Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist of the Roses, more of a tactical-strategy game then card game…
The gameplay is somewhat unorthodox as it takes Yu-Gi-Oh! cards and puts them in a turn-based; tactical-strategy game. In the battle, the goal is to damage your opponents’ leader until either he has 0 life points or the most damage when the countdown reaches 0. The basic elements to each battle consist of the basic monster, trap and spell cards as well as a leader monster who summons the other monster, spell and trap cards into play.
These cards may move freely in the field in either the face up or face down position. In the face up position, you see the monster and can usually move around the field faster. In the face down position the monster is hidden and can be used as an element of surprise. The field type may also affect the battle, each square has an attribute and monsters with the same attribute get powered up by them which may help in a losing battle. Some monsters also have “effects” which are activated like spells or traps so be sure to check descriptions when summoning. The spell and trap cards work in different ways depending on the card. You can usually activate the cards by flipping them and ending their turn, however some cards need to be attacked by an enemy to be activated. Some cards power up your monsters, some weaken the opponents monsters and some do things like change the field attribute or do direct damage to your opponents leader.
Finding opponents to duel is a task in and of it self. First, you must be on the world map. Next, you need to follow open paths which are unlocked by beating other duelists. Then you must choose the duelist and must have a lower DC (Deck Cost). The deck cost system gets tiresome fast, you are allowed to make multiple decks (maximum of 3) but only with cards that aren’t already in a deck.
There are a few ways of obtaining more cards, the easiest way is hitting the R3 button on the world map and entering “card passwords”. The problem with this is that you would need to actually own the physical cards because the passwords are printed on the cards in the lower right hand corner. The other way to receive cards is after a duel is won you can win your opponents defeated/destroyed cards in a slot machine. The downside is you can only win up to 3 per duel and there is a “fake trap” in each column that is just there to be a dud. There are also a few cards that when and if you get 3 of them, the game rewards you with a powerful monster card.
Sadly, for the most part; the graphics are pretty weak. The cut-scenes lack consistency. Sometimes they look like comics, at other times they are 3D renders but at other times they look like old war paintings. The strangest part is that when a person is present and talking at a cut scene they appear in anime and stick out like a sore thumb.
The battle graphics are over all pretty good. The fields are a large square with smaller squares in them that each have attributes. The attributes are clearly represented by a unique and accurate design. The monsters themselves on the field don’t look outstanding but hold to what they are supposed to look like. When a fight is initiated between monsters the game goes into a short cut scene where the monsters involved in the fight get terrific 3D renders and unique 3D attacks. The attribute on the square the fight takes place on is 3D rendered beautifully into the fight cut-scene as well.
The map and deck building graphics are fair; they obviously weren’t trying all that hard with them. The map itself does look like medieval Europe but for whatever reason it looks like it was drawn in medieval Europe. Everything of interest on the map has a small stick out 3D render that seems out of place. The thing that represents you on the map is your deck leader, also represented by a 3D render but a highly over-sized one. The deck building screen is very bland. It consists of 4 colors and nothing really stand-out, it’s not particularly good looking but gets the job done.
As for the in-game sound, over-all it’s mediocre. The music is standard Yu-Gi-Oh! game music which isn’t saying much. The cut scenes only have the same music and occasionally half-decent sound effects. Thankfully the battles almost make up for most of the sound shortcomings. The in-battle music varies depending on who you are dueling which is a small saving grace. The summon, destroy, direct damage and monster sounds are generic Yu-Gi-Oh! so if you expect more, prepare to be disappointed. The best sound comes from the fight cut scenes, each monsters unique attack has a unique sound and is what saves the sound from utter failure.
When it comes to replay value it depends on weather or not you like the gameplay. There are two campaigns, once they are both complete all of the duelists will be unlocked and you can challenge anyone, anytime. There is also a 2-player mode that is highly enjoyable if you have a friend with the game too. The 2-player mode features a custom map editor and use of you and your friends’ story mode deck. Other then that there isn’t much replayability here.
As for who I would recommend this game to; I would say mostly fans of the Yu-Gi-Oh! universe since the game holds so much of it. I’d also recommend it to the hardcore turn based strategy fans as this game does provide minor enjoyment once you get into it even if you hate the Yu-Gi-Oh! series.
Finally, as for weather to rent or buy Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist Of The Roses; the price on it is about the same (maybe a little bit more) as a rent so your choice would depend on how much you think you might enjoy it.