When you're first wanting to get into playing or collecting a card game like these, the most important thing is to find one that speaks to you. If you're a Disney fan, you might prefer playing something like Disney Lorcana. If you love the artwork on the Flesh and Blood cards, perhaps that's worth looking into.
Unfortunately, sometimes popularity does become a factor to consider, because even if you absolutely love everything about the upcoming Cyberpunk TCG, if you can't find anywhere to buy it or anyone to play with, then that's going to be a problem. Thankfully, quite a few of the TCGs do have fairly large followings, especially the ones listed here.
Yu-Gi-Oh!
Yu-Gi-Oh! is one of the fastest-paced card games, which is one of the biggest parts of its appeal. After you pick up how to play, you can easily knock out several games with friends very quickly. It's highly competitive in its card strategies, and getting creative with your decks can pay off nicely.
Although fun once you get the hang of it, Yu-Gi-Oh! does have a bit of a steep learning curve. There are many starter decks available to purchase that help you to test out the game without having to invest in large collections of cards, although you'll certainly want to get more after you start playing. Especially as these starter decks won't be nearly as strong as competitive decks that longtime players create.
Be prepared when getting into Yu-Gi-Oh! to stay on top of getting new cards and refreshing your decks often, however, as this is a game that reinvents itself with each release. Cards that were once strong can quickly become useless when new card sets overpower them if you aren't paying attention.
One Piece TCG
The One Piece franchise is a massive one, all centered around the incredibly popular manga and anime series following Monkey D. Luffy and his goal to become the Pirate King. While you don't have to know One Piece in order to play the One Piece TCG, it will certainly help you have a better experience. And One Piece is worth checking out regardless.
One of the biggest strengths of the One Piece TCG is the way it handles combat. Players who are on the defense don't have to simply sit there and watch their cards be attacked, but rather have some ways to respond to attacks, which makes the combat feel more engaging for everyone.
Additionally, this game uses a separate DON!! deck for resource cards, which allows you to get some resources each turn and not face the unlucky situation of not having any resources available to play, which is always incredibly frustrating.
UniVersus
UniVersus is one of the most enticing TCGs to want to collect, as the game has several pop-culture crossovers with popular franchises. Card sets range from Spy x Family to Persona and everywhere in between. Once you learn how to play, it's hard not to smile when you see Jester Lavorre from Critical Role playing alongside Leonardo from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
There are many pre-constructed starter decks, known as Challenger Decks in UniVersus, to help give an easy entry point to the game. Generally speaking, the rules for UniVersus are a bit more difficult to learn than some other TCGs. It is a bit complex, and there is a lot of depth that is incredible once mastered, but overwhelming when beginning.
Star Wars: Unlimited
Star Wars has seen more than its fair share of card games over the years, but in the case of Star Wars: Unlimited, they finally got it right. Not only is this game designed to allow everyone to appreciate their favorite Star Wars characters and icons in a card form, but the gameplay is actually really fun.
This is especially true when it comes to the way turns are handled in Star Wars: Unlimited. Rather than someone doing everything they can in a turn and then sitting back and waiting for their opponent to do everything they can, players switch back and forth after each action.
This allows everyone to approach the game much more strategically, as you can't just stack multiple moves all for one turn to catch your opponent off guard, and it reduces people's minds wandering when they are waiting for their turn. Not only that, but being able to respond immediately to something that the other player does adds another layer of challenge for both players, and makes games feel like they fly by.
Flesh And Blood
Flesh and Blood first debuted in 2019, but its game style makes it feel like a classic that's been around forever. The game is simple to learn at a basic level, but mastering it is incredibly challenging, with a very high skill ceiling. The base rules of how to play are straightforward, but then you get into the complex match-ups of heroes and pitch stacking, and the depth can get overwhelming.
In this game, instead of having numerous characters and creatures to play, you essentially take on the role of one single Hero character, and then cards in your deck represent different attacks. Your Hero card never leaves play, and you can gear them up with things like armor and weapon cards.
To try out Flesh and Blood easily, most game stores often receive free starter packs to pass out to new players. Or, you can print your own for free from the official website.
This is a great game to learn if you're someone who loves to dive into complex strategy, and it can be incredibly rewarding in that regard. However, this is not necessarily the best for the casual player.
Disney Lorcana
As far as learning how to play a new TCG, Disney Lorcana has one of the most simple rulesets, while still offering considerable room for strategy and challenge. Its base mechanics are all pretty straightforward, with players competing to get 20 points before their opponent. Different Ink colors focus on different strategies, allowing you to fairly easily make a deck that caters to your play style.
Although the game is already one of the best for newcomers to learn, Ravensburger made it even more convenient. The company released a special Disney Lorcana Gateway product that plays like a board game and helps slowly introduce the rules of the game to new players.
As if that wasn't already a big enough selling point, the characters on these cards are all ones that are going to be familiar to nearly anyone at any age. Disney and Pixar's movies are so ingrained in today's culture that even if you don't yet know the rules, you can look through the Disney Lorcana cards and know exactly who you're looking at, even if you just want to appreciate the art.
Original Release Date
August 18, 2023
Publisher
Ravensburger
Designer
Ryan Miller, Steve Warner
Player Count
2-6
Length per Game
20-30 Minutes
English (US) ·