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Card Archives: a New Generation

The first card bag and hot beast card of the new generation, the game not only introduces the new Pokemons, but also tries to make some curve breakthroughs from the original horizontal and vertical.

PTCG's new millennium regional tour, "Road to Champion 2000", was held from January 9 to February 20, 2000 and lasted more than one month. In the early stage of the competition, there was a new corner of the popularity-where the new generation of Pokemonka, which included the new Pokemon and new rules in the game gold / silver, was launched. Not only did the attendees have the opportunity to pre-empt the experience, including the gold / silver generation, but also the gifts around the venue were all made around the dark, steel properties and the play of Pokemon babies and props added by the new generation, which saved enough heat for the official release of the game.

New generation video games, new generation animation, new generation comics, new generation card games. Nothing can save fans more than freshness. The posture of Lochia and Fengwang flashed by, more than a hundred new and powerful cards arrived in the world with a game-changing task, and players' attention returned one after another. And competitors in the acquisition of their own acre of land, the offensive is also naturally alleviated, internal and external dredging, PTCG recovered this small decline worthy of vigilance.

In addition to the gradual stability of the local market, the overseas market is also expanding like a raging fire. Wei Shizhi held the "Super trainer Competition" on the east and west coasts of the United States in the summer and autumn of 2000, respectively. The scale of the tournament was directly matched with that of Japan, especially in terms of the nationality coverage of the contestants. At a time when everything is steadily improving and moving towards stability, contradictions are born inside uninvited.

In 1998, Nintendo, Game Freak and Creatures jointly founded Bao Ke Meng to manage the copyright, marketing and product issues of Bao Ke Meng. The sole purpose of this worldwide, 24-hour high-intensity commercial company is to increase the total value of Bao Ke Meng's IP and to provide the more the better for the three investment companies. With such a chain on his shoulder, almost as soon as Wei Shizhi got the agency, the seeds of contradiction were planted.

Although Wei Shizhi has been operating attentively over the past few years, it is impossible for this company, which has its own blockbuster product, Magnum Brand, to accept an overseas agent beyond encircling its own children. Over the past few years, in the operation of PTCG, Weishi put it in a very restrained position, whether it is competition, publicity or sales. According to their best plan, PTCG should be a transitional game for Magic, eating the young, mass market, and turning these "trained" players into Magic customers. This strategy naturally runs counter to the interests of Bao Ke Meng. As the market stabilized, all kinds of thunderous developments made Bao Ke Meng in North America see the clue, and Wei Shizhi's behavior against their suggestion to issue some special cards made them even more dissatisfied. But correspondingly, Bao Kemeng's poaching of Weishizhi executives and technical personnel has also reached a degree that can not be ignored, and its ambition is also well known.

Under this relationship between overt and infighting, there is nothing wrong with Wei Shizhi's actions, but it is clear that this path leads to only one future-to go their separate ways. Bao Ke Meng's watertight copyright management makes Wei Shizhi's charges seem negligible. In October 2003, Pok Ke Meng USA began to issue self-printing cards, and the litigation machines on both sides quickly began to act. However, a secret agreement was reached in December of that year, and the contents have not been made public so far, and there has been no court participation for three months.

Card Archives: the lost Electronic Generation

The "e-card" (Japanese version is Card-e) series is a lost history of PTCG. This series of cards spans the late gold / silver generation and the early red / sapphire generation of Baokemeng video games. The biggest feature is the addition of a bar code that can be read with peripherals on the edge of the card, which can be said to be a very avant-garde attempt in the style of Nintendo of that era.

The late release of EX-- Gold Renaissance New Generation cards is quite chaotic. For example, the "VS series" cards associated with the Japanese animated theater version and the "web series" cards promoting "PTCG online" have no information in North America, but some of the cards have been seen by North American players in cinemas, tournament exhibitions and other places, and valuable cards from the west coast of the Pacific may be readily available on the east coast of the Pacific. This is also the embodiment of the delicate relationship between Pokemon America and Weizhi.

As the contradiction between the two sides becomes clearer and sharper, Wei Shizhi, who knows himself soon, is no longer doing too much for PTCG. In 2003, Japan's overseas PTCG market has shrunk to the point of a "dying card game". Similarly, Japan is not much better. Although the powerful cards of the new generation balance the over-standard cards of the initial generation, the original problem becomes more prominent after a few years of release-- as the card effect becomes more powerful, the game's first-hand advantage is magnified to a terrible extent. 90% of the victory is linked to the luck of throwing coins, and the remaining 10% is related to whether there are powerful cards in the first round. It's basically an enhanced version of what happened three years ago.

To save this decline, PTCG needs not only the popularity of video games and anime escorts, nor the gimmick of a few third-generation Pokemon cards, but a whole new look.

Card files: VS series

The VS series is a special card linked with the animated theater version. We can see that its graphic design level is basically the design feature of e-card in addition to the logo on the lower left.

Bao Ke Meng, a new official, did not hesitate this time. The new "Bao Ke Meng ex" rules and doubles rules are only the most obvious appearance. The new generation of cards have adjusted the dispatching and withdrawal rules that have been used so far, so that the long round will never return; the effect of the new cards has become more powerful, but the pertinence is also clearer, making the war situation changeable, but not the frequent occurrence of "sudden death" and "scraping". Most importantly, directly modified the rules of the first round of the game, the first-hand players can no longer launch attacks, greatly weakening the first-hand advantage, making the game much fairer in an environment where the card effect is more powerful than ever before.

With the handsome and powerful ex card as the C position, coupled with the undissipated popularity of video games, this generation of PTCG has achieved great success. Although the classic "Pok é mon Red / Sapphire" was the trough of the series at that time, PTCG was so hot that it swept away the haze, with the release of "Pok é mon Red / Leaf Green" in 2004 and "Pok é mon Emerald" in 2005 (Japan overseas market). The already high heat is mentioned again and again.

In terms of events, after Wei Shizhi lost his agency, Bao Kemeng set up the "Play! Pok é mon" department, drawing on the experience of the former to open a new league and tournament system. Although Japan is still "independent" in this system, players in Europe and the United States and later Latin American countries have been unprecedentedly linked.

The cards of this period are called EX generation, but they will also be subdivided into e generation, ADV generation and PCG generation. The former is because the English cards of this period are prefixed with "EX", while the latter corresponds to the e-card period, the abbreviation of the generation corresponding to ruby / sapphire-Advanced Generation, and the abbreviation of "Pok é mon Card Game" series with original card story corresponding to fiery red / leaf green. Generation e actually has little to do with ex cards, but it is often classified as the EX era because it contains super-generation Pokemon, and the basic rules are different from those of the new generation. This may seem like a bit of a mess, but it's easy to understand if you think of generation e as a separate transition generation.

Among many archaeological gamers, the period when the EX generation operated from 2003 to 2007 is regarded as the revival of PTCG and the golden age.

Card file: ex card

The first expansion pack of the EX generation and the Flame Chicken ex, although most of the generation is called in uppercase letters, the cards actually use lowercase sans serif fonts.

DP-- breaks the rules if the PTCG of the EX generation is to save itself in times of distress, then the DP (Diamond & Pearl) generation, which corresponds to the video game Pokemon Pearl / Diamond, was born in 2007, adding firewood and raising wages at a time of raging fire. This generation is also the first generation since Bao Ke Meng withdrew its distribution rights from Media Factory.

Because of the offline and popular nature, the numerical design of card games is often relatively simple, and the game situation is controlled by card special effects accordingly. However, the nature of PTCG's simulation of "Bao Ke Meng Battle" makes it much more dependent on pure numbers than ordinary card games, and it is sometimes boring to multiply or subtract damage and keep energy cards unchanged during the war. So in the DP generation, damage changes caused by Pokemon attribute restraint have been enhanced from simple multiplication to multiplication and addition, while energy-free attack skills have been added to some Pokemon cards. This generation has also adjusted the rules of the first round again to balance the hand advantage-first-hand players can draw a card in the turn, but no longer allow the use of field cards, trainer cards and other cards that will greatly affect the situation. Brand-new doubles rules also appear in this generation. EX Pokemon temporarily withdrew from the stage and was replaced by "LV.X Pokemon".

After boarding the NDS platform, Bao Ke Meng video games once again entered a high-yield stage. In 2009, the Pearl / Diamond expansion was released in platinum, and the corresponding "DP generation" was suffixed as "DPt generation". This version mainly adds the concept of "exile zone" in the rules that the cards can never be retrieved. On the card package is the addition of a "special card deck" (SP card deck)-a complete set of exclusive cards signed by the trainer and Bao Ke Meng. The card and rule changes in the DP period and the DPt period were relatively radical and came with ambition, but the feedback was mixed. The new rules and new card effect design ideas significantly lengthened the game time, and even led to a direct extension of the 2008 game time limit from 30 minutes to 40 minutes. In addition, the DPt card, especially the powerful special card set, seriously disrupted the balance of the previous game, but in order to sell the card, the official chose to join the venue card "broken time and Space (Broken Time-Space)". When this card is present, both players can evolve that Pokemon in the round where Pokemon appears, which is equivalent to directly changing the basic rules of the game, which is simple and rude, worthy of being a bold deceiving krypton ancestor.

Card file: LV.X

The Bao Ke Meng of the DP era has been graded, and LV.X can be regarded as the ultimate form of the Bao Ke Dream of the standard EX. This generation of Bao Ke Meng Li painting began to have more behaviors to break through the shackles, sticking his hands and head out of the box, which is very vivid.

Legend-- short-term retro, but all the discussion stopped in 2010, when the issue of the "Legend generation" card corresponding to Xinjin / Soul Silver brought an abrupt end to the DPt generation. The card rules corresponding to this widely acclaimed reproduction also returned to that year, and the changed damage calculation rules in DP were abolished, attributed to the simplicity and directness of the EX generation three years ago. The so-called EX and LV.X Pokemon have been cancelled and replaced by a group of gold-name cards with no special title, powerful performance and extraordinary temperament; in addition, there is the extremely luxurious "Legend" card, which is almost unused in the competition, which has a very powerful vertical painting and powerful effect, but needs to be obtained by a combination of two cards, belonging to the type that the loss outweighs the gain in most use cases.

There is a reason for backtracking in the Legend generation. Due to the rules of the game and card design of the DP and DPt generations, the battle process has become complex and lengthy, and the inflow of new blood into the game is very slow. Many children are more willing to use EX cards and rules to fight even if they form a DP card deck. The classic reproduction of the gold / silver generation of the Legend generation has attracted the attention of many old players, while the gimmicky luxury cards have attracted more attention among student users and card speculators. But judging from what happened later, what the authorities care about most may not be the attractiveness of these gimmicks. It is the players' feedback on the rules of this generation's return to origin that is the highlight. We don't know who overshadowed whom at that time. But judging from the performance since then, the designers probably got the results they wanted.

Card files: Prime and Legend

Among European and American players, these cards with golden names are generally called "Prime Pok é mon", and from this time on, the final form of Pokemonka cards began to be equipped with more and more unconventional bold designs. And the gorgeous to grandiose Legend card shows the ambition of the production team at a glance.

BW-- welcomes freshmen in 2011, corresponding to the sale of black / white card BW generation, the short-lived Legend generation has done its part to open up a way for the younger generation who is about to hold up for the next three years. According to the common sense of the development of card games, each new version should bring in a new rule, which can not only maintain the freshness of players but also increase the degree of discussion. However, the previous generation of water testing brought BW not the courage to open up new rules, but more regression and simplification. In the DP generation, the highly restricted first-hand players once again gained the original freedom, not only can they draw cards, but also use any card. All kinds of arena cards, support cards and product cards are all classified as trainer cards. Passive Skill, which is subdivided into resident and triggered Bao Kemeng cards, has also been integrated and renamed as a "feature" familiar to video game players, while the direct and powerful title "EX" has returned after four years.

The feedback from this slightly radical simplification is good, because after years of operation, Bokemon is no longer an IP around video games, animation and PTCG, but a giant cultural product with a classic popular image. As long as the threshold is low enough, there will be a steady flow of fresh blood. But unlike video games, even if the quality of animation and cartoons is poor, even if the plot explodes, there are still people who consume for them. The relatively expensive and hard-core characteristics of PTCG make it relatively difficult to digest this benefit from IP. 2011 is the era of the overall rise of smart phones, mobile games show an impact on traditional games, which is not only a deterrent to Pokemon logged on the handset platform, but also a hanging sword to PTCG, which is offline board games. It can be said that this streamlined rule improvement, which can be quickly started in only one game, is a breakthrough after PTCG foresees the declining future of offline games.

Card Archives: the EX of the return of the King

The returning EX cards are no longer bound by the frame, are ready to be drawn out, and have a new "EX" in uppercase gold characters and gorgeous borders. The classic description bar in the lower right corner has also been returned, but it is not an introduction to Bao Ke Meng, but an interpretation of the EX rules.

XY-- released me in the late BW generation, the old drama was repeated, and the habitual problems of PTCG (or almost all exchange card games) resurfaced, for example, the increasingly powerful cards magnified the advantages of the first-hand players. So the XY generation, which came out in 2013, pulled back the first-round no-attack rule, weakening prerequisites such as "flip a coin" to some cards that are too strong but fun. However, judging from the later performance, although a knife was made on the rules of the first round, this generation failed to achieve the goal of balancing the game in the end.

New leprechaun attributes and MEGA evolution in video games have been introduced in this generation of cards, and like so many exaggerated handsome dreams brought about by MEGA evolution, XY cards are becoming more and more exaggerated until they get out of control. In the early days of the XY generation, the slow pace and high-strength cards that can provide a large number of turnaround made the game exciting. Flash team props, war searchers and other expansion cards make new players foggy, but they can make old players feel fresh temporarily. Until the release of the sixth bullet expansion pack of this generation, this high and precarious environmental balance went on an unimagined path.

In this card bag, the most representative is not the handsome and powerful "split empty seat EX", but Coco's love fairy beast "Xiemi EX", which allows players to draw up to six cards when they appear on the stage. Although cards with similar effects have appeared in the DP era, what is not available in previous versions is the more intensive trainer card. With the addition of cards such as the "advanced ball" that can locate the card, the "AZ" that takes back the Pokemon card, and the "Vladali ace" that shuffles the discard stack back into the deck, the pattern of infinite loops is easily formed.

Since then, the game has become a performance contest between the two sides-through this crazy draw, shuffle, and then draw cards, it takes more than ten minutes to perform an outrageous round, even if you can't compete with your opponent, you have to be tired to death. Even after several trainer cards are on the no-card list, the rhythm of the game has not been alleviated well, because the players' ideas of card groups and games have been distorted.

The rhythm of the game is different, and we don't have to worry too much about the quality of a past version, but "free self" is definitely an appropriate adjective for the XY generation. The "BREAK" rule and "BREAK" cards were also introduced in the eighth expansion pack later in this generation, and the design of this series of cards can be said to explain this incisively and vividly.

Card files: breaking the rules

The EX cards of the XY generation are similar to those of their predecessors, but the MEGA evolution cards have colorful vertical drawings and bold text decorations. In contrast to this high artistic style, BREAK Pokemon's glittering everything is approachable.

SM-- 's gorgeous debut with the 20th anniversary of Pokemon in 2016, the Sun / Moon SM generation quickly took over the version. PTCG simplified Chinese version of the first card, corresponding to this generation. The previous EX Pokemon has been replaced by "GX" in this generation. In addition to the rise in numerical value and the tension of full-card vertical painting, these Pokemon also have more "GX skills" that can only be used once. Since the SM generation, the topic of numerical inflation has increased a lot-and regardless of ancient times, in the case of the XY generation, the health of Mega-evolved cards was limited to just over 200, while GX cards moved towards the 300 mark.

In December 2017, the fifth bullet expansion pack launched by the SM generation echoes the video game research pole moon and brings into the game a rule called "Prism Star". This kind of card with a special card face can only be put into one card in each deck and can only enter the banishment area, which generally has a powerful effect, and brings the GX version of the popular fairy beast in pearls / diamonds to players.

Card Archives: bright Stars

The full-card face painting makes Pokemon lifelike, and fans of several supporters cheer, and the special "TAG TEAM" type card in the GX card has the beauty of "double chef ecstasy". Although the later prism star card has a good strength, it is designed with a lot of humility.

Sword and Shield Generation-after the evolution of evolution bid farewell to the beautiful 3DS era, "Pokemon Sword / Shield" boarded NS, a machine with home hosting identity, and PTCG also had new rules in this generation: players cannot use support cards in the first round, but can still use other cards; Pokemon resistance has been changed from-20 to-30. The concise GX rules of the previous generation have been gaudily enhanced in this generation-first, Pokemon is endowed with the ability of "V", which is numerically similar to the previous generation of GX, and the "Maximization" system of the "Pokemon V" game can evolve into "Pokemon VMAX". Then, a "Vstar" with a lower card fainting cost is added to the ninth expansion package. In the special card deck, the big guy "V-UNION", which is more exaggerated than the previous "Legend card", has been added to the special card deck. These Pokemon, which evolved on the basis of "V", have amazing properties and effects, advancing by leaps and bounds towards the number of explosions.

Card Archives: the Power of V

The general V card uses a pure black frame and full card face vertical painting; the Vmax card covers most of the frame position with a highly classic rainbow string background; the Vstar card is characterized by the starry background or skill bar; V-UNION uses a simple black frame with texture-after all, the exaggerated "four-spirit fit" is enough to attract the eye.

SV Generation-ex reversion Japanese version PTCG released a card package corresponding to the ninth generation of video games on January 20, 2023, which is exactly what happened when editing the new media version of this article. This generation does not emphasize the crystallization mechanism in the game as some players think, at least as a promotion of the C bit of the two legends Bao Kemeng is not the case. I have to say, the EX generation is indeed a "golden age" that everyone misses. After the BW generation pays homage with a brand new capital "EX", this "ex" directly uses the font of 15 years ago, but in terms of color design, it is.

"GX" style.

Card Archives-- A cautious work

The card design of this generation can only be described as formal, not much too crystallized elements, no innovative graphic design, and even no vertical painting of full card faces.

Conclusion as mentioned earlier, in more than 20 years of history, we can see the twists and turns in the development of PTCG, but since the EX generation, she has been moving forward on a spiral but stable road. In a certain cycle, with micro-innovation and minor changes to the core rules to launch a novel and familiar game environment, such a cycle is a successful card game will eventually enter the state. When the core users of anything reach a certain order of magnitude, reform will become difficult. Slow iterations and repeated "fried rice" often seem insincere, but on the other hand, maintaining a steady state may prove more responsible to the player until the real opportunity for change comes.

This article comes from the official account of Wechat: UCGmedia (ID:UCG_Media), author: bean chaos

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