Name: Warp Point
Set: EX: Team Magma Vs Team Aqua (latest printing)
Card#: 85/95 (Latest Printing)
Rarity: Uncommon
Type: Trainer
Sub-type: None

Attributes: Warp Point is a Trainer.  It’d make a pretty wicked Energy card or Poké-Power, but as you can tell, I am reaching for filler for this section.  It must be doing something correct, as it got reprinted

Abilities: Warp Point forces both players to switch out one of their Active Pokémon.  This means that it can be a Switch for you and for your opponent.  The thing is, since it’s your choice when to play it, it can be a Switch played at the wrong time.  In other words, it can be decent bench manipulation.  The downside is that you have no choice about switching out one of your Actives.  Too bad the controlling player couldn’t choose to use only one of the two effects: then this card would be truly great.  As is, it is still pretty good.

 Uses/Combinations: You always want some means of “switching out” your own Active, and if it can disrupt your opponent, all the better.  This helps you deal with something messing up your own Active, as well as really hurting decks that focus only on their Active, or have to rely on a lot of bench support. Even if the bench has strong Pokémon, getting one out in the open to nail it is often useful: if you can OHKO a Firestarter Blaziken, that’s 40 less damage each turn that Rayquaza ex can do.

On your own end, you can maximize the use of this card, as you can with Switch, by having a Pokémon with a free retreat on your own bench.  First, it makes it a great way to shake off the non-damage effects of most attacks (like Special Conditions).  Second, it means you can use this just for it’s disruptive aspect: your opponent is forced to change out, but you just retreat and bring the same Active out that you had before playing Warp Point.  Just be careful when doing that in response to an opponent’s Warp Point.  If they have nothing that can do substantial damage, then bringing up a free-retreating Pokémon is a great way to nullify whatever it is they are trying to accomplish.  If, however, that free-retreating Pokémon is not expendable and they do knock it out, then obviously, they probably were planning on that.  The most obvious example I can think of is the Fire Red/Leaf Green Pidgeot.  It is a very good card and commonly functions as a Bench Sitter in many good decks.  Since it tends to grant so much advantage to its owner, it is also something you, as the opponent, want to eliminate.  Also remember that some decks can bring huge damage out of almost no where with few cards.

Ratings

Unlimited: 2/5.  Your opponent will often have WotC-era Baby Pokémon on their bench, which means they’ll basically use them to protect the active you got out of the way: promote the Baby in response to Warp Point, hope you fail the “Baby Flip”, and if you do, use said Baby’s free retreat to promote their former Active back up on their turn.  So you have little reason to use this to bench your own Active when you could be using Switch or Warp Energy.  The other aspect, bench disruption, also has better choices here: Gust of Wind and Double Gust both let you choose which of your opponent’s Benched Pokémon get promoted.

Modified: 3.75/5-Here, you have less options and fewer free-retreating Pokémon.    Why use Switch when you can use this.  As for disrupting the opponent, Pokémon Reversal is a flip and Pow! Hand Extension requires you have more prizes left then your opponent.

Limited: 4/5-Disruption, like draw power, is at a premium here.  Since your opponent will usually retreat to deny you a prize or build threats on their bench.  This will usually ruin those plans.

Summary

Warp Point sacrifices some potency by not specializing in affecting only you or your opponent, but in the end it becomes a good card for Modified because it is more versatile than its primary competition for one of those areas (Switch).