Yu-Gi-Oh: Trading Card Game

[BigBoss]

Now I'm sure many of you guys have heard of this. I used to be Yu-Gi-Oh in my pre-teen and early teenager years, and then, I can't remember what happened or why (or what happened to my cards), but eventually I stopped playing. It's been a good while now, over a decade at minimum, and I've been getting back into it. Now, I've never really completely gotten into Magic: The Gathering (though I know some people who are completely nuts about the damn game. Every pay-day, after all their bills are paid every extra cent goes to Magic [TG] cards), mainly because of the use of lands to deploy monsters and spells. I like the way Yu-Gi-Oh does it better, in to which spells and traps are easy to deploy, low leveled monsters can be deployed easily also, but stronger monsters require a tribute. Level 5 and 6 monsters require a tribute of one card, and level 7 and higher monsters require a tribute of two cards. There are many cards though, that you can't summon to the field by normal summoning OR tribute-summoning monsters. Some of them have their own special ways to be summoned.

Then, you have cards you keep in a deck separate from your main deck, called the "extra deck". This deck holds Xzy, Synchro, and Fusion (I think) cards. Xzy monster cards can only be summoned by tributing other monster cards of the field that are of a certain level. For example, the card may say to summon, you must tribute a card of level 5 and another of level 7. But instead of going to the graveyard, the cards get put underneath the Xzy monster you used them to summon, and can be detached to be used a Xzy materials to activate special effects. Fusion monsters are, when you have two certain cards in your deck, you can use them to fusion summon a monster that is, like the name applies, a fusion between both.

Anyways, I'm getting off topic here. I'm not 50% sure why I started this thread, mainly just to use it as a discussion of this card game. What do you guys think of it? Yay or nay? Do you play it, or do you prefer to play Magic [TG] or even some other card game? Also, I wouldn't mind getting some tactic advice or seeing the decks of some other NMA members who might (if any) play.

 

[Atomkilla]

I used to play it in my pre-teen and teenage days too and I loved it. It was very popular with kids here, since the show was aired for the first time (I still love that show, even though, in reality, it sucks hard - but is still better than most kids shows which were intended to advertise a product). The original cards were expensive however, so we played mostly with counterfeit cards and it was years since I got an original deck. My collection is now worth around 400-500 euros (which isn't much, looking at other active players).

I don't play anymore though. Not enough players, not enough money, not enough time and not enough will to play. I don't like the direction which game took starting with Synchro cards and especially with Xyz and Pendulum. The gameplay is too fast and too...eh, I don't know. It feels like "pay to win" more than ever before (yeah, I know that comment doesn't make much sense). Konami spews forth new decks and cards every three months or so, new lists and so on, intentionally pushing the game forward with a pedal to the metal. That's fine if you can catch up with it, but I can't. In fact, none of my buddies (there were plenty of us still playing two or three years back) are playing anymore since the game has never been putting so much pressure on the wallet and on constantly updating your deck.
All that is great if you can afford to buy and play, but I can't. From time to time I sit around with my friends and we play a game or two with our old decks and I ocassionally buy some cards from the secondary market - mostly cards which have certain nostalgic value for me, childhood favorites and so on, so it's a collection based thing now (I feel bad that I recently missed on Yugi Reloaded and Kaiba Reloaded decks).


I've played MTG very little and it was ages ago, so I can't make a proper comparison, but that game was great too. I heard it has also gone to shit though, much like YGO.

 

[BigBoss]

Well, one of the things I liked about YGO though is that, even if people grab the newer cards, you can get by and win with older cards. I'm mean, I know what it's like to feel that they're putting pressure on you by constantly releasing new stuff, and you feel like you can't keep up, or catch up (that's how I feel when it comes to gaming technology), but the thing about YGO is you don't absolutely need to get the newer stuff in order to have a good enough deck to win. It's more about strategy than the size of your wallet, which from what I heard is the opposite of Magic [TG]. Sure, if you constantly buy the new cards you might have a larger repertoire, and better selection, but it doesn't necessarily mean you will still be able to beat your friend who, even though he is more financially disabled that you, somehow still kicks your ass. Plus, the way I see it is, people's decks will most likely today be filled with newer cards, and they aren't always going to be expecting someone with a deck full of older cards. So while they're cards are geared to take down other newer cards being released (since Konami always makes sure that, for every card they release they release and another couple cards, at minimum, that can counter it). So when you pull out a deck full of older cards, it's a nice surprise. Plus, strategy does still count in this game a lot.

Also, what was it that you didn't like about Synchro and Xzy cards? I don't mind them. I do also hated the Pendulum cards though. I definitely feel where your coming from when you say they totally unnecessary, and seem like just another way for Konami to make money.

Booster packs are about 3 or 4 bucks here a pack. How much are they where your at @Atomkilla - is it really expensive?

 

[Atomkilla]

Yeah, that's definitely a good thing with YGO. Older cards still hold weight and are luckily reprinted from time to time, making it easier to acquire them...well, usually. I hear what you say - I remember going to some tournament a few years ago after a long pause from the game - I appeared with my unfinished Macro Cosmos deck (which was essentially little more than a Structure Deck The Dark Emperor slightly upgraded with some staple cards and two more copies of Caius) and...well, it made some mess here and there. I didn't reach far as far as the tournament is considered, but I'm glad I could bust a few newer decks whose worht was in triple figures, comparing to mine which was, what? 30 euros at best?

In the end though, for me it's the game that matters, the feel of it, the cards, not the financial aspects and procedurally, official competitive play. I was always aiming more at making fun, cheap decks rather than expensive T1 stuff.

As far as Synchro and Xyz go, there are several problems. Synchro cards themselves were more or less okay, but they brought some unbalancing to the game at first - making it a lot more faster. In the days of yore, you had to build up your field control with gradual monster summoning and so on - when Synchro entered the scene, you could several big monsters in one single turn. XyZ made that even easier. And I don't even know about Pendulum...

Second, I don't like constant additions of new types of cards to the game - after Synchros, we basically get new sort of card every three years or so (I'm waiting to see what they will come up with Pendulum). I feel this is detrimental to the game and causes, simply put, quite a mess. It's real hard to get to the game nowadays if you've never play before. I mean, just read the effect on an average high level XyZ monster - you can barely read the letters! Effects are so complex, so much needless complications, so much speed, so many new cards...it's hard to keep up and it makes my head spin.

Third, but least, is a sort of aesthetic factor - making it almost completely subjective. I'm just not that into the new card designs. New archetypes, new monsters and deck themes...I don't know, I don't like them all that much. And I don't really get what Synchros, XyZ and Pendulum represent. Ritual monsters required a ritual offering in order to be summoned, that makes sense. Fusions are made up of two or more monsters and used to hold similarity to the creatures that created them. Makes sense too.
Synchro are monsters which are created when two other creatures...uhm, resonate at same frequencies and "tune"? So, a plant and a robot create a dragon? Yeah, not much sense.
XyZ are anti-matter monsters which are created when two or more creatures of same level...combine? How does that even work? Fusion at least required Polymerization to make stuff combine. I don't get it.
I don't even know what the fuck are Pendulum supposed to be.



Regarding the pricing - I'm not sure, but I think boosters are around 5-6 euros - about 8 dollars? But that's not the real problem. The problem is that average monthly salary around here is about 350 euros - even lesser, I don't exactly keep track with the inflation - making ventures such as YGO quite expensive for an average person. I myself fare better than that, but it's still a rather impractical way to spend money. Hobby it is, but with a dying and mostly dead population of players, greater pressure from Konami and general lack of will to play the ever-changing game which is evolving in an unfavorable direction...yeah, it is definitely not a best hobby to have.

Addendum: You should try getting cards from secondary market, cheaper and better way to get stuff you need. I've ordered from this site before, it's a good one - recommended.



http://yugiohmint.com/