Pokemon TCG Announces Next Japanese Set, Next English Set Name Leaked

A new Japanese Pokemon TCG set has been announced featuring new Pokemon from the Kitikami region, while leaks have revealed the name of the next international set. Today, The Pokemon Company announced Crimson Haze, a new Japanese set focused on Bloodmoon Ursaluna and featuring other Pokemon from the Kitakami region like Sinistcha and Dipplin. The set is due to be released in March in Japan. One interesting note is that, in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, Bloodmoon Ursaluna is a unique Pokemon that can't be evolved from an Ursaring under normal circumstances. Whether that means that Bloodmoon Ursaluna will be a Basic Pokemon in the Pokemon TCG set remains to be seen. 

Additionally, PokeBeach has confirmed that the next English set will be called Twilight Masquerade and will focus on Ogerpon and Bloodmoon Ursaluna. This international set will combine the Crimson Haze and Masks of Change sets from Japan, serving as a more robust Kitakami-focused set for the international crowd. Twilight Masquerade will be the second "normal" set released in 2024, following the Temporal Forces set that will be released this month in the US and internationally. A special set - Paldean Fates - was also released earlier this year, featuring a mix of new cards and reprints featuring artwork of Shiny Pokemon. 

The Pokemon Trading Card Game is currently expanding on two mechanics, both of which are re-implementations of past mechanics featured in past eras in the set. The Temporal Forces set will bring back ACE SPEC cards, powerful trainer cards that are limited to one card per deck. Recent sets have also added Ancient and Future cards, labels that have no specific mechanics attached to them, but often specifically interact with other Ancient or Future cards. A similar label mechanic was introduced in the Scarlet & Violet era and had a profound impact on deck builds and competitive play.