If you have been tearing into real Pokémon packs lately, that buzz you get from a shiny pull is hard to beat, but more and more players are chasing that same feeling in the apps, using every booster code they can find to buy cheap Pokemon TCG Pocket Items or just stack digital packs so they can keep building decks without emptying their wallet.

The McDonald's Hourglass Promo

Right now the big talking point for Pocket is that McDonald's promo landing on 21 January 2025, and it is way better than the usual plastic toy because every Happy Meal ordered through the official app comes with a gift code emailed straight to you, not printed on the box, and that code turns into Hourglasses, which feels huge when you are staring at pack timers and wishing they would just reset already.

Where Codes Actually Come From

Outside of burger runs, most people still pick up codes from physical stuff like booster boxes, Elite Trainer Boxes, and the odd pre-built deck, and if you pay attention to the official newsletters or jump into livestreams, you sometimes catch limited-time codes that vanish fast, so a lot of players keep a spare inbox just for that, but the part that confuses new folks is that Live and Pocket do not treat these codes in the same way at all.

Pokemon TCG Live vs Pocket Redemption

On Pokémon TCG Live, things are pretty chill because you open the app, slide over to the Shop tab, tap Redeem, and you are done, you can key the code in by hand if you are stubborn, but most people just point their phone at the QR code and let the camera do the work, and the only catch is that there is a cap per expansion, roughly a few hundred codes, so if you hoard old sets you will eventually bump into that limit and wonder why your last few cards do not go through.

Using Codes To Stay Competitive

Pocket feels a bit clunky in comparison because there is no in-app button for codes at all, no hidden menu, nothing, you have to go through the official website to redeem every single one, which throws off a lot of players who spend ten minutes hunting through the settings before realising it is just not there, and that is why plenty of people lean on trades, real-money bundles, or buy game currency or items in RSVSR when they are chasing specific immersive cards or trying to keep up with a shifting meta and do not want their run to stall just because their pack luck went cold.