Famously useless Pokémon card sees $100 price spike in just two weeks

Magikarp is, canonically, one of the most pathetic pocket monsters in the entire Pokémon TCG. All it’s capable of doing is splashing, tackling, occasionally flailing about, and eventually evolving into Gyarados. Despite being the fishy punchline of the Pokédex, though, Magikarp does sometimes get a moment in the sun. In 2023’s Paldea Evolved set, the floppy fish finally got its own Illustrated Rare card – and it’s now seriously sought after, with Magikarp 203/193‘s market value shooting up by over $100 in the last two weeks.

The card has steadily been rising in value since May 2025, but it suddenly hit true ‘price spike’ territory in mid September. On September 19, according to data from TCGplayer, this printing of Magikarp was valued at $296. Two weeks later, on October 3, that price had risen to $405, an increase of $109.

This card’s artwork was drawn by Shinji Kanda, and it’s not the first of their pieces to abruptly explode in value. Collectors often buy up cards illustrated by Kanda, anticipating that the value of cards drawn in their signature style will only increase with time.

Gameplay-wise, this Magikarp is incredibly unremarkable. With a measly 30HP, just about anything from Sunkern to Spinarak can finish it off. Its only attack, Expert Splasher, deals just 10 damage. By flipping two heads in a row, you can boost that to a (still deeply unimpressive) 30. Clearly, like its fishy forebears before it, this ‘karp will only see combat once it has evolved into Gyarados.

But it’s just another reminder that, for collectors, a card’s charisma, uniqueness, charm, rarity, and artistic merit tend to trump its in-game power 99 times out of 100.

Paldea Evolved’s Illustrated Rare Magikarp isn’t even the most valuable Magikarp out there. In fact, it’s a pretty small fish in a very big pond. Our list of the most expensive rare Pokémon cards of all time features three Magikarps that can swim financial rings around this one.

Would you ever spend 400 bucks on a fish that can’t fight? Let us know about your zaniest Pokémon card purchases in the Wargamer Discord server.