Pokémon TCG Pocket’s latest expansion just dropped, and it brings brand-new cards, even more Pokémon, and a pretty serious slip-up with regard to copyright law. Dubbed Wisdom of Sea and Sky, the expansion offers two different packs to pull from: a Ho-Oh themed pack, and a Lugia-themed pack. The controversy stems from illustrations; after datamining, fans pointed out that the Ho-Oh EX and the Lugia EX card art were seemingly plagiarized.
The original artist @lanjiujiu shared a post on X, and it’s easy to see the similarities even at a glance. Although this isn’t proof that assets were stolen (and Lanjiujiu made a statement asserting that), it was enough to raise eyebrows — and enough for Pokémon TCG Pocket to pull the art in favor of placeholders.
The team released a statement addressing the concerns just after midnight this morning. “After internal review, we discovered that the card production team provided incorrect reference materials as official documents to the illustrator commissioned to create these cards. As a result, both cards have been replaced with a temporary placeholder that the team is actively working to replace with new artwork as soon as it’s ready.”
That said, the situation isn’t totally clear. There are indications that the original artwork was a commission from the Pokémon Company, in which case it likely already owns the art. Another consideration is that the legal terms of use stipulate the Pokémon Company potentially has the right to use fan art without notifying the original creator.
The legal statement reads, “Distribution in any form and any channels now known or in the future of derivative works based on the copyrighted property trademarks, service marks, trade names and other proprietary property (Fan Art) of The Pokémon Company International, Inc., its affiliates and licensors (Pokémon) constitutes a royalty-free, non-exclusive, irrevocable, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide license from the Fan Art’s creator to Pokémon to use, transmit, copy, modify, and display Fan Art (and its derivatives) for any purpose. No further consideration or compensation of any kind will be given for any Fan Art.”
In other words, feel free to enjoy the game and its expansions, but be aware that any art you share might one day be used without credit to you.
