Yu-Gi-Oh! Rush Duel

Yu-Gi-Oh! Rush Duel is a trading card game derived from the well-known Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game, first released in 2020 alongside the sixth spin-off to Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, Yu-Gi-Oh! SEVENS.

While most of the rules are exactly the same as the official card game, some modifications were made to ensure a simple and fast-paced gameplay that is more enticing to younger audience and older players who are looking for a simpler and lighter game. Due to the different design philosophies and card design, Rush Duel cards and OCG cards are not interchangeable.

Major changes from the official card game include:

• Each player has 3 Monster Zones and 3 Spell/Trap Zones.
• Each player starts the Duel with 4 cards in their hand.
• Each turn, during their Draw Phase, the turn player draws until they have 5 cards in their hand. If they already have 5 or more cards in their hand, they draw 1 card instead. There is no limit to hand size. The player who goes first still get their first turn Draw Phase.
• If a player couldn't draw a required amount of card(s) from their Deck, they lose.
• Standby Phase and Main Phase 2 are nonexistent.
• Each player can Normal Summon or Set as many monsters as they possibly can each turn. Level 5 or higher monsters still require their respective amount of Tributes.
• Certain mechanics such as Trigger Effects, Quick Effects, Hand Ignition Effects, Graveyard Ignition Effects and Banishing are absent to simplify the game. Additionally, all activated effects are limited to once per turn per that card's instance (exactly like the OCG's "Once per turn:" clause).
• A completely brand new type of Monster, the Maximum Monster, is added exclusively for Rush Duel. Maximum Monsters come in sets of 3 monsters, with each of them able to function as standalone monsters when needed; however, if a player managed to complete a set in their hand, they can Maximum Summon all 3 as a single powerful monster.
• A subset of cards called Legend Cards are added to the game. These are powerful and iconic cards from the OCG that are imported to the Rush Duel environment. Due to their sheer power, only 1 Legend Card, full stop, is allowed on each Deck.

Aside from the rule adaptations, Rush Duel cards are also designed much differently, with simplified text boxes that separate the effect's requirement and execution, a larger art box, and simpler Level indicator, as well as a more stylized general layout.

While the format is set to debut internationally in Fall of 2021 through the video game Yu-Gi-Oh! Rush Duel Saikyo Battle Royale, the physical game is currently exclusive to Japan and Korea only.

Tropes used in Yu-Gi-Oh! Rush Duel include:

• Action Girl: As per series tradition, many of the female monsters fall into this category. Some examples:
  • Most members of Romin's Psychic Musician series.
  • In relation to the above, most Psychic-Type monsters also count, in particular those who are part of the "secret agent" storyline such as Agent Telepath, Silent Assassin and Handy Lady.
• Actionized Sequel: The game design encourages the player to Summon monsters en-masse and play more generally more aggressively, in contrast to the complex combo- and control/negation-based gameplay of the OCG.
• All Your Powers Combined: Sevens Road Magician can gain ATK for each monster with different Attribute in the Graveyard. Naturally, the more varied monsters a player has in their Graveyard, the more powerful Sevens Road Magician becomes.
• Armor-Piercing Attack: Piercing damage functions exactly the same as it does in the OCG, and Rush Duel even has multiple Pierce-enabling Spells designed to suit multiple decks.
  • Piercing! is the standard "what you see is what you get" card, which enables a monster you control to inflict piercing damage for the turn.
  • Greater Piercing!! requires you to discard 1 card to activate, but it allows 2 monster you control with the same Level to both inflict piercing damage for the turn.
  • 10sion MAX!!! requires you to specifically discard 1 monster to activate, but enables a monster you control inflict piercing battle damage for the turn, while also giving it 400 ATK boost. Additionally, if you chose a Level 10 monster for this, you'd get to burn your opponent for 1000 damage.
• Anti-Magic:
  • Almost all Types has their own specific in-theme Spell cards that are used to destroy the opponent's Spells and Traps. These range from costless cards that do just that, to cards that require setup and costs but grant additional boons after use.
  • Hammer Crush can be used in all Decks without any additional restrictions, and only requires the generic "discard 1" cost.
• Black Magician Girl:
  • Good ol' Dark Magician Girl makes a return, with her effect buffed due to Dark Magician being a Legend card, and thus harder to gain access to.
  • Sevens Road Witch, who accompanies Sevens Road Magician as counterparts to the above.
• Exactly What It Says on the Tin:
  • Most of the classic basic Field Spells return, including but not limited to "Forest", "Mountain" and "Wasteland".
  • "Piercing!" grants a monster you control the ability to deal piercing damage.
• Magitek: Super Magitek Deity Magnum Over Road.
• Pun: While a long-standing tradition in the franchise as a whole, most cards used by Gakuto, as well as many cards relating to them, turns the wordplay games Up to Eleven.
• Zerg Rush: The fact that each player draws more cards during their Draw Phase the more cards they vomited from their hand on their previous turn, this happens quite often with low-Level monsters.