One of the reworks Niantic has done with Pokemon Go since it started is the way coins are earned. It’s improved, but they’ve also got an exchange rate as steep as Bitcoin, which sucks if you don’t want to take over gyms.
Lucky for us, the internet is old school and has a bunch of cool Pokemon pins we can get using actual money.
Yep, that’s more in game coins to use for Magikarp hats. Yaaaay!
1. Gyms Are Cool… in Passing
Source: amazon.com
Nobody wants to stand around battling a 13000HP Ditto for ten minutes when they could be somewhere else (like battling an enemy team’s gym to take over it, which will take two seconds). Though, when I say “nobody”, I do mostly mean me. These Pokemon pins are from the Indigo League, so they don’t technically deserve the vitriol I have for Pokemon Go! gyms. For the sake of how pretty they are and the fact I’ll get them anyway, teasing them a little isn’t so bad.
Get these Pokemon Gym Badges on amazon.com
2. Mimikyu is the Pokemon All Introverts Can Relate To
Source: amazon.com
Mimikyu is to Pikachu what I am to David Bowie: it walks around in the form of Pikachu, just slightly bashed up and fairly, how do we say uhhh, “home made Halloween costume”? It finds itself horrifying, hence the disguise, but if Beetlejuice taught me anything, it’s not all bloody veins and pus under there. There are a lot of Pokemon pins that come with collectible Pokemon cards. This one is just one of a few, but it’s definitely my favorite.
Get the Mimikyu Pin Collection on amazon.com
3. What Came First: Sharknado or Sharkpedo?
Source: amazon.com
Follow up question: Which is the scariest one, most worthy of a low budget film series that airs during Shark Week in its honor? Sharknado might have that, but Sharkpedo has a mega Pokemon pin that will basically look dive-ine on your lapel. (I did chuckle at myself, yes. Problem?) But yes, this Pokemon pin does also come with a collector card. Most do, so you’ll never lose out!
Get this Mega Sharpedo Pin on amazon.com
4. Use These Pokeball Badges to Catch Mewtwo
Source: amazon.com
What’s the plural for Ditto, anyway? Is it just Ditto a la “sheep”, or is it Dittos? Any-hoo, this pack of Pokemon badges are cute enough to either keep all to yourself, share with friends, or put in little packages for birthday parties. If you’re feeling really adventurous, you can do all of the above and tell them the lie I just told you, that they can be used as actual Pokeballs. Sorry guys. BUT we do have Pokeballs in our Pokemon puzzles article, so swing by there and cry no longer.
Get these Pokeball Badges on amazon.com
5. Team Mystic Pokemon Pin
Source: amazon.com
Which team are you in? Tell us on Twitter! Personally, I’m in Valor. As mentioned in an earlier article (see: Pokemon jewelry), I picked it because I liked the color red. What I didn’t disclose was that the trainer looked the coolest and I am nothing if I’m not swayed by cool looking Pokemon trainers. Show camaraderie with your fellow Mystics in this Team Mystic Pokemon pin!
Get the Team Mystic Pin on amazon.com
6. Team Rocket Pin Blasting off at the Speed of Light!
Source: amazon.com
Surrender now or prepare to wear less awesome glossy Pokemon pins because you’re too afraid to admit your allegiance to Jesse, James, and Meowth. (That’s right). You’ll never go wrong in this big R that shows everybody that sees it just who your friends are or that you’re keeping your enemies closer than them. Because they have amazing parties and love cats. Wait a sec, is Team Rocket the Internet??
Get this Glossy Team Rocket Pin on amazon.com
7. Represent Team Instinct
Source: amazon.com
I could make so many team Instinct jokes here but I won’t. None of them matter. Instinct is more than the stuff Mystics and Valor says about them, they’re the Hufflepuffs of the Pokemon world — also underrated — the Baratheons of the Johto region. There’s no reason in the world to discount a team for having fewer people on it. If anything, that should make us more inclined to take them seriously.
And it does.
Get a Team Instinct Pin on amazon.com
Hufflepuffs, we’ve got some Harry Potter bracelets just for you!
8. This Pokemon Go Pin Collection Has Everything Covered
Source: amazon.com
There are the decisive and the indecisive; the loyal and the changeable. Thing is, when it comes to products that come in mass, you can go down either path. Think about it this way: You have one pair of earrings you love to wear and don’t need anymore, then you get tired and forget to put them in. If you have several, there’s the opportunity to change once in a while, but you don’t have to. Same goes with these Pokemon pins. Be a team Mystic one day, Instinct the next. Nobody will tell.
Get this Pokemon Go Pin Collection on amazon.com
9. Pikachu Pin, I Choose You
Source: amazon.com
Let’s keep this one quiet in case Mimikyu can hear, but we all know Pikachu is likely the most loved, adorable Pokemon. The Gizmo of the Pocket Monsters world, he and Ash are the team you’d want on your side, wherever they went. Pikachu is so cute that I don’t even know if he’s classed as cuter than Baby Groot or not. It’s a tough one. Let’s take a look at these Baby Groot gifts and see…
Get this Cute Pikachu Pin on amazon.com
You might also be interested to see who came out on top when we pitted Batman against puppies…
10. With a Set of 48 Pokemon Pins, the World is Your Cloyster
Source: amazon.com
Keep them, give them away, gift them, lose them, wear them. If having just a few choices like the other Pokemon pin packs we’re featuring in this article isn’t enough for you, this pack of 48 probably should be. If you need more, I don’t know what to tell you besides buy this twice and see if you’ve got enough or not then! All our favorite Pokemon and series characters are featured on these badges. And they’re so cheap, are you really losing out?
Get this Set of 48 Pokemon Pins on amazon.com
11. Saving the Best for Last
Source: amazon.com
Just like the song by that person said, I’m saving the best until last which means me being entirely biased and repping my team with a Team Valor pin that makes me proud to be on their side. That’s not to say we can’t be friends, Mystics, and Instincts. It’s mostly just to say that I like red and you guys like blue and yellow, and we can all exist in perfect harmony the way Stevie Wonder would want us to.
Now, let’s all don our Pokemon pins and go take that gym raid from that 13000HP Ditto!
