Pokemon Scalpers Cause Removal Of Promo Pikachu Giveaway At Van Gogh Collaboration Exhibit

As part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the Van Gogh Museum, a crossover event and exhibition with The Pokemon Company is being held to celebrate Pokemon artwork inspired by Van Gogh’s works. A promotional and time-limited Pokemon card, Pikachu With Grey Felt Hat, was also on offer as part of this celebration.

However, the Van Gogh Museum has announced that it will no longer be offering this Pokemon Card on-site due to the actions of a few visitors who seem to have turned up looking to acquire the card as quickly as possible.

Related: Pokemon TCG: How To Get The Pikachu x Van Gogh Museum Promo Card

Pikachu With Grey Felt Hat is no Longer Available at the Van Gogh Museum

Today, the Van Gogh Museum updated its Pokemon crossover event FAQ page to explain that the Pikachu With Grey Felt Hat Pokemon TCG Card will no longer be available from the museum. Prior to this, visitors could book a ticket and complete an adventure activity at the museum, which would end with them earning the card by answering questions based on the Pokemon exhibition.

From now on, it won’t be possible for anyone attending the Van Gogh Museum to get this promotional Pokemon card. This means anyone who purchased a ticket to attend between now and January, including travel, to get it is making a wasted journey.

The cause of this change is, unfortunately, scalpers—people visiting the museum to get the Pokemon card and flip it online for a profit. At the time of writing, users have posted the card on eBay for between $50 and $200. Sadly, this added scarcity will probably just push the price of the card up.

It’s hardly surprising that these measures have been taken given the atrocious number of visitors hounding the Van Ghog Museum’s shop staff on the day the exhibition began. The items purchased, some exclusive to the museum, also quickly appeared on resale websites as scalpers attempted to make as much money as possible.

The silver lining to this news is that the Pikechu With Grey Felt Hat card isn’t gone forever. Fans will have a chance to get it through the Pokemon Center Online in the future. The crossover collection sold out so fast that most people barely had a chance to even look at the products, but it looks like another load of stock is coming soon.