While there are no cards currently restricted within the Standard and Unlimited Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG) formats, there have been some recent updates to the list of banned Pokémon cards in the Expanded format fo 2023. The overall goal that The Pokémon Company has for the Expanded format style is to allow players to have the option of several additional cards in tournaments than can be utilized in Standard format play and includes every card since Pokémon Black and White. Having this many cards available means that naturally there are going to be some which are either overpowered or might have other reasons for being banned from games.

Many avid players will not be surprised when looking at the list of banned Pokémon TCG cards since many of them were banned previously, although there are some changes to the list for 2023. All officially sanctioned Play! Pokémon events will now be following this updated list regarding the banned Pokémon cards. The new Standard format rotations for official tournaments will not begin until April 14, 2023, however.

Related: Pokémon TCG's Banned Kadabra Returning As Part Of New 151 Card Set

Four Cards Were Added To The Pokémon TCG Expanded Format's Banned List

Pokémon TCG's Expanded format regularly has a list of banned cards which gets reevaluated at least yearly by The Pokémon Company. For 2023, there are four new Pokémon cards added to the banned cards list. Community and results of tournaments are monitored to ensure that the game is well-balanced for all players and that any overpowered cards are banned from use as they are discovered. The new additions to the Pokémon TCG's banned card list for 2023 are as follows:

• Milotic from XY - Flashfire, 23/106
• Oranguru from Sun & Moon - Ultra Prism, 114/156
• Sableye from Black & White - Dark Explorers, 62/108
• Shaymin-EX from XY - Roaring Skies, 77/108, 77a/108, and 106/108

All The Banned Expanded Format Pokémon TCG Cards For 2023

While there are many cards that are banned from Pokémon TCG, the Kadabra card returns to the game this year. Kadabra was finally removed from the banned card list after two decades of being tied up in a lawsuit that has finally ended. Many other cards which have been banned for gameplay reasons remain on the list, however, as well as the new additions:

Milotic Had Some Undesirable Combos In Pokémon TCG

The Milotic card from XY has been added to the Pokémon TCG's banned card list due to its Energy Grace Ability creating overpowered combinations in games. When the ability was used with Pokémon-GX and Pokémon V cards, particularly with Trevenant & Dusknoir-GX, there was an unfair advantage gained. As more Pokémon V cards release, The Pokémon Company predicts there would likely be even combos utilizing Milotic's ability.

Pokémon TCG Found Oranguru & Sableye Cards Can Give Too Many Resources

Both the Oranguru and Sableye cards have been added to the Pokémon TCG's 2023 ban list for similar reasons. Between the Resource Management attack of Oranguru, and Sableye's unique Junk Hunt attack, players could have nearly infinite resource-gathering capabilities. Players' Pokemon TCG tournament collections that included either of these cards were able to cause a control and lock strategy which did not balance well in games.

Shaymin-EX Consistently Provided Pokémon TCG Players Repetitious Card Drawing

Perhaps the most surprising to get added to the 2023 Pokémon TCG banned card list, the Shamin-EX card has landed a spot on the 2023 list due to its Set Up Ability - which allows players to draw until they have six cards in their hand. Some people have figured out that when this is combined with the Scoop Up Net card, which puts a card back from the bench into a players hand, the two cards can be used together to draw several cards repeatedly in a single turn. Other cards are known to have similar actions; however, they are allowed because they limit it to only one use per turn.

Naturally, competitive players want to have the strongest Pokémon TCG decks possible, and outside monitoring is necessary to keep things running smoothly. Because of how many cards the Pokémon Trading Card Game allows in the Expanded format games and tournaments, it makes sense that some cards would end up being able to be used in combinations that allow players to gain unfair or overpowered strategies in their decks. With these cards removed, hopefully, every player will be able to have a fun time enjoying all that the game has to offer.

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Source: The Pokémon Trading Card Game Official Website