Now I’ve mostly talked about the positive aspects of Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist: Link Evolution, but there are some areas it falls short. One aforementioned area is how incredibly difficult it can be to pull what you need from packs. A related problem is the game doesn’t tell you when you pull new cards. That’s more of a minor problem, but it’s also one I’ve seen previous games do better. I also wouldn’t have minded a way of clarifying which archetypes are represented in which pack. Each one has a ton of different cards, and if you can remember them all, you have a better memory than me. More substantive is how the game doesn’t really help you navigate the Deck Edit mode. There’s a lot of filters to help search for things, and I had to discover them all on my own. That isn’t to say it’s impossible to figure out, but a little guidance would have gone a long way here. And, speaking of guidance, while I don’t mind the tutorials the game provides, I also feel they could have been more robust to help guide new players. The simple truth of the matter is Yu-Gi-Oh! is a very complex game with a lot to comprehend. That can be a bit intimidating to newer players, and without courting those people, this game will only really draw the attention of players already well-versed with the series. And that’s a shame, since there’s a lot to enjoy here.
While most players won’t be buying this game for the art or music, I still feel I should touch upon both like usual. Visually, the game is a bit of a mixed bag. The interface for playing is clean and uncluttered, but it’s also a bit barebones. One fellow Yu-Gi-Oh! fan said the graphics could have come from a PS2 game, and I couldn’t entirely disagree. However, there is one area the graphics are pretty attractive, and that’s with the summon of iconic monsters. Whenever you summon a Dark Magician, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Elemental Hero Thunder Giant or the like, they’ll get a flashy animation. These are quite cool, and do a lot to add to the mystique of these cards. The only downside is that there’s no option to toggle these off, because in duels where they are summoned repeatedly, it can wear a bit thin. As far as the writing in the game goes, it reads pretty well, though I was irritated when characters had a caption saying they were thinking to themselves, which was totally unnecessary. On the sound side of things, I have a less rosy opinion. The music in the game is very muted, even with my volume turned all the way up. There’s some adequate sound effects for things like Turn Change or activating cards, but it’s pretty average. It’s not offensive, but it could have been much flashier. Especially since previous Yu-Gi-Oh! videogames had features like dynamic music, where it changed dramatically when you were running low on Life Points. Not to mention, the theme songs from the shows were pretty memorable.
All in all, I really enjoyed Yu-Gi-Oh! Legacy of the Duelist: Link Evolution. Even with its flaws, it’s easily the best video game in the series to date. There’s a ton to keep you busy, and I’ve easily spent 30-40 hours already just for the sake of this review. The biggest issue I have with it is that it doesn’t do enough to court players unfamiliar with the nuance and newfound complexity of the game. Things like the Forbidden and Limited List are also confusing, in that they aren’t the most recent version, but instead seem a mishmash of previous lists. But if you can look past that sort of thing, you get a lot of bang for your buck for only $39.99. If you’re a fan of the series and are eager for an excuse to dive in and test out new deck ideas, then you’ll enjoy the game. Just be ready to spend a long time grinding for the cards you need.
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Review Copy Purchased by Author
