA — sold for $555,000, including Buyer's Premium, on September 19 at Heritage's Sept. 19-20 Trading Card Games Signature® Auction, setting the world record price for a single English-language Pokémon Trading Card Game card and leading Heritage to a $1,358,685 auction total.

"It was an honor to be able to offer this extraordinary card, which had been shrouded in mystery for so long," says Jesus Garcia, Consignment Director of Trading Card Games at Heritage Auctions. "The result was well-deserved for the card."

What makes this card so special is the mark "Prerelease" in the lower right corner of the artwork of the character, a factory error that dates back to the early days of the game, when game publisher Wizards of the Coast hosted test league events where players learned the game. Four official prerelease promo cards — Jungle, Fossil, Team Rocket and Gym Heroes — were given as prizes at these events. Apparently during production of one of the prize prerelease cards, a handful of Base Set Raichu cards were also marked "Prerelease" by mistake, though the error was never publicly acknowledged and dismissed as rumor for years.

Another notable sale from the auction was a sealed Creatures Deck half deck, originally a gift box of 30 cards given to select staff members, illustrators and others in 2021 to mark the game's 25th anniversary, with each symbolizing a year from Pokémon's history and three cards representing the founding of Creatures, Inc. One of those boxes, sealed, ended up in the hands of a collector at a hammer price of $200,000, including Buyer's Premium, an auction record for the sought-after deck.

"This area of the market is reaching all-time highs, and results like this are a clear indication of its strength," Garcia says. "These cards were once considered a child's game, and now they're a full-fledged collectible market."