"A new take on a popular franchise"

Overview:

Yu-Gi-Oh: The Falsebound Kingdom takes the popular Yu-Gi-Oh Trading card game to the Gamecube for the first time, sans cards. This is not a bad thing. I’ve been a Yu-Gi-Oh fan for a couple years, now. To be honest, there’s only so many times one person can play the same game with different graphics or story (Forbidden Memories, Eternal Duelist Soul, Worldwide Edition, etc.) For one, I am glad to see Konami continue the trend started with Duelist of the Roses and take the franchise in new directions.

Story:

The story in TFK is functional, if not great. A new company is making technological accessories to be used in conjunction with Duel Monsters. Their first offering is a virtual world to play the game in. Yugi and friends are invited to test the system out, while Kaiba is checking out the new competition. At this point, the player chooses which character to play as and enters the virtual world. Shortly after entering, the characters become trapped. The only way they can think of to free themselves is to play the game through and reach the end. Along the way, players will encounter many familiar faces, both friend and foe, and suffer through a few predictable plot twists. SCORE: 5

Gameplay:

This is where the game truly shines. TFK plays as an tactical RPG. Players start with “Marshals” such as Yugi or Joey. Each Marshal controls a team of three monsters. Monsters can have their stats increased by teaming with a Marshal that they are “compatible” with. Marshals and Monsters become more compatible by working together as time goes on. Monsters can be given items for healing or raising stats and other uses. Players will set all this up prior to each mission. Once the mission begins, gameplay takes place in real time. The player usually starts with one or two bases, facing a larger force with many more. Towns are very important to success. While in a town, all of the player’s monsters will have an advantage over the enemy’s, and vise versa. The advantage can be further increased by equipping towns with cannons, healers and the like. Missions usually focus on taking the enemy’s main fortress, which usually involves liberating the surrounding towns while defending your own against attacks.

When two opposing forces meet, either in the open or in a town, the game switches to battle mode. From here, the player will switch from controlling the Marshals to controlling the individual monsters. The game predetermines the order the monsters will act in battle. In other words, it appears completely random instead of statistically based. This can make it hard to set a true strategy. The player may think that there is time to attack one more time before healing, only to have a single enemy monster attack two times in a row. Annoying, but not horrible. Each monster has a certain amount of Health, Attack, Defense and Ability Points. Monsters can attack, defend or use items on each turn. Each action costs one Ability Point, with the exception of Special Attacks, which cost two. Players also have the option of passing on their turn for no cost. Battle continues until either one team is wiped out or all surviving monsters are out of Ability Points. If the latter happens, the game resorts to a scoring system to determine the winner. Two Marshals can battle as many times a necessary until one is destroyed. After each battle, Experience points are gained increasing the stats of both monsters and Marshals. With experience, monsters can also gain new attacks and abilities.

There are many other intricate details such as movement types and Marshal abilities which are best up to the instructions to explain. Reading them is definitely mandatory.

One gripe that I’ve had with Yu-Gi-Oh games for years is still in place. The game does not allow for more than one save file on a single memory card. Households with two players will either need to work together or have another memory card. SCORE: 8

Interface:

The game is immensely easy to control. Menus are almost nonexistent during missions. All actions are controlled by presses of the face buttons. Each monster or item is assigned to either the A, X or Y button. The control stick and pad are used only for movement on the map and camera control. Blissfully simple. SCORE: 10

Graphics:

What a mixed bag this is. The mission map is nothing short of ugly. Textures are bland and character models are so small, any detail and animation is completely lost. Luckily, not much time is spent here. Upon first inspection, battles seem almost as bad. The backgrounds are entirely forgettable. Luckily, the developers put their effort where it was most necessary. Monster models are wonderfully detailed and the attack animations are absolutely beautiful. While some are repetitive, it is to be expected when there are hundreds of monsters. SCORE: 6

Sound:

The music is excellent. Unfortunately, players of Duelist of the Roses will find little new here. Almost all of the music is the same from the previous game. Mercifully, most of the annoying tunes from DotR have been left out. Still, some innovation would have been appreciated. Effects are minimal, but well done for the most part. Like the attacks, they can become repetitive, but it is to be expected. SCORE: 7

Verdict:

This game offers plenty of fun for those willing to try. Strategy players may be put off by the license. Those without an interest in Yu-Gi-Oh need not apply. However, those Yu-Gi-Oh fans expecting a card-based game will be very displeased. Given that many are of a younger audience, the complexity of this game should be kept in mind. A trial rental is definitely a must. Those who do like the game will be captivated for hours with long quests, dual story paths, loads of team customization and hundreds of monsters to collect, not to mention unlockable secrets. This game just screams replayability. Try it, you just might like it.

FINAL SCORE: 7

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/24/04