Please Don’t Trash Your Food for Pokémon Cards

McDonald’s offered Pokémon cards in Happy Meals in Japan. The promotion had some issues, including patrons discarding the food for the cards. Also, how much does the average North American and European spend per year on gaming? Find out along with the latest news. Let’s go!

A huge McStake

A McDonald's Pokémon promotion that was slated to go for three days ended after one when it did not go well at all. 

McDonald's franchises in Japan had planned to offer Happy Meals Aug. 9-11 that included an exclusive pack of Pokémon cards. Each pack was guaranteed to contain a unique Pikachu card that was not available elsewhere. 

Unsurprisingly, the cards were popular with collectors and scalpers. VGC breaks down what happened when the cards when on sale:

Reports then emerged that people were buying thousands of dollars worth of food, removing the Pokémon cards, and then leaving the uneaten food on the street to rot. This, combined with reports of boxes of the cards being illegally sold by McDonald’s employees, caused the promotion to be quickly shut down.

Apart from wasted food, fights were reported at some McDonald’s in the country. The restaurant chain quickly issued an apology, saying:

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused to customers who look forward to dining with their children, grandchildren, or friends due to these purchase restrictions. We will continue to review and improve these sales methods and measures, listening to the opinions of our customers and store staff.

McDonald’s plans to offer Pokémon Happy Meals again this week, but is implementing new rules it hopes will prevent a similar scene. Some changes include only three Happy Meals will be available per group and mobile orders will only receive Pokémon toys instead of the cards.

How much do you spend on games?

A new study says that North Americans players spend $325 per year on gaming, more than anywhere else in the world. 

The report by Newzoo, a games data research firm reveals some other interesting statistics, including: 

• Europeans spend significantly less than their North American counterparts, with Western Europe players averaging $170 and Eastern Europe at $51.6 per year.
• North American players spend most of their money on shooters, while Europeans spend theirs on sports games. 
• The report says the global gaming market size is $189 billion, with North America making up 28% ($52.7 billion) and Euope 18% ($33.1 billion). 

In a separate report out last week, data research firm Circana found that Generation Z is spending significantly less on video games than older players. Circana’s Mat Piscatella posted about it on Bluesky:

Side Quests (more stories worth reading)

🇬🇧 GameIndustry.biz looks at the reaction to the UK's Online Safety Act.

✉️ Arkane Studios’ union published an open letter to Microsoft, saying the company “has no place being [an] accomplice of a genocide.”

🤝 Blackbird Interactive, developer of Homeworld 3 and Minecraft Legends, has reacquired the rights of Hardspace: Shipbreaker.

📅 Crimson Desert is delayed from 2025 to the first quarter of 2026. 

✊🏽 Developers working in Blizzard's story and franchise development division voted to unionize. 

🐮 PETA is asking Nintendo to remove Cow’s nose ring in Mario Kart World. 

📊 Remedy says FBC: Firebreak “succeeded technically,” but the studio is “unsatisfied” with the launch. 

👋🏻 PUBG announced it is ending support for last-generation consoles starting in November. 

📈 A former PlayStation executive says game prices should increase with every new generation of hardware. 

🏎️ An arcade game based on the Fast & Furious films is coming to consoles later this year. 

🔫 The studio behind Battlefield 6 says it prevented 330,000 cheating attempts during the game's two day open beta. 

🐬 Krafton claims that the fired head developers working on Subnautica 2 lost interest in the project, instead focusing on personal projects.  

⌨️ After 16 years, League of Legends is testing a new WASD control scheme. 

🖥️ A new trailer for Helldivers 2 on Xbox teases a Halo crossover. 

🤵🏿 “The idea was for a Black James Bond,” the Guardian looks at the making of 50 Cent: Bulletproof.

New Releases this week:

Check out our article on 10 New Games to Play in August.

8/19: Sword of the Sea (PlayStation and PC)
8/21: Discounty (PlatStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)
8/21: Herdling (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)
8/21: Altheia: The Wrath of Aferi (PC)

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