Two Japanese high-class packs built an entire booster box around shiny Pokemon and gave the top rarity the same three-letter name — but they were printed two years apart, in two different Pokemon TCG eras, and today one of them sits on our shelf as a sealed box while the other doesn’t.
GX Ultra Shiny (SM8b) released in Japan on November 2, 2018, during the Sun & Moon GX era. Shiny Star V (S4a) followed on November 20, 2020, after the switch to Sword & Shield V and VMAX. Both packs used “shiny” colorway Pokemon as their headline rarity and both call that top tier SSR. Past that surface similarity, the two sets diverge on size, structure, and — for buyers today — availability. This guide lines up what’s actually documented about each set and works through which one makes sense to chase depending on what you’re looking for.
Shiny Star V is the one currently in our catalog as a sealed box — currently listed at ¥22,365 (~$137) (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order). GX Ultra Shiny isn’t offered as a sealed box listing right now; the graded piece we carry, a PSA10 Darkrai GX SSR (230/150), is a PSA10 copy currently listed at ¥53,560 (~$329) — graded singles like this are typically not restocked once sold.
Prices are either our own current listings or figures from our published set guides, as noted per row, converted at ¥163/USD. GX Ultra Shiny community pricing was not found in reliable, dated form during our research and is not presented here as a market figure — where a price is not our own listing, that is stated explicitly.
Two Years Apart: From GX to V
GX Ultra Shiny released in Japan on November 2, 2018 as a high-class pack built around GX-era Pokemon in shiny coloring, including shiny GX cards like Charizard-GX and Mewtwo-GX. Its base numbering runs to /150, with the shiny/secret tier numbered above that as a continuation (151 and up). Reported totals for the set vary between sources — some put the full card count near 250, others closer to 414 — and we were not able to resolve that discrepancy to a single confirmed figure, so we treat the total as unverified rather than pick a number. The set’s English counterpart is Hidden Fates, released August 23, 2019 with 163 cataloged cards.
Shiny Star V released two years later, on November 20, 2020, once the franchise had moved into the Sword & Shield V/VMAX era. Its base set runs 190 cards, with a shiny/secret tier adding 130+ more — a Limitless TCG database check confirms cards numbered up through #326. Pack structure is 10 packs per box, 10 cards per pack, at an MSRP of ¥5,500. Its English counterpart, Shining Fates, adapts part of the same card pool but is not a direct translation.
Two years also means two different power levels of Pokemon on the cards themselves — single-Pokemon GX mechanics in the older set, V and VMAX in the newer one. If you’re chasing a specific mechanic era rather than just “a shiny chase card,” that alone may decide which set you want.
Same Name, Different Set: How “SSR” Works in Each
Both sets put their shiny Pokemon at the very top of the rarity ladder under the label SSR. Japanese card shop and buyback sites aren’t consistent on what that stands for — some shop sites expand it as “Super Shiny Rare”; others read it as S + SR — and neither expansion is something we found stated directly on an official Pokemon page, worth flagging as unverified terminology even though the cards themselves are well documented.
Both sets also use the same numbering trick: the SSR tier is numbered above the set’s stated base count rather than folded into it. In GX Ultra Shiny, the confirmed SSR Darkrai GX (230/150) and Charizard GX (209/150) both carry numbers well past the “150” denominator. In Shiny Star V, the SSR Charizard VMAX Shiny (#308), Lapras VMAX Shiny (#312), and Ditto VMAX Shiny (#324) do the same thing against a “190” base. It’s the same structural pattern in both sets, which is a naming/format similarity worth noting — not a claim that one set caused the other’s design, since we have no sourcing that ties the two together beyond that shared convention.
Chase Card Comparison
Documentation depth is genuinely uneven between the two sets, and that itself is part of the comparison. Shiny Star V has a well-tracked chase list with community pull-rate estimates behind it (covered in full in our Shiny Star V pull rates & best cards guide); GX Ultra Shiny does not, at least not in any sourcing we were able to confirm.
| Set | Card | Rarity | Pull rate | Price note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shiny Star V | Charizard VMAX Shiny #308 | SSR | ~1/20 boxes (community-reported, unofficial) | ~¥19,000 per our Shiny Star V pull rates guide; PSA10 copies reported ¥60,000–¥200,000 |
| Shiny Star V | Ditto VMAX Shiny #324 | SSR | ~1/20 boxes (community-reported, unofficial) | ~¥2,000 (~$13) |
| Shiny Star V | Lapras VMAX Shiny #312 | SSR | ~1/20 boxes (community-reported, unofficial) | ~¥1,800 (~$11) |
| GX Ultra Shiny | Darkrai GX 230/150 | SSR | Not verified in our sourcing | Our PSA10 graded copy currently listed at ¥53,560 (~$329) |
| GX Ultra Shiny | Charizard GX 209/150 | SSR | Not verified in our sourcing | No current listing on our site |
The Darkrai GX SSR is a real card with a consistent HP180, Basic Pokemon profile and a “Resurrection” Ability confirmed across multiple independent Japanese card shop listings, but we could not confirm an official pull rate for it or for GX Ultra Shiny generally — unlike Shiny Star V, where community trackers have published set-wide estimates. That gap in available data is itself useful: it means the Shiny Star V numbers above carry more confidence than anything we could say about GX Ultra Shiny’s odds.
Every pull-rate figure above (Shiny Star V’s “~1/20 boxes”) is a community-reported, unofficial estimate, not a number published by The Pokemon Company. Treat it as a rough guide to relative scarcity within the set, not a guarantee.
The Box Availability Gap
This is where the two sets split most clearly for a buyer today. Shiny Star V is currently listed as a sealed booster box at ¥22,365 (~$137) (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — roughly four times its original ¥5,500 MSRP, in line with where SNKRDUNK-tracked secondary pricing had it as of July 2026 (~¥23,800).
GX Ultra Shiny is not currently offered as a sealed box listing on our site. We don’t carry it as an in-stock box right now, and rather than guess at a last-known box price we don’t have solid data on, the honest answer is: if you’re after sealed GX Ultra Shiny product or specific SSR singles beyond the Darkrai GX PSA10 we do carry, the Quick Order page is the way to ask us to source it, since it isn’t sitting on a standard collection page today.
| GX Ultra Shiny (SM8b) | Shiny Star V (S4a) | |
|---|---|---|
| JPN release | Nov 2, 2018 | Nov 20, 2020 |
| Era | Sun & Moon (GX) | Sword & Shield (V/VMAX) |
| Base numbering | up to /150 | 190 base, secrets to #326 |
| Total count (reported) | 250–414, sources disagree (unverified) | 320+, confirmed through #326 |
| MSRP | ¥500 + tax per 10-card pack (official page); box MSRP unconfirmed | ¥5,500 / box |
| Sealed box in our catalog | Not currently listed — request via Quick Order | Currently listed at ¥22,365 |
Which One Should You Chase?
The decision mostly comes down to what you’re actually trying to do:
- You want a sealed box you can buy right now. That’s Shiny Star V. It’s currently listed at ¥22,365 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), and it comes with documented, if unofficial, pull-rate estimates for its SSR tier so you know roughly what you’re chasing.
- You want the specific GX-era Darkrai GX SSR, graded. We carry a PSA10 copy currently listed at ¥53,560 — graded singles like this are typically not restocked once sold.
- You want sealed GX Ultra Shiny product or a different GX Ultra Shiny single. Start with the Quick Order page, since it isn’t sitting on a live collection listing today the way Shiny Star V is.
- You’re weighing eras, not just this pair. For a deeper look at how Shiny Star V’s high-class-pack format compares to a Scarlet & Violet-era shiny set, see our Shiny Star V vs Shiny Treasure ex box guide. For the GX Ultra Shiny side in full, our companion piece, GX Ultra Shiny high-class pack guide, goes deeper on the set itself. And if you’re drawn to older “shiny” Pokemon cards specifically, our Shining Legends (SM3+) guide covers the SM-era predecessor to the whole shiny-chase concept.
Where to Buy GX Ultra Shiny and Shiny Star V
We ship Japanese sealed product and singles worldwide out of Tokyo. Shiny Star V is the one you can add to cart today; GX Ultra Shiny stock runs thinner, and the Darkrai GX SSR PSA10 below is a PSA10 copy currently listed at ¥53,560 — graded singles like this are typically not restocked once sold.
View Product → (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order)
For the graded GX Ultra Shiny piece — the PSA10 Darkrai GX SSR, currently listed at ¥53,560 — and other graded Japanese Pokemon cards, browse our PSA10 collection. For sealed boxes across sets, including current Shiny Star V stock, our Pokemon booster box collection shows what’s live. And for anything not sitting on a listing today — sealed GX Ultra Shiny, specific singles, or a mixed order across sets — the Quick Order page is the fastest way to build one order.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is more valuable, GX Ultra Shiny or Shiny Star V?
It depends on the specific card. Our PSA10 Darkrai GX SSR from GX Ultra Shiny is currently listed at ¥53,560, while Shiny Star V’s own top chase card, Charizard VMAX Shiny #308, runs around ¥19,000 raw per our set guide, with PSA10 copies reported in the ¥60,000–¥200,000 range. GX Ultra Shiny overall has less confirmed pricing data available than Shiny Star V.
What does SSR mean in these sets?
SSR is the top rarity tier in both GX Ultra Shiny and Shiny Star V, used for their shiny-colored chase Pokemon. Japanese shop and community sites commonly expand it as “Super Shiny Rare,” though we could not confirm that expansion on an official Pokemon source, so it should be treated as unofficial shorthand.
Is the GX Ultra Shiny booster box in stock?
Not as a sealed box listing on our site right now. We carry a graded GX Ultra Shiny single, a PSA10 Darkrai GX SSR (230/150) — a PSA10 copy currently listed at ¥53,560; graded singles like this are typically not restocked once sold. For sealed GX Ultra Shiny product, use our Quick Order page to request sourcing.
What is the pull rate for Charizard VMAX Shiny in Shiny Star V?
Community trackers estimate roughly 1 in 20 boxes for the SSR Charizard VMAX Shiny (#308), though this is an unofficial, community-reported figure rather than a rate published by The Pokemon Company. GX Ultra Shiny does not have a comparably documented pull rate in our sourcing.
How many cards are in Shiny Star V?
Shiny Star V has 190 cards in its base set plus a shiny/secret tier adding 130+ more, for a total of 320+. A Limitless TCG database check confirms card numbers running through #326. GX Ultra Shiny’s total count is reported inconsistently across sources (roughly 250 to 414) and we treat that figure as unverified.
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