| Publisher(s) | Score Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Players | 2 |
| Age range | 8+ |
| Playing time | Approx 20 min |
| Random chance | Some |
| Skill(s) required | Card playing Arithmetic Basic Reading Ability |
The Yu Yu Hakusho Trading Card Game was first published in 2003 by Score Entertainment,[1] and is based on the anime and manga series YuYu Hakusho (the series is spelled Yu Yu Hakusho in FUNimation's anime version and spelled YuYu Hakusho in the Viz English manga). It is a two-player tournament-styled collectible card game; each player uses a deck of forty-four or more cards that is headed by a team of four character cards. The game was discontinued in 2005.
Contents |
Six expansions were released for the Yu Yu Hakusho TCG:
Tournament cards were distributed at tournaments in special packs called spirit packs. Promotional cards could be acquired in many ways: buying magazines or DVDs, or attending tournaments or special events. Alliance did not have any tournament or promotional cards. In addition, special league cards could be acquired by joining a league.
In addition, a "mystery card" called "The Dark One" said to be the ultimate card. Three copies of it were given to each Score employee. It had an attack of 99000 and the effect "Since you work for Score you can choose a card in your hand or in play and change the effect of the card into anything you want for the remainder of the game." This was one of the most sought after cards in the game when it was first revealed.
The game is divided into five matches that consist of one-on-one fights between two character cards. The players alternate turns until one character is defeated, then move on to the next pair of characters. The game ends when one player wins 3 out of the 5 matches, or when one player cannot draw or discard a card from their deck. There are also a select few amount of cards that allow you to win the game after performing a set amount of conditions.
The playing field has nine places for cards and a Spirit Energy tracker on each side.
On the leftmost side is the Arena, where the currently fighting Characters are placed opposite each other. Attached Item cards are placed on the lower-left of the Character, and Techniques on the lower-right.
To the right of the Arena are the deck and the discard pile, and placed in a line going left-to-right are the three (or four) other Characters. (This is called the Sideline.) Above the Sideline is the Spirit Energy Tracker, which is simply 0 through 10 printed on the game mat. Included with each Starter Deck is a cardboard counter that is used to mark what level the player's Spirit Energy is, but any sort of counter (coins, pebbles, etc.) can be used.
The player and their opponent start the game with zero Spirit Energy. The player selects four characters from their deck and chooses one to place in the Arena section of the field; this one will fight the first match. The other three are placed face-down in a line to the right of the deck and discard, with the character that will fight next leftmost. Once the character cards of both players have been placed, the player turns them all right-side up.
The player should shuffle the deck and place it on the field, then flip a coin to determine who goes first. Both players then draw 4 cards from the top of their decks.
Any cards' effects with "Draw:" can be used during this step.
The player may take any of these actions during this step:
Alternatively, the player may do nothing at all, and go straight to the Attack step.
If a card the player is attaching to a fighter has one or more Spirit Energy icons on it, then they must spend that number of Spirit Energy and lower their Tracker accordingly. However, when the player attaches a card to a character on the Sideline, they should place it facedown under the character and therefore they will not pay any costs. The only time the player will pay costs is when the attached cards are flipped face-up on either the Sidelines or while entering the Arena. If the costs cannot be paid, the card must be discarded.
The player uses one attack during this step. Attacks are done in this order, to prevent confusion:
Once a character has taken four points of damage (thus returning it to its original position), both fighters are moved off the main playing field, and the winner is placed face-up and the loser face-down. Any cards attached to them are discarded. The next-in-line in the Match Slots are then moved to the Arena, any attached cards are flipped face-up and any costs for those cards are paid now.
The game, which started in 2003 and ended in 2005, was discontinued for various reasons. One of the reasons was that each subsequent expansion of cards greatly overpowered the previous sets (see power creep). Cards in later sets had effects and power values which would have been considered overly powerful in the beginning. There were also cards that distorted the game and, with the right deck compilation, allowed you to win in a single turn without even allowing your opponent to have a turn. Some players believed Score did not act swiftly enough to ban or issue errata to these cards. The most notable change was when Israel "I.Q." Quiroz, then head designer, left the company due to creative differences late into the development of the Gateway expansion.
After leaving Score Entertainment Israel Quiroz was accused of cheating in the draft portion of the GenCon 04 realms tournament when his deck was found to have too many ghost rares and rares possible for a deck. When brought to the attention of the tournament judge, Scott Sager, the claims were immediately dismissed. Quiroz's team then went on to win the tournament. Fans saw this as favoritism, which led to even more people leaving the game.
The YuYu Hakusho Trading Card Game was voted the Best Trading Card Game of 2003 by Inquest Gamer Magazine.[2]