I Wish I Knew How to Quit Yu.

Yes, this is another reminder as to why Konami is not getting any more of my money. YGO is notorious for being expensive and poorly-managed, yet somehow keeps a steady player base going. This is what a good dealer of crack, cardboard or otherwise, does to make money - have repeat customers and make it really, really hard to quit.

There are a number of reasons that people quit. YGO is a really freakin' expensive game that only cares about the players when the company is suffering. The amount of rarities is staggering, and there are few if any good commons to make trading up easier. Nearly all of the good cards are Super or higher these days (and back in the old days...but more on that in another entry).

Another reason is the tournament scene. YGO has always been a 'broken' game; at most, there have been 3-4 decent, game-winning decks. At worst, there has been one "Cookie Cutter" deck that never failed to cut through every other theme. If a theme cannot win, then it just isn't fun. Many themes do not stand a snowball's chance in Hell.

This is, of course, because Konami barely tries to make themes playable. It doesn't matter if they play well or not. What matters, primarily, is that they go with the anime. That way, at least the kiddies will buy packs.

By and large, the little kids keep the game ticking. There are shows designed to show how awesome YGO is. Regardless of whether the kids play the game or not, they want the cards. Parents, being parents, will buy them. As long as Konami is making money, the vicious cycle will continue.

The anime is like a defibrillator for the game. If it, the kids, or the players need a jolt to keep the franchise alive, the anime will almost certainly provide. This applies to old and new players alike; nostalgia goggles, anyone? Remember Mai's Amazoness cards? Yeah, Konami made more of those...ten years later. Nice timing.

I guess flipping Konami the bird was one of the better ways to make the announcement final. Maybe they'll get the idea that they're screwing themselves over.