Kaijudo (TCG)
In the moderately distant past, there was a trading card game called "Duel Masters." It had a bit of a following, and (based on some reviews I read), some appealing game mechanics. Sadly, after a two-year run from 2004 to 2006, Wizards of the Coast dropped it (though it continued to be popular in Japan). Maybe they were just grumpy that it had answers for some of the annoying foibles in Magic: The Gathering.
For one thing, it didn't separate resource cards from cards that actually do things. In, say, Magic: The Gathering, you have land cards whose only purpose is to provide mana (which in turn is used to actually *do* things). In Pokémon, there are energy cards, whose only purpose is to power your Pokémon's attacks. In Duel Masters, *any* card can be put into the "mana zone" and used to power summoning creatures and casting spells. One result of this is that it's really difficult to have a genuinely dead hand -- and as someone who has on occasion been entirely unable to lay hands on an energy card during a Pokémon game for 3 turns running, let me tell you how appealing that is.
Another thing I like is that, at the start of the game, each player puts five of their cards face-down in front of them as "shields." You win a game by "breaking" all five of your opponent's shields, and then attacking them directly. The neat thing is that when a shield is "broken," the player whose shield it is *gets the card into their hand*. This is nicely balanced. Oppose, say, Pokémon, where if you knock out your opponent's Pokémon (which is bad for them), you also get a prize card into your hand (which is good for you). By getting the card when one of your shields is broken (and it could have a "shield blast" effect, which activates upon being broken), you get a boost which can help prevent a runaway game, where once one player gets an advantage it's incredibly difficult for the other player to ever come back.
Anyway, Wizards of the Coast decided to resurrect the old Duel Masters game, which is now called "Kaijudo," in June. Sarah and I got the two-player starter kit (two 40-card decks, two playmats, two really nice deck boxes, and a rulebook) last week, and have really been enjoying it. The rules are quite simple -- we were both pretty comfortable with them partway through the first game. And yet, you do need to try to think at least a couple of turns ahead if you don't want to get flattened. I suspect that, as more cards come into rotation, subtle strategies and a metagame will emerge.
Anyway, if you're in the market for a new collectible game to throw your money at, you could do worse than to pick up the "Tetsurion vs Razorkinder" two-player kit. And in a couple of weeks, the new "Rise of the Duel Masters" card set will be released and Wizards of the Coast will launch their Kaijudo League organized play wossname, so this is a pretty good time to get involved.
For one thing, it didn't separate resource cards from cards that actually do things. In, say, Magic: The Gathering, you have land cards whose only purpose is to provide mana (which in turn is used to actually *do* things). In Pokémon, there are energy cards, whose only purpose is to power your Pokémon's attacks. In Duel Masters, *any* card can be put into the "mana zone" and used to power summoning creatures and casting spells. One result of this is that it's really difficult to have a genuinely dead hand -- and as someone who has on occasion been entirely unable to lay hands on an energy card during a Pokémon game for 3 turns running, let me tell you how appealing that is.
Another thing I like is that, at the start of the game, each player puts five of their cards face-down in front of them as "shields." You win a game by "breaking" all five of your opponent's shields, and then attacking them directly. The neat thing is that when a shield is "broken," the player whose shield it is *gets the card into their hand*. This is nicely balanced. Oppose, say, Pokémon, where if you knock out your opponent's Pokémon (which is bad for them), you also get a prize card into your hand (which is good for you). By getting the card when one of your shields is broken (and it could have a "shield blast" effect, which activates upon being broken), you get a boost which can help prevent a runaway game, where once one player gets an advantage it's incredibly difficult for the other player to ever come back.
Anyway, Wizards of the Coast decided to resurrect the old Duel Masters game, which is now called "Kaijudo," in June. Sarah and I got the two-player starter kit (two 40-card decks, two playmats, two really nice deck boxes, and a rulebook) last week, and have really been enjoying it. The rules are quite simple -- we were both pretty comfortable with them partway through the first game. And yet, you do need to try to think at least a couple of turns ahead if you don't want to get flattened. I suspect that, as more cards come into rotation, subtle strategies and a metagame will emerge.
Anyway, if you're in the market for a new collectible game to throw your money at, you could do worse than to pick up the "Tetsurion vs Razorkinder" two-player kit. And in a couple of weeks, the new "Rise of the Duel Masters" card set will be released and Wizards of the Coast will launch their Kaijudo League organized play wossname, so this is a pretty good time to get involved.