Yu-Gi-Oh!_The_Duelists_of_the_Roses

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the Roses^[a] is a video game developed by Konami based on the manga series Yu-Gi-Oh!. The game was released on September 6, 2001 in Japan, and worldwide throughout 2003. The story is a sequel to Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories and is loosely based on the Wars of the Roses. The series' main characters, Yugi Mutou and Seto Kaiba, play opposing teams known as the Lancastrians and the Yorkists. Each team is playable, battling various characters throughout the plot to prevent a ritual summoning by using sorcerous rose cards.

Using designs by creator Kazuki Takahashi, the game's battle system is based on a chessboard-style battlefield, with over 800 cards from the franchise. Several new features of The Duelist of the Roses differ from the original card game, such as altered card effects, terrain placement, reincarnations, and deck leader promotions. In addition, each monster card features updated 3D computer graphics modelling, which first appeared in Forbidden Memories. Due to content censorship, dialogue and visuals were changed to allow distribution in North America and Europe.

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelist of the Roses received mixed reviews from critics. Some publications praised its story and visuals, while the majority of criticism focused on the gameplay, lack of innovation, and high difficulty. The game was a commercial success, selling over one million units worldwide. Sony Computer Entertainment went on to commemorate the game with a Greatest Hits title, and it stands as one of the best-selling video games for the PlayStation 2 format.

Gameplay

The player views their hand and selects the "Hourglass of Courage" monster card.

The gameplay begins with a dialogue between Seto Kaiba and Simon McMooran. First, McMooran allows the player to choose from several starter decks with a lead deck leader; each deck leader is dealt in threes, based on the name that McMooran requests at the beginning of the game.^[3][4] Kaiba then allows the player to choose between two teams: the Lancastrians (Red Rose) or the Yorkists (White Rose). Each choice later determines which characters to face in future duels, which are displayed on a world map within the game.^[4]

Each duel takes place on a 7x7 battlefield that resembles a chessboard.^[5][4] Each space has a unique terrain that is specific to the character they are fighting.^[4] Different terrains (such as normal, forest, meadow, dark, sea, wasteland, mountain, toon, crush, and labyrinth) can increase or decrease different types of monsters' attack and defence by 500 points, as well as increase each character's movement space.^[5] Three terrains have special effects: labyrinth, which no cards can pass through except for a few monsters with special effects; crush, which destroys monsters with less than 1500 attack points; and toon, which weakens all monsters except toon monsters.^[4]

Each duelist includes a "Deck Leader" who is also placed on the battlefield.^[4] It represents the duelists and can move around the battlefield while being vulnerable to attacks from the opponent.^[3] Each deck leader has a total of forty cards per duel; each deck has a "deck cost", which is a card's strength-based value. For each battle, the deck must be less than a specific deck cost that is significant to the opponent.^[4] Each deck leader can play one card per turn and is placed adjacent to them. When two monster cards collide on the field, they are flipped face up, and a battle is commenced similar to the trading card game, with life points deducted accordingly.^[3] Spell and trap cards can also be placed throughout the field and activated under a variety of conditions.^[4]

The duel ends when one player's life points are depleted, or when a player ends a turn with their deck leader completely surrounded by enemy monsters in their summoning areas.^[4] Additionally, a duel can end after 99 turns, and the player with the most remaining life points is declared the winner.^[5] After winning the duel, players can obtain the opponents' cards that were placed in their graveyard during the duel, using a system known as "graveyard slots"; the mechanism is similar to that of slot machines.^[4] Players can also obtain cards through the "Reincarnation" system in their deck menu, which allows them to sacrifice one card in exchange for three random cards.^[4]

Monsters can be promoted throughout the game and earn experience by surviving each duel, destroying enemy monsters, and attacking the opposing deck leader. When a monster has gained enough experience, it is promoted to the next rank.^[4] To act as a deck leader, a monster must have been promoted at least once. Some deck leaders have unique abilities based on their type and rank, such as increasing and decreasing nearby monsters' points, increasing life points, and moving an additional space on the field.