QS stands for “Quickshot”, a series of short form review/preview/opinion articles.
I’d known about Yu-Gi-Oh ever since I was in elementary school, but it wasn’t until sixth grade that a friend let me have half of his collection, and introduced me to the rules of the game. I’ve been hooked ever since. Sure, I’ve gone through phases of enjoyment with the game. I dueled quite frequently in middle school, bought most of my structure decks and booster packs in high school, and then slowly lost interest by college. It wasn’t that Yu-Gi-Oh was less fun to me. It was more than I ran out of close friends to play it with.
And let me tell you, while playing Yu-Gi-Oh by yourself is technically possible, it is very lonely and very sad.
Now, though, I might have to say that my love of Yu-Gi-Oh is stronger than it ever has been before, and that’s due almost entirely to the release of Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel earlier this year. I’ve never been this hooked on the game, nor has the game ever been this easy and fun to play.
Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel is a completely free version of the classic trading card game, and it’s available on PC, Playstation, Xbox, Switch, and Mobile devices. It’s a small download too, which is surprising considering the game contains nearly every single card ever released in Yu-Gi-Oh’s 20+ years of existence. If you’ve ever had even a passing interest in Yu-Gi-Oh before, than this game is the place to be!
The core structure is extremely simple. You can play against computer opponents in a simplistic story mode, or battle real people (strangers and friends) in multiple online modes. Winning (or losing) awards you with gems, which can be spent on booster packs to get more cards. On top of that, you also earn a sort of “card point” currency, which can be spent to unlock any card of your choosing, ensuring you don’t have to rely entirely on luck to get what you want. And, as mentioned, all of this can be done without spending a cent.
Already, a massive step up from the real-life Yu-Gi-Oh card game.
Being a video game, Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel also has an abundancy of neat features that obviously could never exist in real life. Big scary boss monsters have full-screen splash art when they are summoned, and especially legendary cards have full animations when they activate their effects. Yu-Gi-Oh has notoriously contrived rules, but this game simplifies things by always having little pop-ups show up whenever a card can be used or an effect can be triggered, ensuring even beginner players don’t fall behind experienced professionals.
With access to basically every card ever printed, Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel heavily encourages deck building, and it is so much fun! I’ve made roughly fifteen decks by now, and even though I barely use some of them, the process of crafting that deck in the first place is nearly as fun as playing with it at all. There’s no right way to play Yu-Gi-Oh, and players are allowed to freely customize their deck to their heart’s content. Let the heart of the cards guide you, and make whatever serious or goofy deck you want!
One of the decks that I made follows the Nephthys archetype, which focuses on summoning ritual monsters and causing cards to self-destruct in order to activate powerful abilities. Another deck is all about Trains, relying on extremely strong singular monsters to beat down my opponents. Another deck spotlights the Aromages, plant-based wizards who continuously increase your life points. Far and away my favorite deck is the Amazoness deck, which features a bevy of warrior women who overwhelm the opponent with their heavily destructive effects.
I also cannot end this article without mentioning this game’s phenomenal soundtrack that accompanies every climactic duel and story mode cutscene. Did a free-to-play Yu-Gi-Oh game have to go this hard on its soundtrack? No. Am I super glad that it did? Absolutely! What makes the music even better is that each track has three alterations based upon either the opening turns of a duel, if your opponent is pulling ahead, or if you yourself are close to winning. It’s awesome!
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to get back to the game. After all, as you may have heard…
…It’s Time! To D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-DUEL!!!
The Contrarian Corner 