Duelists Rejoice: ‘Yu-gi-oh! Duel Links’ Released In U.S. And Canada

Yu-Gi-Oh! fans in the U.S. and Canada can now duel against each other in a new app released by Konami. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links, previously released in Japan, is a game that allows players to play the iconic trading card game with other players throughout the U.S., Canada, and Asia, according to a report by HardcoreGamer.

Yu-Gi-Oh! started as a manga created by Kazuki Takahashi and was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1996. It was later made into an anime release in Japan, and then an adaptation was released in North America by 4Kids Entertainment. Yu-Gi-Oh! aired on Kids’ WB! from 2001 through 2006. The original story revolves around a duelist named Yugi Mutou, who uses his cards to battle other duelists to protect his friends and family from nefarious characters. The show went on to produce spinoffs, such as Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, and Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V. Since the main focus of the show is the card battles, it seemed like a natural step to actually develop the card game for fans to play themselves.

The Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game was developed by Konami and launched in Japan in 1999. Since then, it has become one of the best-selling card games. There have been many revisions to the game but the core gameplay remains largely unchanged. The main objective of the game is to use monster, magic, and trap cards to reduce your opponent’s LP, or life points, to zero. Each card has its own unique properties and uses in a duel, from simply attacking the opponent and their monsters, to clearing the entire playfield of all cards.

In Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links, you take the role of multiple recognizable characters from the show, including Yami Yugi, Seto Kaiba, and others. You are able to take on missions to gain in-game currency or duel other players in a PVP card battle using traditional rules. There are some changes from regulation play, like only having three slots for monster cards on the playfield and the same limit on magic or trap cards. However, the rest of the experience is what Yu-Gi-Oh! players would expect. There are phases to each player’s turn, they are able to pit monsters against each other by comparing Attack and Defense stats, and can utilize magic and trap cards to turn the tide of battle.

Main characters and their 'ace' cards! #DuelLinksBeta pic.twitter.com/HtYCDS7Qfl

— Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links (@YugiohDueILinks) July 19, 2016

In addition to being able to duel against in-game characters, you are also able to duel with players around the world that are playing as well. The missions within the game allow you to earn in-game currency which can be used to buy card packs and unlock playable characters.

Currently, Konami is running a campaign to celebrate the game’s launch and to celebrate attaining 777,777 pre-registrations. Duelists who download and start playing by February 28 will receive special gifts. These gifts include free gems (in-game currency), rare cards with special illustrations, game mats (playfield backgrounds), and card sleeves (accessories to personalize your deck).

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDuelLinks/posts/272365603179316

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links is hardly the first game Konami has made to translate their trading card game into a digital format. There have been many other video games made in the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, including Yu-Gi-Oh! GX: Duel Academy for the Gameboy Advance and Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Arena for PC. There has even been another smartphone game called Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Generation that was released in 2014 for iOS and Android. While some have stayed true to the trading card game rules, other have introduced other gameplay mechanics and have had varying success.

The game is available for both iOS and Android. More information can be found at the official site.

Are you and your friends going to download and duel? Let us know in the comments.

[Featured Image by Konami]