Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sacred Cards

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sacred Cards is a Game Boy Advance title from Konami, who both developed and published it. The game launched in Japan on July 4, 2002, then reached North America a year later and Europe the year after that. It stands out from earlier Yu-Gi-Oh! video games because it includes a story, which follows the Battle City arc from the anime. Players take on the role of a friend to Yugi Muto, competing in the Battle City tournament.

Gameplay

The gameplay rules differ from the real card game, closely matching those of Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Duel Stories. These rules are based on the prototype rules considered when the card game first moved from the manga. A key difference is an elemental system—water beats fire, electricity beats water, for example.

Storyline

The game also lacks standard phases, and many card effects are removed or altered. The story begins with the player, Yugi Muto, and Joey Wheeler preparing for the Battle City Duel Monsters tournament. To enter the finals, the player must collect six Locator Cards by defeating specific characters. A mysterious figure named Marik leads a gang of card thieves called the Ghouls, who disrupt the tournament to steal the three Egyptian God Cards and plunge the world into darkness.

The Ghouls eventually take over the city, and even the card shop owner works for Marik, attempting to kill the player. The player then meets Ishizu Ishtar, who duels them to test if they are worthy of an Egyptian God Card. After defeating her, the player must beat tournament organizer Seto Kaiba to earn the first God card. Once in the finals, held on a blimp, the player duels Marik.

After winning, it is revealed that this Marik was actually a servant; the real Marik was a character named Namu, whom the player befriended earlier. The real Marik begins stealing the souls of those he defeats. After Marik defeats Kaiba, the player must challenge Yugi, and then face Marik.

Reception

The game cannot be saved after the final victory, so the player restarts from the last save point. According to Metacritic, the game received mixed reviews. Despite this, it sold nearly one million units—750,000 in the United States and over 238,000 in Japan. It earned $22 million in the U.S. by August 2006, ranking as the 27th highest-selling game for Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, or PlayStation Portable in that country between January 2000 and August 2006.