Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelists of the Roses
Creator - Kazuki Takahashi
Publisher - Konami
Release Date - 2003
Rating - E for Everyone

Introduction

You have been summoned to Mid-Century Europe to fight for Henry Tudor (Atemu) to fight off the Yorkists. State your name, pick your deck and then choose...will you aid Atemu? Or will you betray him and join Christian Rosenkreuz (Seto) to defeat the Lancastrians and use the 'spell of doom'?

Gameplay (7/10)

In this game, you have two stories. Play along side with Atemu (Red Rose) or Seto (White Rose). Your object is to collect the remaining 8 rose cards which are being guarded by 8 enemy duelists.

Duelists play on a 7x7 grid where they take turns summoning monsters and advancing them on the field in order to get to their enemy's deck master. Some monster cards even have their own effects and abilities. You can also summon spell and trap cards that can be activated by turning face up (spell) or stepping near them (trap). The rules of summoning are pretty much the same. You can only have 5 monsters and 5 spell/trap cards on the field. Also, you have to have a certain amount of summoning points to summon a monster (each round, you gain 3). The game winner is decided when a player loses all their life points or if their deck master is surrounded (or if they summon exodia). At the end of each duel, you'll come to a slot machine game. Press the three buttons to get cards from your opponent's graveyard. Match three up and you might win a rare card. When certain cards are played with the most, they can be promoted and given ranks. This allows them to develop their own deck master abilities, which can be useful in a duel. You have to battle all 8 duelists to gather the 8 red/white rose cards. Each duelist has their own Deck Cost, and you cannot duel them when your deck cost exceeds theirs.

At the end of the game, you receive a password that can be inputted to get one rare card. After that, you can choose to play for the other side, the one you didn't choose before. All together there are 19 players + yourself, who all have their own unique, themed decks with their own playing field. Use your cards wisely and use the terrain bonuses to your advantage.

Sound, Music & Effects (9/10)

Personally, I think the music is classical and well composed, with great use of the piano and harpsichord. Red Rose duelists have one set of music and White Rose duelists have another, with addition to Seto and Atemu, who each have their own. People who have played Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories will recognize a few remixed music pieces from the game. If you hate repetitive music, then you will want to turn the volume down. Sound Effects are plain and simple, but they do not take away from the game.

Graphics (8.5/10)

All cards are made to look like the official TCG cards, but some cards have been edited to censor guns, nudity and/or religious symbols. The graphics are hands down a big improvement from Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories. All monsters cards are animated and can be viewed 3D during battle phases or while browsing the library. Same as the card images, some 3D monsters have been edited. It's best to turn off the display battle or else the duels will take forever. Overall, I think the graphics are stunning and you really get to see what the monsters look like. The character images were re-used though, only they were given different outfits.

Overall (8/10)

Don't listen to the reviews or pay attention to the ratings this game has been given. Most critics hate Yu-Gi-Oh! related material and are always putting it down. It's best to read a review written by a fan who has played the game, take into consideration their pros and cons of the game, and then make your decision as to whether or not to purchase the game.

The introduction to the game is very long and bothersome. At first, the game will seem a bit confusing and challenging. It's best to have Simon teach you how to play at the beginning. I'd recommend starting out as a Red Rose Duelist first. That way you can build up your deck and have a better chance of defeating the second story. The last boss is super hard and can take a while to defeat. The best strategy for any duelist is to get to know their cards and use this to your advantage. What card/s will stop a duelist from giving you direct damage to your Life Points? I think the graphics and music are lovely and once you create an amazing deck, you can defeat anyone with ease. Once you've completed both stories, keep playing! This way you can get new and rare cards from the slot machine. I was glad to see that Ishizu was properly re-drawn, but sadly, Bakura stayed the way he was.

Mistakes and Glitches

I've come across a few problems in the game probably due to information being inputted incorrectly, however since I'm not familiar with the TCG they may be mistakes on my behalf.

-Barrel Dragon's effect-
When flipped, it can destroy at random one of your opponent's cards, yet it can destroy your own cards.

-Malevolent Nuzzler-
This card can increase the attack points of Fiend Female monsters by 500, but most normal female monsters can be equipped with this card. Same thing with King of Yamimakai.

-Megamorph-
This card apparently can increase all your own monsters by 300 points, yet this is treated like an equip card so only one of your monsters can recieve its power bonus.

-Fusion-
Since the fusion card is not needed in this game, you can do it manually when you have the correct cards, yet it is nearly impossible to summon Twin Headed Thunder Dragon as none of the supposingly combinations will work (Thunder Dragon + Thunder Dragon)

-Characters Get Stuck-
While battling Ryuzaki, his deck master got stuck when he tried to move it and the game froze for a good 2 minutes.

-Battling Yourself-
If Deck Master K's hand has monsters cards with 1500 attack power or higher while battling on the crush terrain, he/she will refuse to summon any cards.

-Pegasus Can See Your Hand?-
After placing Gorgan's Eye face down on the field, Pegasus will magically move all his monsters into attack mode.

Hints and Fun Stuff

Character Decks:
(Name, Deck Master, Deck, Playing Field)

Red Rose Duelists:
Anzu & Dancing Elf - Fairy - Normal/Moutain/Meadow Terrain Field
Honda & Karbonala Warrior - Mixed - Normal/Forest/Water/Wasteland/Dark/Meadow (Crab)
Mai & Harpie Lady - Harpie/Winged Beast - Mountain/Wasteland
Kajiki Ryouta & Sea Dragon God Leviathan - Water - Water/Sogen
Jounouchi & Flame Swordsman - Special - Mountain/Water/Wasteland/Toon/Sogen
Shadi & Millennium Golem - Mixed - Crush/Water/Forest/Wasteland/Dark
Suguroku & Exodia Head - Exodia/Spellbound - Sogen/Mountain/Labyrinth/Dark/Normal
Bakura & Rainbow Flower - Plant/Beast - Forest/Crush
Atemu & Black Magician - Special - ALL
BOSS & Chakra- Special - Sogen/Labyrinth/Dark

White Rose Duelists:
Haga & Basic Insect - Insect - Forest
Ryuzaki & Twin Headed Rex - Dinosaur - Wasteland/Labyrinth
Ghost Kotsuzuka & Pumpking - Zombie - Wasteland/Sogen/Water
Player Killer of Darkness & King of Yamimakai - Fiend - Dark/Forest
Bandith Keith & Slot Machine - Machine - Wasteland/Labyrinth
Pegasus J. Crawford & Illusionist Mage - Toon - Sogen/Normal/Labyrinth/Toon
Labyrinth Mage & Beast Tamer - Labyrinth - ALL
Ishizu & Witch of the Black Forest - Mixed - Water/Crush/Wasteland
Heishin & Battle Steer - Beast-Warrior/Warrior - Mountain/Meadow
Seto & Blue Eyes White Dragon - Special - Sogen/Normal/Labyrinth
BOSS & Skull Knight - Special - Sogen/Labyrinth/Crush

Out of all the duelists, Honda is the easiest to beat due to his odd deck and weak cards. Bakura is a very disappointing duelist because as you would expect a nice occult deck instead uses plant cards with 600 attack points. Each duelist had their own themed deck which gain bonuses on their field, so remember what they are before you begin (it's easy to guess). Each character is almost exactly as they are portrayed in the anime/manga. The Player Killer of Darkness uses the darkness and traps to cowardly hide behind. Haga will try his best to summon his Ultimate Moth while Ghost Kotsuzuka will try to power up his monsters with Pumpking. Atemu and Seto have their own deck with familiar cards (Black Magician Girl, Mirror Force, Silver Fang, etc). Seto is actually easy to beat while Atemu is a tad tricky due to you never knowing what he has up his sleeves. The Boss is actually easier to beat playing along Seto's side rather than along Atemu's side but beware of his many trap cards.

Your best chances of beating the game is to develop a themed deck. Depending on the available cards, it's very easy to esemble one using the correct combination of monster and spell cards. Popular decks include Zombie decks and Fairy decks as it is very easy to power up your monsters with stats at their maximum (9999/9999). Even if you don't have the monster cards you need, remember than you can easily fuse two or more cards to obtain them. You can get a few ritual cards in the game, however they can be a hassle to use and a waste of turns). If you have rare cards that you wish to require more of, duel against yourself to win them in the slot machine. Also remember to try your best to get three cards lined up to get even more rare cards including the Blue Eyes White Dragon, Gemini Elf and Demon Summon. Use your best monsters often to promote them so that they will have many deck master abilities that will aid you in battle.

Remeber to know your opponent before you being dueling them. Save the game after every duel so you can see how your opponent battles. Doing this will allow you to know the needed cards that will bring them down.

This post has been edited by Meeja Isara: Jul 12 2008, 11:26 PM