You are bidding on the Pokemon Card Featured in the Title and Pictures Below.
PSA 8!!!
1999 Pokémon Game Blastoise Holo #2/102 – PSA NM-MT 8
This is a strong vintage Pokémon card and one of the safer blue-chip style WOTC pieces to own if you want something iconic without paying Charizard money. Base Set Blastoise sits in that tier of cards where the appeal goes way beyond the exact print run or short-term market movement. It’s one of the original flagship Pokémon cards from the very beginning of the English TCG, and that alone gives it a level of collector demand that a lot of other vintage holos simply don’t have. Even though this is the unlimited version rather than 1st Edition or Shadowless, it’s still one of the core cards people think of when they think “vintage Pokémon.”
This is the 1999 Base Set holographic Blastoise, card #2/102, graded PSA NM-MT 8. That’s a very respectable grade for a Base Set holo, especially one of the major chase cards from the set. PSA 8 is not ultra-premium in the way a PSA 9 or 10 is, but for vintage Pokémon it’s still a high-quality collector grade and often the point where you get the best balance of eye appeal, affordability, and liquidity. A lot of serious collectors intentionally target PSA 7–8 vintage holos because they still present very well while staying much more attainable than the top-pop grades.
Card Details:
• Set: 1999 Pokémon Base Set
• Card: Blastoise Holo
• Card Number: #2/102
• Language: English
• Grade: PSA NM-MT 8
• Certification #: 49169774
• Illustrator: Ken Sugimori
Why this card matters:
Blastoise is one of the foundational Pokémon cards in the hobby. It’s one of the original Base Set “big three” alongside Charizard and Venusaur, and it has always carried real demand because it checks every nostalgia box at once: starter final evolution, original 151, early WOTC holo, and one of the most recognizable artworks in the entire franchise. Even collectors who aren’t specifically Blastoise fans understand exactly what this card is the second they see it.
That matters because demand for cards like this tends to be deeper and more durable than demand for second-tier vintage holos. There are always collectors building Base Set holo runs, starter evolution collections, original 151 collections, or simply trying to own one clean example of each of the iconic early cards. Blastoise is one of the names that repeatedly shows up in all of those categories.
Set context:
This is the unlimited Base Set version, which is important because the value hierarchy for Base Set Blastoise is very clear:
• 1st Edition is the premium grail-tier version
• Shadowless is the next major collector version
• Unlimited is the most accessible and liquid version
That doesn’t hurt the card in a major way from a collector standpoint. In some ways it actually helps, because unlimited Base Set copies are the entry point for people who want the classic Blastoise without spending into four-figure or five-figure territory. You still get the original card, the original art, the original era, and the original nostalgia hit — just in the most obtainable version.
Artwork / design:
Ken Sugimori’s Base Set Blastoise artwork is one of the defining images of early Pokémon TCG. It’s simple compared with later full-art cards, but that simplicity is part of why it works so well. Blastoise is centered, powerful, and immediately recognizable, with the blue card frame and holo background giving it that unmistakable Base Set look. The card has great visual balance, and the pose gives Blastoise the heavy, tank-like feel it should have.
This is also one of those cards where the old WOTC holofoil really matters. The classic holo background gives the card life without overwhelming the artwork, and on Base Set holos that old-school presentation is a huge part of the appeal. It doesn’t need flashy modern effects because the nostalgia and design language do the work.
How PSA 8 fits:
PSA 8 is a strong grade for a card like this. Vintage Base Set holos are notorious for holo scratching, edge wear, silvering, corner touch, print defects, and back whitening, so a PSA 8 generally means you have a copy that is clean and attractive overall but not pristine enough to enter mint territory. That’s a very good place to be as a collector.
In practical terms, PSA 8 Base Set holos are often where value starts to make sense. You’re buying a card that still feels premium and display-worthy, but you’re not paying the much steeper premium attached to PSA 9s and especially PSA 10s. For a card with this level of hobby recognition, that makes PSA 8 a very rational grade to own.
How it fits in the market:
Base Set Blastoise is one of the better long-term vintage Pokémon cards because it has multiple demand drivers working in its favor:
• original Base Set holo
• one of the three starter final evolutions
• iconic Gen 1 Pokémon
• one of the most recognizable WOTC artworks
• always relevant to collectors of early Pokémon history
It’s obviously not Charizard in terms of price ceiling or overall hype, but that’s not really a weakness. In some ways Blastoise benefits from being a little less overheated because it remains a serious collector card without needing the same level of speculative attention. It tends to function more like a stable cornerstone vintage piece than a hype-driven lottery ticket.
Why collectors specifically want this one:
• one of the key chase cards from 1999 Base Set
• original English WOTC holo of a top-tier Gen 1 Pokémon
• iconic artwork that almost every Pokémon collector recognizes instantly
• much more affordable than 1st Edition or Shadowless while still giving you the true Base Set version
• strong liquidity because Base Set starter holos always have an audience
• PSA holder adds confidence and resale strength in the Pokémon market
I’d view this as a legitimate vintage cornerstone card rather than just “another old holo.” It has the kind of hobby relevance that keeps it desirable across different market cycles because it isn’t dependent on novelty. People aren’t buying this because it’s the newest thing or because it had a random price spike; they buy it because Base Set Blastoise is one of the cards that defines Pokémon card collecting in the first place.
This is a very good WOTC hold. PSA 8 Base Set Blastoise gives you one of the most important original Pokémon holos in a collector-grade slab at a level that’s still attainable, liquid, and highly recognizable.
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PSA 8!!!
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Please email with any questions or for additional pictures. Item is much nicer than the pictures above. It is just awesome! Please read the about me to get to know me better. This Item is hard to photo so trust in my feedback that this is the Real Deal. This hard to find Item does not come up for auction that often so make sure you get this One. Please make sure to check out my other auctions. I have many hard to find Items up for auction this week. Thanks and good luck bidding! Please be aware that my local post office scans NOTHING when I drop it off, because of this it will give a 2-3 day delay for the tracking to update--some customers actually get the package before the tracking updates(This does NOT mean that I do not mail it out right away). Thank you for your patience, your order will still be received in a timely fashion and in the condition described in the listing, however it might take a little longer than normal for you to be able to follow the history of the package especially if you live on the West Coast. If you have any questions about this please send me a message. |
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