The Pokemon Company has announced Pokemon TCG SM8 set Explosive Impact will be released in Japan on September 7, 2018.

The timing of Explosive Impact’s release casts doubt on the release date of Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee for Nintendo Switch, if a Unova themed TCG set is still planned for the Sun and Moon (SM) generation, and Pokemon Let’s Go is still scheduled to launch before 2018 ends.

In the world of Pokemon TCG, the previous generation’s final set usually launches 2 to 3 months before the new generation’s video game arrives, followed by the new generation’s first TCG set released 1 month after the video game’s launch. Here’s the release dates of past TCG and video games:

• Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon for the 3DS were released on November 17th, 2017.
  • Two months before: Japan’s version of Crimson Invasion, the last set of the SM block, was released on September 15th, 2017.
  • One month later: Japan’s version of Ultra Prism, the first USUM set, was released on December 8th.
• Sun and Moon were released for the 3DS on November 8th, 2016.
  • Two months before: Japan’s version of Evolutions, the last X/Y set, was released on September 16th, 2016
  • One month later: The first SM TCG set, Sun & Moon, was released on December 9th, 2016.
• Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire were released on November 21st, 2014.
  • Two months before: XY Phantom Forces was released on September 13th, 2014.
  • One month later: XY Primal Clash (featuring ORAS) was released on December 13th, 2014.
• X and Y for the 3DS were released on October 12th, 2013.
  • Three months before: Legendary Treasures, a B/W set, was released on July 13th, 2013.
  • Two months later: The first XY set was released on December 13th, 2013.
• Black 2 and White 2 for the DS were released on June 23rd, 2012.
  • Three months before: Japan’s version of Dragons Exalted released on March 16th, 2012.
  • One month later: Japan’s version of Boundaries Crossed (featuring BW2) released on July 13, 2012.
• Black and White for the DS were released on September 18th, 2010.
  • Two months before: HS – Triumphant, the last HGSS set, released on July 8th, 2010.
  • Three months later: The first Black & White TCG set released on December 17th, 2010.

Thus this leads us to three potential outcomes:

1. Pokemon Let’s GO Pikachu and Eevee aren’t coming in 2018 after all. If that happens, the SM Unova TCG set will launch in December, followed by the release of the new Kanto TCG in 2019.
2. The SM Unova TCG set will be skipped.
3. The Pokemon Company’s TCG department decides to ignore Pokemon Let’s GO Pikachu and Eevee, thus the SM Unova TCG releases this year and so do the Switch games.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments!