Countdown to Generation Force

If the new Starter Deck for YuGiOh! Zexal didn't get your interest levels up for Xyz Summons, then we're pretty sure Generation Force will. We're now only a week away from the first Sneak Peek of the new era, and a fortnight away from the booster's official release.

In our store, we were surprised to see that the first official tournament after the release of the new starter deck already had a few players finding a slot for an Xyz or two - seems they're going down well here at least. If the ones you've got so far haven't tempted you, then there's a few in the new set that might just convince you to find room in the extra deck - Tiras, Keeper of Genesis in particular is one to watch out for I think.

Pot of Duality in 2011 Wave 1 Tins

Wow. I don't think I've seen such a positive response from fans since ... well never really. With what's being universally welcomed by players, Konami have announced that both 2011 Wave 1 Collector's Tins (Wind-Up Zenmaister and Leviath Dragon) will contain a copy of Pot of Duality as one of the super rares. As if the main cards weren't tempting enough, we now have something that changes the game, by giving all players access to the most sought after card of the moment.

Some websites are already sold out to pre-order. Wow, once again. As if that wasn't enough, it's strongly rumoured that the Wave 2 tins will have something just as tasty to enjoy.

The Zexal Era Begins for the TCG

Deep breath, because it's time for a new era of YuGiOh! with the TCG release of the Dawn of the Xyz Starter Deck. First up, there's three new Xyz monsters to get your teeth into - No 39 - Utopia, Gachi Gachi Gantetsu and Grenosaurus plus support for them in the form of cards like Xyz Energy and Xyz Effect.

Perhaps though, it's a little strange to see such a retro feel to the deck - Luster Dragon #2, MST, Swords, Mirror Force, Dust Tornado and a number of others give the deck quite an old school feel. I can't wait for the first couple of Zexal boosters to hit the streets, and to see some builds with Xyz monsters starting to appear - gonna be fun.

Zexal's First Duelist Pack and Other News

Confirmed for release recently in Japan, for the OCG was the first Duelist Pack of the Zexal generation, featuring the main protagonist of the new show. Duelist Pack - Yuma Tsukumo will be released on October 15th 2011 - don't say we don't give you plenty of warning about these things. No cards confirmed yet, but we can expect lots of goodies from the new anime when it arrives.

Meanwhile in other news, the TCG spoiler for Generation Force is starting to take shape, with Sneak Peek events confirmed for the weekend of the 6th/7th August. This of course follows up from the big release of this week, the Dawn of the Xyz Starter Deck. Interesting Times

Full Spoiler for Gold Series 4 Revealed

With a few days until its official launch, the full spoiler for Gold Series 4 has now been revealed. Hmm. We're not entirely overjoyed, but then we're not too dissappointed either. I guess 'Meh'. Firstly there's a big re-issue for sought after Lightsworn stuff, which'll please a few people in certain quarters. Secondly, for the collectors, we've got a re-issue of some of the famous Toon cards, from Good Ol' Pegasus' personal collection, including Toon Dark Magician Girl. Bandit Keith fans like me will also be pleased to see Pendulum Machine.

For those of us in the UK (and indeed anywhere other than North America) who can't use Shonen Jump Cards in official events, Obelisk becomes legal with its inclusion - a few people I know are trying to work it in 'just because they can'. Gravekeeper's Spy, Royal Oppression and Doomcaliber Knight round off the highlights, but you can find the full Gold Series 4 spoiler here.

On a final note, we're really loving the first 'for sale' official game mats included with each box - a Yugi one featuring Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl and a Kaiba one with Ol' Blue Eyes and XYZ-Dragon Cannon. There's also a third available at certain key stores with Yugi and Kaiba themselves - so jealous we wont have that one in.

Xyz? So That Makes A Bit More Sense

Exceed seemed like a strange word. Xyz on the other hand - now that's a bit more YuGiOh! If you're reading our guides over the next few days, I'm working on changing all the uses of the word 'Exceed' over to 'Xyz', but it'll take me a while. For some reason, I'm even more interested in the new game mechanic now I'm going to be Xyz Summoning.

On the other hand, there's a name change I'm not so keen on. The intriguingly named Aspiring Emperor Hope has become plain old Number 39: Utopia. Still. It's one of the most interesting Xyz Monsters so far, so I can't complain too much.

All Gone A Bit Quiet

Hmm. Feels like ages since we've had a new YuGiOh! product announcement to tell you about. Nothing new has been announced in ages, product wise, but there has been a steady trickle of information of on the contents of forthcoming releases, so I'll give you a quick run through.

Of course next week for the TCG, there's Duelist Pack Crow - it's fairly big news for the Blackwing fans, but since it's likely to contain the same cards the OCG version did, it's fairly, well, old news. If you haven't been keeping up to date though, follow the hyperlink for the full OCG list. We're also starting to get, fragment by fragment, the card list for Gold Series 4: Pyramid Edition, but other than the funky playmat I'm not desperately excited so far.

Meanwhile in the OCG, we're starting to learn about more of the cards in the next booster - Photon Shockwave - now that's one I can get excited about as we start to see the Exceed mechanic take shape. There's also been more confirmed cards for the Devil's Gate structure deck. That's the one that instantly turns Dark World into something worth talking about (probably).