Palworld OCG vs TCG Print Differences: step-by-step
The order to work through, with the mistake each step removes.
Updated for the current Palworld patch
- ✓1. Read the printed code first
- ✓2. Compare the card face language and rules block
- ✓3. Check texture and ink sheen under raking light
- ✓4. Measure thickness with a caliper, not by feel
1. Read the printed code first
The code block on the card face identifies the run before any texture test. English Western printings use the leading-E codes listed at /cards; a code that does not match that pattern is not from the English run.
2. Compare the card face language and rules block
Language, name formatting and the rules-text layout are the second identifier and need no equipment. Photograph both cards side by side at the same distance.
3. Check texture and ink sheen under raking light
Hold both cards at a shallow angle to a single light source. Differences show up as gloss level and as how the foil catches the light. Judge run-to-run, and only between copies you know the origin of.
4. Measure thickness with a caliper, not by feel
Stack five cards from each run and measure the stack, then divide. A single-card measurement sits inside normal tolerance and tells you nothing.
5. Test sleeve fit in both directions
Fit matters more than the raw number for play and storage: a card that binds in a sleeve creeps at the corners. Test the sleeve you actually use.
6. Record what you measured before you value anything
Note the codes, the light, the sleeve and the stack measurement. Undocumented print-difference claims are treated as guesses by buyers and graders alike.