Home

 › 

Articles

 › 

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia Review for Nintendo DS

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia Review for Nintendo DS

Just Let Destiny Choose!

The 5D’s sub-series of Yu-Gi-Oh! has brought a lot to the franchise. From new characters like Yusei, Akisa, and Jack Atlas to the mysterious world of New Domino and the Satellites that surround it, there is quite a lot to the 5D’s series. When the decision was made last year to start incorporating elements from the 5D’s series into the World Championship game series, fans were nervous. However, the switch to the 5D’s series brought many positive elements including a more robust story mode, which incorporated characters from the game, and a new virtual card battling interface, which included a new “guide” system that controlled the flow of battle and prevented inappropriate cards from being played during the wrong phases.

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia screenshot

These changes were certainly a gamble, as the World Championship series was quite well established, but they paid off and made World Championship 2009 much better than its predecessors. Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s World Championship 2010 builds on the momentum of last year’s World Championship to create a well-rounded title that Yu-Gi-Oh! fans will certainly enjoy.

Like all Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship titles, Reverse of Arcadia requires some knowledge of the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game. Although there is a tutorial mode, the game doesn’t go into much detail about the battle system, and if you are picking this game up as a franchise newbie, then you can expect a steep learning curve. The Yu-Gi-Oh! card game is quite complex, and if you are not familiar with the basics of the game, World Championship 2010 will be an exercise in frustration.

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia screenshot

However, if you have at least a passing knowledge of the rules and the different card types, the guided card battle system will actually help you improve your game. Much like the World Championship 2009, Reverse of Arcadia’s card battle system has a robust phase system that only allows you to use cards when appropriate, and it also includes warnings about special summons that have effects that may be detrimental to your game. The guided battle system is very helpful for those who are just learning the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game, and it also helps speed things up for those who consider themselves experts, as you can quickly shift from phase to phase, and use the onscreen cursor to highlight the cards you want to use and use shortcuts to set them on the playing field.

Although much of the game does revolve around the card battling, Reverse of Arcadia does have a complete-feeling story mode that allows you to do much more than duel. You play as a new recruit for the nefarious Arcadia Movement, which is being manipulated by the Dark Signers. As you play, you will battle friends and foes and will also be able to race in true 5D’s style. The game also has several puzzle levels to help round out the gameplay. Though 60% of the gameplay will revolve around dueling, it was nice to take a break with the racing and puzzle levels, and as a result World Championship 2010 feels more like an action adventure game with a card battling system rather than just a card battle simulator.

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia screenshot

The story mode may be nice, but of course the real reason to pick up World Championship 2010 is for the online play. Playing Yu-Gi-Oh! online has never felt so seamless, and the guided card battle system works well within the online mode. Within moments of signing on, I was able to find a ranked match and start dueling and there was no lag. Card animations are also very smooth in the online mode; however, if you are using multiple summons, you may experience infrequent framerate drops.

As far as the card roster is concerned, World Championship 2010 includes the biggest card roster yet, with more than 3000 playable cards. Of course, handling all these cards can be a challenge, but the deck creator is robust enough that finding and adding your favorite cards is very simple. In addition to the cards on the cart, fans can also download bonus cards by participating in weekly events that are displayed on the top screen when you log in to the online mode. This community aspect is a great way to keep players coming back to world Championship 2010 and dueling opponents from around the world.

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia screenshot

Visually, world Championship 2010 is on par with its predecessors in regards to the story mode. When you are running around in the game’s overworld, you’ll see some nicely rendered 3D elements, but much of the background is bland. Although the background is plain, the characters sport a fair amount of detail.

Though the overworld just looks so-so, the card battle interface looks great. Cards are reproduced perfectly in the game, and monster animations are snappy and very detailed. The guided elements of the battle system are also nicely implemented in the battle landscape and do not look jarring at all. Most of the guide elements take the form of tiny little icons on top of each card that you can draw on to identify which cards you can use during a given phase. These tiny elements combined with the great art design and animations make the card battles a joy to look at.

It has never been a better time to be a Yu-Gi-Oh! fan. With a great new series on TV and new cards coming out all the time, this series shows no sign of slowing down. The World Championship franchise on the Nintendo DS started slowly several years ago, but I can confidently say that World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia is the best title in the series yet. With a well-rounded story mode, robust online capabilities, and over 3000 cards, this game is a no-brainer if you are a fan of Yu-Gi-Oh!. Even if it has been awhile since you have played a Yu-Gi-Oh! game, the guided card system makes it easy to get back into the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!. Just make sure you pick your cards carefully!

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 3.8 Graphics
The backgrounds in the story mode are quite bland but the character models sport a fair amount of detail and animations are solid throughout. 3.8 Control
Touch-screen controls are simple and effective for card play, but don’t work as well in some of the puzzle levels. 3.0 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
Background music is unremarkable, but lack of a voiceover is regrettable. 3.9

Play Value
The online mode is easy to use and can be replayed endlessly. The story mode is a nice bonus, but is only really good for a single playthrough.

3.8 Overall Rating – Good
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

  • The latest iteration of Yu-Gi-Oh! for the Nintendo DS expands on gameplay features to make this the biggest Yu-Gi-Oh! game with the most robust feature set ever! Players now have 3,200 cards, including cards from the Absolute Powerforce series, to compete against friends or players worldwide via Wi-Fi connection.
  • New features allow players to battle for the ultimate bragging rights by viewing leaderboards including their last 20 battles or using the new Wi-Fi ranking system to track win percentages against other duelists worldwide by elevating and decreasing their ranking based on the strength of opponents.
  • With 3,200 cards, players can utilize the new Duelist Calculator to help quickly and accurately calculate attack and defense points while battling opponents! In addition, the Turbo Dueling, race mechanics have been enhanced to include obstacles, puzzles, hidden pathways and increased collection points. Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s World Championship 2010: Reverse of Arcadia includes three exclusive trading cards in package.

  • To top