How to play Pokémon cards: the basics
What you need
Each player has a 60-card deck of Pokémon, Energy and Trainer cards.
Setup
Shuffle and draw seven cards. Put one Basic Pokémon face down as your Active Pokémon and up to five more on your Bench. Set six cards aside as Prize cards, then turn your Pokémon face up.
Your turn
Draw a card. Then you can play Basic Pokémon to your Bench, evolve Pokémon, attach one Energy card, play Trainer cards, and retreat your Active Pokémon. Finish by attacking, which ends your turn. The player who goes first cannot attack on their first turn.
How to win
You win when you take your last Prize card, when your opponent has no Pokémon in play, or when your opponent cannot draw a card at the start of their turn. Each time you knock out a Pokémon you take a Prize card.
Rules are updated over time, so check the official rulebook for the latest version.