Okay, I know my statement sounds confusing and contradictory, but I just don't know how else it put it. Master Duel feels like such a coin flip (no pun intended) of having either genuinely interesting duels of going back and forth with actual gameplay, or floodgate/sacky one ofs that ruin everything.

For example, I was playing Branded Dracotail, and I semi-bricked, but still put up about 3 pieces of interaction with Gulamel, Flame and FNV (I am still learning the deck, there were more optimal lines). My opponent was playing a fairly interesting deck that I thought was quite creative, White Forest Dark Magician with a minimal Primite engine. We ending going back and forth for a few turns, where I end up winning after barely being able to scrape it. The duel was fun and got me to really think about my moves, and same for my opponent. That is one side to Master Duel: incredibly interactive and fun to play with actual brains being used.

Then, as if Master Duel detected a singular molecule of dopamine in my brain from this game, it hit me with back to back to back awful games. All of these games, I was on the same deck as before, just trying to learn it.

Game 1: True Draco. Opponent goes first, sets 5 and passes. They flip Last Turn, I attempt to pop using Urgula, and they flip Soul Drain. I pass, thinking I can do Faimena for the Gulamel I already have on field, and I get hit with True Draco Apocalypse and they Tribute Summon, so I can't do anything. I surrender, looking at their decklist and wondering why the floodgate pile hasn't been nuked already.

Game 2: Enneacraft. Opponent goes first, activates Dimensional Fissure, sets Archa.Tail, and passes. Brick, sure, but I have double Ketu, Faimena, Albaz and Walbaz, so I'm sat here trying to figure out what to do against this thing. End up outing it with Gulamel and Faimena, but it eats my Urgula, Lukias and Albaz, so all of those are gone. This one felt a bit less infuriating because I was able to win due to the opponent not understanding how Enneacraft works, but felt hollow because I was playing against what I can only assume to be a toddler with asshole cards.

Game 3: Radiant Typhoon. I go first, and I get hit with Fuwalos. I think that this card is actually fine, strangely enough, as it is a turn ended for some decks, but I believe that decks should have a game plan around it as to not feed. It feels healthy and encourage the player to think out their board and how to best achieve it. I chain Branded Opening, and I think I only have to give them one or two draws for a decent board.

Maxx C.

Obliterate this one of now. Same with cards like Shifter and Droll, these cards belong in the deepest pits of Tartarus where not even Hades himself could pry open the shackles that should hold these cards. Why these cards that are very unbelievably bad for the game haven't been atomized from the face of the game is unknown to me, but I would gander a guess at the person who makes Master Duel banlists being someone who wishes that all toilet wipes were replaced with extra rough sand paper. A being of ignorance and malice.

End up having to feed them 5 draws, and they immediately break my half made board, all because of a cockroach that should've been drowned in Raid by now.

These are the bad games. The floodgates and sacky one of cards that have no place in the game and ruin experiences. I love Yu-Gi-Oh, do not misunderstand me. I have played this game for a while and have played Master Duel to connect with friends, but this just feels disgusting.

I am not saying that Master Duel is inherently bad at all times, but the things they let go in this game to run around and just bother people who want to play an actual game is stupid. "Player with as many brain cells as the average horror movie character hits you with floodgates because they do not want to play Yu-Gi-Oh" should not be something that exists in a 1 game format, instead Master Duel should be something fairly interesting and more Player vs Player, and not Player vs Cards Derived from the Very Cracks of Satan's Bosom.

Apologies for my long winded post, I am just mildly flummoxed as a TCG player as to why Master Duel, and to a greater extent, Yu-Gi-Oh as a whole, allows for such idiocy. Have a nice morning or evening, wherever you are.

Strange take: Master Duel feels both at its best and worst.