Unless you spent 2021 in the shadow realm, you might have heard that Konami announced plans to release a fully-fledged duelling portal in the form of Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel. What you might not yet know is that the game received an out of blue launch yesterday, January 19, with the ultimate card game simulation now available on your Nintendo Switch and coming very soon to Android and iOS.
Yesterday’s Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel surprise release is a special summon that we can certainly get on board with, following on from the success of Duel Links with a massive free-to-play version using the traditional duelling format. With online duels, an eye-watering amount of cards, and the most intuitive deck-building system in a Yu-Gi-Oh title to date, it’s a must for any wannabe king of games.
We’re hoping that this new way to play Yu-Gi-Oh brings along exciting online tournaments, like the kind we so often see in Pokemon games, adding a new level of accessibility to players all over the world. While it’s not the first game from the franchise on the Switch, it’s the first free-to-play release on the console, so you can expect long-time fans, returning players, and duelling newbies all to jump at the chance to experience the classic card game free of charge.
NOW AVAILABLE to play!
Download #YuGiOhMASTERDUEL: https://t.co/mVsqHmSmZL pic.twitter.com/KBR64vnISe— YGOMasterDuel (@YGOMasterDuel) January 19, 2022
How to Get Gems in Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel
The most crucial element of any card game is, as you might have guessed, getting your hands on new and useful cards. In Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel, you’ll be able to purchase card packs and decks with gems, which you can obtain in multiple ways.
The most obvious method is purchasing packs of gems with real money, and the bundles range from cheaper packs of 50 up to a 4,950 gem treasure trove. Fortunately, there are other ways of accessing gems if you’re not willing to part with your cash. You can claim rewards right out of the gate by completing tasks in the game’s solo mode, with more available for reaching milestone achievements on the missions menu located in the right corner of the main menu.
If you still can’t get your fill of duelling and deck-building, be sure to check out our guide for the best Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links decks to take into Konami’s condensed version of their successful card game. Or, if a new Yu-Gi-Oh game isn’t quite what you’re looking for, take a browse through our list of the best mobile card games to see what alternative might suit you.