GameStop Is Threatening Pokémon Scalpers With Lifetime Bans If They Catch Them Weighing Packs

Pokémon card scalpers are getting even more creative in their quest to ruin the card collectors’ hobby forever. Lately, resellers have started bringing scales to stores to weigh packs before they buy them in hopes of identifying ones with heavier rare cards inside. GameStop, the store that likes to play nice with America’s fascist regime on social media, is warning scalpers that if they do this in their Funko Pop-covered walls, they’ll be banned from the store for the rest of their lives.

If you bring a scale to GameStop to weigh Pokémon packs we will ban you for life for your own good. https://t.co/nAiu7vwVAa

— GameStop (@gamestop) November 17, 2025

Though there are conflicting accounts on this, some Pokémon collectors believe that packs with rare full art cards weigh more than those without them. All these cards are made of the same cardboard, but full art cards do weigh slightly more because they have more ink and foil than a standard card. Depending on the scale you use, you may be able to pick up slight variations in weight, but it’s not a foolproof tactic.

Now, will anyone actually enforce this? Probably not. The GameStop social media accounts love to performatively post things like memes and nostalgia-bait content. Funnily enough, if you look at the replies, you’ll see several commenters pointing out that GameStop locations tend to sell Pokémon cards at inflated prices, so the store is actively benefiting from this nonsense. But hey, if we hear that someone is actually getting banned for weighing Pokémon cards at a GameStop, we’ll be sure to write about it here at Kotaku dot com.

Other stores like Walmart have finally started to take some action against scalpers after years of people reselling Pokémon cards have finally come back to bite them in the ass, with several viral videos of employees doing nothing to stop it. Stories of scalpers and retailer indifference have become so prominent that the good in the hobby has become overshadowed by the bad, though there are still parts of the community that are trying to ensure it stays a welcoming place for real fans.

GameStop employees are about to face plenty of chaos without having to slap the wrists of a scalper with a scale. The store is having a “Trade Anything Day” that will let customers bring in just about anything in hopes of getting store credit, and workers are bracing themselves for the chaos, panic, and disorder they’re going to be stuck dealing with because corporate wanted a day of viral shenanigans.