[Opini] Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the Roses is the Most Unique Digital Card Game Ever

Card games are one of my favorite game genres. Whether it’s physical or digital games, online or offline, as long as there’s a card, I’m happy. And in 2021, there’s a huge selection of digital games for card fans like me, from online CCGs like Legends of Runeterra, to roguelike deckbuilders like Slay the Spire.

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There are so many choices of digital card games on the market, each of which has its own uniqueness. However, there is one game that is still one of the most unique games in this genre. Until now, there has been no other digital card game that has quite similar gameplay. And what’s great? This game is almost 20 years old.

Today, we are going to talk about Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelists of the Roses.

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Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelists of the Roses is a game that was released on September 6, 2001 in Japan and February 16, 2003 in the United States. With the title Yu-Gi-Oh! Shin Duel Monsters II in Japan, Duelists of the Roses is intended as a sequel to Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories. Duelists of the Roses is a Yu-Gi-Oh! first released for the PS2 platform.

Unlike Forbidden Memories, the storyline of Duelists of the Roses retells the events of the War of the Roses (1455-1487) between Lancaster and York. Every character in this historical event is represented by a Yu-Gi-Oh! character, and the battles are fought with — of course — cards. Players take on the role of a ‘Rose Duelist’ summoned from modern times to the time of the Rose Wars. Duelists of the Roses consists of two campaigns, where players can choose either Lancaster or York sides.

Of course, the most unique part of Duelists of the Roses is the gameplay. Duelists of the Roses combines Yu-Gi-Oh! with board games. Each game is played on a 7×7 board, where players start with one monster who becomes the Deck Leader. Each turn, players can place one card in a position adjacent to the Deck Leader.

Each card and Deck Leader can be moved one step per turn. If a monster card is moved to an opposing monster, both monsters will fight, using their respective ATK and DEF points. Monsters that are moved to the Deck Leader will attack directly. Spell cards can be activated manually, and trap cards will activate automatically when the condition is reached.

Similar to other tile-based strategy games such as Fire Emblem and Advance Wars, Duelists of the Roses also uses a terrain system based on the initial set of Field Spells of Yu-Gi-Oh!. Each terrain has the effect that there are stronger types of monsters, and weaker types. Monsters that are weak in the terrain will lose 500 ATK and DEF, while strong monsters will gain an additional 500 ATK/DEF, as well as faster movement.

The early 2000s was the time when Konami was experimenting with this legendary card game franchise, by releasing a collection of video games with different gameplay and rules from their card games. Starting from board games like Monopoly, to turn-based RPG games like Dragon Quest. Among them, Duelists of the Roses is the only game that still retains the card game elements of Yu-Gi-Oh!, and still has its own uniqueness.

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Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the Roses is a game that combines the gameplay of the Yu-Gi-Oh! with a strategic board game like chess. This combination has not existed in other games before. Even today, although other games try to mix card games with board games, it’s rare for a game to come close to the gameplay and feel of Duelists of the Roses.

The uniqueness of Duelists of the Roses is not only that. Previously, I wrote an article about Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories. I wrote that Forbidden Memories has a gameplay and feel similar to the cartoon Yu-Gi-Oh! which 90s kids loved, thanks to the game’s fusion mechanics. As a sequel to Forbidden Memories, Duelists of the Roses also brings the same fusion system. The fusion formula has also been changed a lot, so players can enjoy the experimentation factor that is featured by the Forbidden Memories gameplay.

Closing

In the gaming market, creating ideas and executions that are unique from other games is not easy. Games that were unique in their time were often used as references and followed, so that their uniqueness slowly diminished. However, in contrast to Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the Roses, which is not only unique when it was released, but is still unique 20 years after its release.

As a fan of Duelists of the Roses, I still play this game to this day. Of course, I wanted a new game to come with the same concept and feel. However, until now, Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the Roses is still a game like no other.

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the Roses, and other PS2 games, can be played with PCSX2.

To read articles about PlayStation 2 games and other interesting content, please read my other articles, Jothias Edbert. For further information and other inquiries, you can contact us via [email protected]