Have you ever had the feeling when you leave a room and then come back later that something really exciting happened and nobody bothered to tell you about it? Plenty of players have been feeling like that lately—so much has happened in the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG during the last few months that it’s no surprise people have missed the occasional announcement. Since I’d hate to have any of you feel embarrassed because you went racing into your local card shop with what you’re positive is hot news, only to learn that absolutely everyone knew about it a month ago, I’m going to give you a little refresher course on all the new stuff you might have somehow missed.
Usually, you only have to worry about cards in the context of “new.” There’s a lot more than cards to be aware of lately, but hey, let’s start with them. We all like cards, right? So here’s what you might have missed as far as those are concerned. There’s a lot, so pay attention!
Secret Rares Are Back!
This was a big surprise for a lot of people, since nothing about this was leaked beforehand. Sneak Previews in North America used packs without secret rares to keep the secret a bit longer, but the packs used for European Sneaks did contain them. For a while, a lot of players thought the secret rares were a European-only release, but once the product hit retail shelves in North America, the secrets started popping up.
Back before we had ultimate rares, we had secret rares—one for retail packs, and one for hobby packs. There was nothing quite like opening a pack and seeing that extra sparkly foil and rainbow holo letters . . . especially if the secret rare in question was something like Jinzo, Injection Fairy Lily, or Gemini Elf. We can recapture that feeling now without giving up our ultimates either, and there are nine secret rares in the Strike of Neos set. Lucky people can find Grandmaster of the Six Samurai, Harvest Angel of Wisdom, Gellenduo, and six others. If you manage to pull one, congratulations! I haven’t found any yet.
Zane Duelist Packs Got Released After All . . .
Despite all the screaming and complaining from people who heard that the Zane pack wasn’t being released, it was released—you can get it in the Duelist Pack Collector’s Edition that is now on store shelves. It will come out as a pack on its own later on, but if you want them now, you’ll need to find one of those tins. The tins are a pretty good deal—you get one booster each of the original Jaden and Chazz packs, one Jaden 2, one Aster Phoenix and two Zane Truesdale packs all in a nice compact and colorful tin. Good luck finding them, though—those Zane packs are hot items. Everyone is trying to get their hands on the rare Cyber Dragon cards! I’d better mention that they feature alternate art—they’re sharp looking monsters. I wish you happy hunting: I haven’t got an alternate art Cyber Dragon yet.
It’s not just Cyber Dragon, though—the Zane pack also has reprints like Chimeratech Overdragon, Cyber Phoenix, and Future Fusion, and some cool new cards like Infernal Dragon and Ruthless Denial. Also, since there are some Jaden Yuki 2 packs and Aster Phoenix packs in the tin, you’ve got another shot at Destiny Hero - Malicious, Destiny Draw, and Card Trooper! I did manage to get a Destiny Draw and a brace of Malicious. Delicious!
Get Yourself a Shrink
Hey, everyone can get a Shrink now! That is, as long as you can locate some Strike of Neos—Special Edition. I don’t remember the last time a Special Edition pack was this popular. Inside, along with two packs of Strike of Neos (which you want anyway), you’ll find your very own copy of Shrink, an alternate art Cyber End Dragon, and a pack of Enemy of Justice! Banisher of the Radiance is still a staple for a lot of players’ side decks, and with the Strike of Neos secret rares fuelling new interest in the counter-Fairy theme, it’s a great time to open a few copies of Bountiful Artemis. There’s really nothing sensible to dislike about this Special Edition pack, except for the difficulty of locating it on store shelves. I haven’t found one yet.
OK, now I’m just getting depressed thinking about all these cards I haven’t found. Let’s talk about something else for a while. How about tournaments? Yes! I like tournaments.
More Prizes and More Chances to Win at Shonen Jump Championships!
We’ve recently had a big change to the largest OP events in North America—now, if you attend a Shonen Jump Championship, you have a better chance of making it to Day 2, because the final cut is a Top 16 instead of Top 8. Shonen Jump Houston was the very first event held with this structure, and it looked rather successful from my point of view. We had the most diverse Day 2 I can ever recall, and finally some of those players who always seem to end up on the bubble made it in to the second day.
Not only do more people have a shot at Day 2, but the prize payout increased too. There are now four copies of the prize card given out at each event—first through third place each get a card. Naturally, that means there is now a playoff for third and fourth place. (The final copy of the card is, as always, given out to the winner of the side event Top 4.) There are also more electronics prizes such as iPods, and the winner takes home a very nice looking silver trophy.
North American National Championships Announced!
Even bigger news on the tournament front for North American players—the U.S. National Championship will once again be held in Columbus, Ohio. It won’t be part of Origins as it was in previous years—this is a stand-alone event held on June 23rd and 24th. Let’s see what a central location and school’s-out date will do for this year’s turnout. Canadian Nationals will return to Toronto on June 16th and 17th. If you’re qualified and want to participate, start making your vacation plans now! If you are not yet qualified and want to participate, start winning at Regionals! You’ve only got a few more months. The location and date for the Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship, however, continues to remain a mystery . . . even to us here at Metagame.com.
New Judge Mat!
Let’s segue from tournaments into judging! If you don’t judge often or hang around with judges, you might not know there’s a new judge play mat. This one was given out first at Shonen Jump Orlando, I believe, and it’s a really good-looking mat. Following in the footsteps of the previous entries, it features artwork from Structure Decks—hearkening back to the Spellcaster and Warrior structures, with Gilford The Legend on the left and Dark Eradicator Warlock on the right. This is one fine looking mat . . . I don’t have one of these, either.
Personally I can’t remember when we’ve had this much going on in the world of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG, and we’re still waiting for news on upcoming products and events. I do recall an announcement at the end of last year from Upper Deck Entertainment’s R&D team that told us to expect a great year full of new things, and so far they weren’t kidding. We’re barely a quarter of the way into 2007, though, so we can only imagine what’s yet to come. At least you’re caught up for now!