Final 12 months Yu-Gi-Oh! celebrated its twenty fifth anniversary, prompting gamers and old-school followers in every single place to age right away. Konami introduced a continued celebration with this ‘Quarter Century’ of the well-known card sport. Yu-Gi-Oh! The Early Days Assortment is the only real videogame that marks this particular event. A group with 14-ish video games from the early historical past of the cardboard sport sequence with entries from each the Recreation Boy, Recreation Boy Shade and Recreation Boy Advance. As a, nonetheless, avid participant of the Yu-Gi-Oh! card sport I used to be morbidly interested by this assortment. Whereas I hadn’t performed all of them earlier than this evaluation, my hazy reminiscence recalled them being stiff and extra into attractive those that’d seen the anime relatively than those that performed the cardboard sport. Seems that hunch was appropriate, however the shock wasn’t as unhealthy as I anticipated. This revisit to the world of traditional Yu-Gi-Oh! will for many be a morbid curiosity, however for the true aficionados of the franchise there’s undoubtedly some appeal to this package deal. You will want to dig deep to seek out it nevertheless.
So let’s get the large factor out of the best way. Sure, this assortment comprises 14 full Yu-Gi-Oh! video games that have been launched between 1998 and 2005. From the very first Yu-Gi-Oh! video games on the DMG Recreation Boy, solely launched in Japan, primarily based on the manga and now for the primary time totally localized in English, to the Recreation Boy Advance world championship sequence that proposed to be an correct battle simulator and even some wild experiments in between. From the outset that looks like an enormous quantity of video games, however there are some caveats. For starters, the early Recreation Boy video games are very a lot incremental updates to the cardboard sport and the principles that have been nonetheless growing at the moment. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters II: Darkish duel Tales for instance, solely provides in new guidelines and playing cards to steadiness out decks. And, the western, Darkish Duel Tales (Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters 4 in Japan) solely added in a single zone for entice playing cards. Whereas it is a enjoyable historic look again at how shortly the sport developed primarily based on each the boundaries of the {hardware} and the expansion of the cardboard sport (in Japan), taking part in them again to again might be interchangeable to most gamers. The development in seeing how the sport design evolves over time, particularly within the UI and UX components, is fascinating to me, however in reality after taking part in the sport for a single match I shortly bounced to seek out the extra accessible video games within the assortment.
The true shock to me was Duel Monsters 3. This title, beforehand solely accessible in Japan, follows the Monster World arc wherein Yugi’s buddies have been reworked into monsters and are caught in a tabletop roleplaying sport, with the antagonists serving as the sport’s Dungeon Masters. Because of this the sport comprises no buying and selling playing cards in anyway. You place monsters on a grid that resembles a really simplified model of a turn-based technique title like Hearth Emblem. Each monster has its personal assault sample and will get a buff primarily based on the sphere it’s standing on and whether it is in vary of friendlies. Because of this each battle on this sport turns right into a miniature puzzle. In an effort to decide whether or not your assaults hit, two D10’s are rolled and the result determines if you happen to miss or strike efficiently. It’s a neat little system and the cube roll is even used to find out the encounter charge of random enemies in the course of the boss segments. It’s so not like the opposite video games within the assortment that it instantly stands out.
The identical can’t be stated for Dungeon Cube Monsters and Future Board Traveler. These two spin-offs give attention to a extra boardgame-like method to Yu-Gi-Oh!. Dungeon Cube Monster is an try to digitize the oft forgotten spin-off sport of the identical identify. Two gamers face off on an isometric grid on which they place cubes that may unfold in sure instructions. The aim is to construct a street to the opposite aspect of the sphere to assault your opponent’s cube grasp. In idea this sounds fairly nice, however the sport has no tutorials for the participant in anyway. All you’re left with is a really unappealing and overly difficult handbook that you’ll want to tug up each time till you get the cling of the sport. That is the place I began to run into fairly just a few problems with this specific assortment. The standard of life options of this assortment aren’t unhealthy per se, however there are some notable omissions. For starters, whilst you can open each sport’s handbook, every time you reopen the menu, the handbook resets to the primary web page making it particularly laborious for the video games the place the principles are fairly laborious to understand ( you, Dungeon Cube Monsters). This goes double for the precise sort chart that’s deployed within the early video games and the RPG titles, the place monsters will be immediately defeated if they’re going through an opposing monster sort. This chart isn’t as simple as different programs, particularly because it comprises sorts that don’t exist within the precise card sport, just like the ‘goals’ and ‘shadow’ sort. Whilst you can rewind as much as one minute at any time in the course of the sport, there isn’t any fast-forward. This could be significantly useful within the duel simulator titles on the GBA, the place the CPU wants fairly a little bit of time to suppose via strikes.
Lastly, there’s the net assist, or relatively the shortage thereof. There is just one sport that helps dueling towards opponents and buying and selling playing cards, and that’s Duel Monsters 4. An fascinating option to say the least, as this is likely one of the titles that was solely accessible in Japan. Even stranger is that every one these video games have cheat menus that allow you to to unlock each playing cards and keep away from duelist level limits. Now this wouldn’t be a difficulty if Duel Monsters 4 wasn’t break up up into three variations (one for Yugi, Kaiba and Joey’s decks). That means that whereas dueling between variations is feasible, there actually is not any incentive to take action. It might’ve been way more fascinating if the net assist existed for video games like Stairway to the Destined Duel and even World Event 2004, as this format remains to be fairly beloved by old fashioned Yu-Gi-Oh! Gamers. It could be added at a later time, however for now the net appears like a restricted afterthought that actually doesn’t change the expertise or make it a very compelling supply for these wanting to choose up the gathering.
These half measures to Yu-Gi-Oh! Early Days can be felt by the unusual inclusion of Duel Monsters 6: Professional 2. Now in keeping with the advertising and marketing, this GBA title was probably the most in style video games within the sequence on the peak of Yu-Gi-Oh!’s reputation in Japan. So it will make sense to incorporate it. However whereas each different sport on this assortment is translated, Duel Monsters 6: Professional 2 is right here and it’s in full Japanese. Now an argument will be made that this sport was later tailored into the western launch in Stairway to the Destined Duel with a modified ruleset to adapt to the English model of the buying and selling card sport. Nevertheless it being right here simply appears like a bizarre inclusion as a separate sport. Whereas different Japanese variations are included with the opposite video games, having the ability to choose any language model in the principle menu of the gathering, this one has a class all its personal. All the opposite beforehand Japanese unique video games have been translated, so leaving this one right here simply feels actually complicated.
And I feel that reveals the 2 halves of Yu-Gi-Oh! Early Days Assortment. On the one hand, it’s actually cool to dive again into the unusual historical past of Yu-Gi-Oh! Earlier than it grew to become a longtime card sport, with all fashionable video games following both the various animated sequence, or being a straight up duel simulator. However whereas the quantity of video games is spectacular, there isn’t that a lot care and a spotlight to element put into the gathering as there may very well be. It appears like a half baked anniversary assortment at instances. With high quality of life options simply not going far sufficient of their helpfulness, sure video games being very laborious to understand with out constantly grabbing the handbook, one title being left in Japanese and solely on-line play for a single set of video games. There aren’t even further artworks, ideas or design paperwork, which may’ve actually added some worth to this package deal for the true Yu-Gi-Oh! followers. Among the many video games, there are standouts, like The Sacred Playing cards, Duel Monsters 3, The Everlasting Duelist Soul and seven Trials to Glory. However the majority appears like incremental enhancements to the sequence or utterly throwing out any similarities to the precise card sport out the window. It’s a historic doc, however with surprisingly little care and love for the historical past on show right here.
Who’s Yu-Gi-Oh! Early Days for? Nicely these seeking to relive the glory days of Yu-Gi-Oh! will in all probability discover some enjoyment right here. The quantity of video games appears spectacular on paper, however in observe it’s laborious to say that these titles will hold your consideration. I did discover myself returning to a couple as choose up and play experiences. Rebuilding decks and reinventing methods for the tweaked, however finally similar card video games wasn’t actually protecting my consideration by the point I arrived on the later GBA titles. It may’ve been enjoyable to discover this with a good friend, however as just one sport would assist on-line play I’d discover it laborious to advocate to even probably the most devoted of Yu-Gi-Oh! gamers. However reducing your expectations and stepping into blind, particularly for a few of the extra uncommon titles within the assortment, may nonetheless be enjoyable. Simply know that there’s a excessive chance that by the tip you’ll be blissful that you just’ve moved previous these early days.
