Pokemon Card Game

[vodoochild81]

So my friend and I are on a card game kick playing like Magic the Gathering(awesome game) and we want to try some Pokemon.

I never played or collected the cards, my only experience with Pokemon is the video game.

Anyone on here play it? Was wondering where should we start to just try it out?

Should we buy a black and white starter deck? Are those balanced enough? I saw it at target as well as Pokemon Legends decks..Any ideas as to what we should get?

I know this is off topic from video games but I assume people that play card games would be into Nintendo. Thanks.

 

[The Catboy]

I still play the card game myself

I suggest to start to pick up a starter deck, something like the newest one or a deck of your favorite type of pokemon, they are always well balanced and always well made.
But since you just started, the legends desks have older and different rules, pick up one of the black and white decks since they are very basic and come with the latest rules and changes.

 

[vodoochild81]

That's what I thought. Thanks man. Good to see some people still actually like their gaming in front of real people! ha

Since I got back into this table top stuff it amazes me how much more complex the gameplay is vs video games.

You ever try Magic? It's pretty dope.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

Well Magic is THE collectible card game. Pretty much every card game after it can have elements traced back to Magic. It's why after 18 years it's still the bomb.

Pokemon though is pretty good though. I played the crap out of the game (both the original GBC video game and the cards themselves) when I was a kid. The energy usage thing is a lot like mana in Magic, which allows for more universal theme decks (unlike YuGiOh, which you can just throw a bunch of cheap cards into a deck and do pretty well). It's pretty strategic, although I haven't played with cards past the 2nd gen of Pokemon (most of my cards are first gen anyway).

I've still got around 2000+ Pokemon cards I need to sell (Magic has become my main hobby) but I'll remember the game fondly. Try the GBC game though, it's awesome. They should've made more (they had a sequel but it was Japan-only).

 

[thaddius]

(they had a sequel but it was Japan-only).

The English fan-translation is pretty playable (although not complete).

 

[The Catboy]

That's what I thought. Thanks man. Good to see some people still actually like their gaming in front of real people! ha

Since I got back into this table top stuff it amazes me how much more complex the gameplay is vs video games.

You ever try Magic? It's pretty dope.

I play Magic here and there, I am not very good and my decks are so so, but I indeed play it.

 

[vodoochild81]

Well Magic is THE collectible card game. Pretty much every card game after it can have elements traced back to Magic. It's why after 18 years it's still the bomb.

Pokemon though is pretty good though. I played the crap out of the game (both the original GBC video game and the cards themselves) when I was a kid. The energy usage thing is a lot like mana in Magic, which allows for more universal theme decks (unlike YuGiOh, which you can just throw a bunch of cheap cards into a deck and do pretty well). It's pretty strategic, although I haven't played with cards past the 2nd gen of Pokemon (most of my cards are first gen anyway).

I've still got around 2000+ Pokemon cards I need to sell (Magic has become my main hobby) but I'll remember the game fondly. Try the GBC game though, it's awesome. They should've made more (they had a sequel but it was Japan-only).

Thanks dude. Yea I hear Magic is the king, but not so much in Japan. After asking around the general consensus seems to be 1.Magic 2. Yugioh 3. Pokemon.
Everyone at the shop I play Magic at plays Magic the Yugioh second..No one does Pokemon. I wonder what is bigger in Japan. I am sure Yugioh and Pokemon are.

That is a good point that Magic is the original rude boy of them all. I guess it's like Dungeons and Dragons where ALL Rpg game play could be traced to it. Even the Jrpgs. Damn we Americans are pretty damn innovative. ha

What Pokemon GC game are you talking about? There is like 10. Is there a card game like version of it? I know there is Yug Ih Oh one for the DS/PSP. I am def going to check that.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

Thanks dude. Yea I hear Magic is the king, but not so much in Japan. After asking around the general consensus seems to be 1.Magic 2. Yugioh 3. Pokemon.
Everyone at the shop I play Magic at plays Magic the Yugioh second..No one does Pokemon. I wonder what is bigger in Japan. I am sure Yugioh and Pokemon are.

That is a good point that Magic is the original rude boy of them all. I guess it's like Dungeons and Dragons where ALL Rpg game play could be traced to it. Even the Jrpgs. Damn we Americans are pretty damn innovative. ha

What Pokemon GC game are you talking about? There is like 10. Is there a card game like version of it? I know there is Yug Ih Oh one for the DS/PSP. I am def going to check that.

Well YuGiOh was marketed in the US at least as a card game. It had a rather successful anime (although in retrospect it was fucking terrible) and it centered around a card game. Being able to buy that card game is what made it sell so much. The Pokemon TCG was really just cashing in on the Pokemania of the time. It was still an awesome card game but it was a spin-off toy out of hundreds of spin-off toys.

There's The Gameboy Color game which is, in my opinion, the best TCG video game made. I have a copy of it somewhere and I played the shit out of it. Very few card games have been able to structure themselves as good as this. It structured itself essentially like Pokemon (you fought trainers and gym leaders, but using the TCG) and was fun as hell. I'll argue that it's the best Pokemon spin-off video game ever made.

 

[KingdomBlade]

I tried Pokemon, but sadly I had difficulty playing it. I normally suck at card games really. I always put out the wrong thing at the wrong time, and end up losing. I also tend to suck at assembling decks and such. I would have tried Magic but the number of people who play it here is minute. I did used to play Yu-gi-oh. I'm not good at it either, but at least I know how to play. My deck is only so-so though.

 

[vodoochild81]

Thanks dude. Yea I hear Magic is the king, but not so much in Japan. After asking around the general consensus seems to be 1.Magic 2. Yugioh 3. Pokemon.
Everyone at the shop I play Magic at plays Magic the Yugioh second..No one does Pokemon. I wonder what is bigger in Japan. I am sure Yugioh and Pokemon are.

That is a good point that Magic is the original rude boy of them all. I guess it's like Dungeons and Dragons where ALL Rpg game play could be traced to it. Even the Jrpgs. Damn we Americans are pretty damn innovative. ha

What Pokemon GC game are you talking about? There is like 10. Is there a card game like version of it? I know there is Yug Ih Oh one for the DS/PSP. I am def going to check that.

Well YuGiOh was marketed in the US at least as a card game. It had a rather successful anime (although in retrospect it was fucking terrible) and it centered around a card game. Being able to buy that card game is what made it sell so much. The Pokemon TCG was really just cashing in on the Pokemania of the time. It was still an awesome card game but it was a spin-off toy out of hundreds of spin-off toys.

There's The Gameboy Color game which is, in my opinion, the best TCG video game made. I have a copy of it somewhere and I played the shit out of it. Very few card games have been able to structure themselves as good as this. It structured itself essentially like Pokemon (you fought trainers and gym leaders, but using the TCG) and was fun as hell. I'll argue that it's the best Pokemon spin-off video game ever made.

OHHH.. GC= Gameboy Color lol. I thought you mean GAME CUBE... You said you played it in your childhood, you were making me feel really old there for a minute haha. Yea I will stick with Black and White for now.

I also heard that 5 of the top Pokemon Players in the world were invited to play Magic and they instantly fell in love, quit Pokemon and now play Magic Professionally. So that says something as well.

 

[8BitWalugi]

Funny, I read somewhere that YuGiOh at the moment is the most popular children's card game, followed by Magic. I got nothing against Magic (I actually am considering picking it up some time), but Guilds claims about Magic>YuGiOh seem very biast.

I don't want to start an argument with Guild, caus I know it'll never end (

), but I would look into it. It's pretty fun when playing with friends/in tournaments.

Oh, and you have to stratergise a lot in YuGiOh. You never know if you should save that Dimensional Prison until your opponent attacks this turn or next turn when they may have a Red Nova Dragon out on the field.

 

[vodoochild81]

Funny, I read somewhere that YuGiOh at the moment is the most popular children's card game, followed by Magic. I got nothing against Magic (I actually am considering picking it up some time), but Guilds claims about Magic>YuGiOh seem very biast.

I don't want to start an argument with Guild, caus I know it'll never end (

), but I would look into it. It's pretty fun when playing with friends/in tournaments.

Oh, and you have to stratergise a lot in YuGiOh. You never know if you should save that Dimensional Prison until your opponent attacks this turn or next turn when they may have a Red Nova Dragon out on the field.

Bro what is a guild? lol I mean I know what it is but what in the world is a Magic Guild? You mean fanboys?

Also why are you calling these children's card games? When I go to the shops or tournaments its all people in their 20's and 30's. I used to play magic when I was a kid in the 90's, and the game was SOOO simple back then. It's like 5 times more complex now. I feel like these card games are growing up with their players. Idk about pokemon though. That def has a kiddy appeal to it, but also has something for adults kinda like pixar.

 

[mad567]

I have some pokemon cards the old card I really like them..
I hate they new cards they are so overpowered.

However My buddy and I play some times with my decks when we are getting bored playing MTG

..

 

[Nebz]

Bro what is a guild? lol I mean I know what it is but what in the world is a Magic Guild? You mean fanboys?

Also why are you calling these children's card games? When I go to the shops or tournaments its all people in their 20's and 30's. I used to play magic when I was a kid in the 90's, and the game was SOOO simple back then. It's like 5 times more complex now. I feel like these card games are growing up with their players. Idk about pokemon though. That def has a kiddy appeal to it, but also has something for adults kinda like pixar.

I'm sure he's likely referring to Guild McCommunist. Look at the users who posted....

 

[cris92x]

Magic is the most popular tcg, and tcg isn't a kids game. Advertisers may try to get a younger audience and cash in with the young viewers of the anime but overall tcgs require strategy and there are a lot of players who are 20-40s. I have never seen pokemon tournaments though, i know poeple who just collect the cards but don't actually play. The one thing that really bothered me about pokemon cards are the art styles arent standardized, such as there can be multiple versions of a pokemon and they are all drawn in a completely different style especially with the newer generation cards.

 

[Guild McCommunist]

Bro what is a guild? lol I mean I know what it is but what in the world is a Magic Guild? You mean fanboys?

Also why are you calling these children's card games? When I go to the shops or tournaments its all people in their 20's and 30's. I used to play magic when I was a kid in the 90's, and the game was SOOO simple back then. It's like 5 times more complex now. I feel like these card games are growing up with their players. Idk about pokemon though. That def has a kiddy appeal to it, but also has something for adults kinda like pixar.

Lol, I'm Guild. Nice to meet you

I guess the thing with these card games is that they're easy to learn, hard to master. Almost any chump can learn Magic pretty easily. I've had friends who watched me play it for half an hour and learned pretty much all the mechanics. The hard part is learning how to use each card and how to build a good deck.

But yeah, I definitely wouldn't classify them as children's games. They're playable by them but definitely have an appeal to adults, although YuGiOh and Pokemon are marketed as children's games.

QUOTE(8BitWalugi @ Apr 22 2011, 05:28 PM) Funny, I read somewhere that YuGiOh at the moment is the most popular children's card game, followed by Magic. I got nothing against Magic (I actually am considering picking it up some time), but Guilds claims about Magic>YuGiOh seem very biast.

I don't want to start an argument with Guild, caus I know it'll never end (

), but I would look into it. It's pretty fun when playing with friends/in tournaments.

Oh, and you have to stratergise a lot in YuGiOh. You never know if you should save that Dimensional Prison until your opponent attacks this turn or next turn when they may have a Red Nova Dragon out on the field.

YuGiOh is popular because it's marketed so much. There's an anime, video games, commercials, etc. Magic really isn't marketed much since it has such a big fanbase already.

I mean, YuGiOh has some strategy, but it's just not nearly as complex as Magic. There's a constantly changing metagame for tournies and if you're a casual home player, you've got 18 years worth of cards to play with. YuGiOh just seemed to be a lot of throwing your best cards into a deck (since there's no mana/energy usage like Pokemon that limits what kinds of creatures you can have) and going at it. For Magic, there's so many ways to play. Play offensively, defensively, quickly, slowly, whatever you want.

I've been at some point or another an avid player of all these major TCGs and I can safely say Magic is just more complex and more varied.

Plus the artwork on YuGiOh and Pokemon cards are honestly just lazy. Nothing stands up to the art on Magic the Gathering cards. They blow me away every set.

 

[Hells Malice]

Guild you don't seem to have ever done much Yugioh card playing. The strategy in it gets pretty complex.
I'd say in terms of quality, it's quite on par with Magic, aside from Magic having so many years of cards more then Yugioh. The nail in the coffin of your argument was when you said "Play offensively, defensively, quickly, slowly, whatever you want.", Yugioh is the exact same way.
Yugioh you can build a turtling deck where you focus on never letting your opponent attack, and win by eliminating their deck rather then lifepoints. You could focus on attack, using cards to weaken your opponent, strengthen your own cards, and constantly keeping up the pressure of an attack. You could get a deck that allows you to set up combos, like my Five god dragon deck where I have a nice little combo that can net me two or three five god dragons if I play my cards right (five god dragon is a retardedly powerful card).

Needless to say, there is countless strategies and ways to play Yugioh, just like Magic.
Just because Yugioh has a shitty anime, commercials, and movies behind it means absolutely nothing. Magic has some videogames too, by the way.

Pokemon on the other hand...is a complete waste of time.

 

[Urza]

Pokemon TCG, while a fine casual game, offers virtually 0 interaction during opponents' turns (granted my Pokemon TCG knowledge ends around the 2005 mark). This prevents it from ever really being a high-level game. If you have no aspirations of playing competitively, it's enjoyable enough.

Yugioh, while cute and with an interesting ruleset, is another decidedly subpar TCG. The paradigms the game itself presents aren't really the problem, Konami simply has no idea how to maintain a competitive meta. Throughout the history of the game it has been blatantly obvious that they do no appreciable amount of playtesting or power leveling.

Summary of Konami's meta maintenance strategy:

1) Release as many cards as possible, following patterns which will achieve the absolute maximum amount of sales. Card quality is not relevant here, most sets following an 90% worthless trash/8% potentially playable/2% this is fucking broken and will destroy the game.

2) Wait until sales of a given set have slowed, and pick a handful of cards from that set which have had the most severe detriment to the meta you've been ignoring.

3a) If the card in question is popular with the fans, either do nothing or restrict it.

3b) If the card instantly wins the game, ban it.

3c) If the card creates such an overwhelming advantage that it's present in almost every tier 1 list, look outside your window then flip a coin. If it comes up heads, restrict the card. If the moon outside is indeed blue, and it's illuminating the angry players with pitchforks outside your office, consider banning.

4) Take a bath in your hot tub full of money and return to step one.

To reiterate, Yugioh is another fine casual game, with an original and interesting ruleset. From a competitive gaming standpoint however, it's absolute trash.

 

[FireEmblemGuy]

To move this slightly back on topic, there's a limited online Pokemon TCG at PokemonTCG.com. You need to register an account that can be used at pretty much all official Pokemon sites, and from there you can take the 'Trainer Challenge' - basically, choose one of three prebuilt decks, and enter a tournament - there's a total of three right now with a fourth apparently coming soon, all of which have a dozen matches each. For each battle you win you get a new card for the deck you're using, witch automatically replaces another card to maintain the 60-card deck limit. It works pretty well as a tutorial, and apparently by this fall there should be a full PvP mode, allowing you to enter codes found inside physical decks to unlock those cards online.

All in all, a beginner to the game might want to try this first.

 

[Urza]

To move this slightly back on topic, there's a limited online Pokemon TCG at PokemonTCG.com. You need to register an account that can be used at pretty much all official Pokemon sites, and from there you can take the 'Trainer Challenge' - basically, choose one of three prebuilt decks, and enter a tournament - there's a total of three right now with a fourth apparently coming soon, all of which have a dozen matches each. For each battle you win you get a new card for the deck you're using, witch automatically replaces another card to maintain the 60-card deck limit. It works pretty well as a tutorial, and apparently by this fall there should be a full PvP mode, allowing you to enter codes found inside physical decks to unlock those cards online.

All in all, a beginner to the game might want to try this first.

Several years ago there was a complete OCTGN patch, although I have no idea if it's still maintained.