Ness
Member
I thought I'd share with you guys what I thought were the top issues & problems facing the current format & tournaments. That way, we can brainstorm productive ideas which may eventually become implemented in the form of new rules, procedures, etc.
1) Duration of Tournaments
Over the years, the speed of a Pokemon TCG game as slowed down. What originally used 20 minute time limits per games had to be extended to 30 minutes, then to 40 minutes (and now a similar 30 minutes+3 turns). Let's face it: the game is different than it was in the base set days. And whether or not that's a good thing isn't worth debating because we can't change the cards they print in Japan.
These long games are a problem because they make finishing tournaments in one day difficult. Sure, we can pull off City Championships in a day, but come States & Regionals, these tournaments can easily run past midnight.
What solutions do I have? Well, there's the simple ones, such as reinstating draws. Every tournament, I see games drag into sudden death. The larger the tournament, the more likely a game is to drag in sudden death after time has been called. Reinstating draws would shave a small amount of time off of small tournaments, but could save hours in a tournament like Nationals or Worlds.
Another solution would be hosting tournaments with different formats. I know Japan has 30-card (or is it 40-card?) deck tournaments with 3 or 4 prizes. What about trying that over here? It would give players a chance to play against more opponents too, since you could fit more rounds in a tournament. Sure, I'd rather play 60-card Pokemon, but if we can't allow adequate time for 6 prize games, what's the point? That brings me to my next issue:
2) Match Play
There was recently a change in the Best 2 of 3 procedure that allows the winner of Game 2 to be decided by whoever had drawn less prize cards, regardless of how many prize cards they had drawn. This allows a loser of Game 1 to score a quick one-prize win in Game 2, and possibly the same in a sudden Death Game 3. The winner of Game 1 often feels cheated because he can win a lengthy, legitimate Game 1, and lose the series to a player who only drew a total of two prize cards.
Now, why was the 4-prize requirement lifted? Because players often don't have time to draw 4 prizes in Game 2. So the options are either: leave someone who lost Game 1 feel cheated since they often don't have enough time to draw 4 prizes in Game 2, or leave some Game 1 winners feeling cheated that they won a legitimate game and lost two illegitimate games to lose the whole series. Neither of these solutions were good, and choosing one is simply picking the lesser of two evils. So, let's think outside the box? We either need to have longer tournaments, or have an entirely different format. Any other ideas? That's why I'm posting this. I'd love to hear them.
3) Turn 1 losses
Turn one losses leave people feeling sour, too. They've been around since base, became more rare in the 04-07 era, then returned with cards like Crobat G & PokeTurn in 2008. While almost everyone dislikes the idea of a Turn one loss, whether or not it is an issue that needs "fixing" is up for debate. Is it possible Organized Play can implement a rule that prevents or lessens the odds of a turn one loss? If so, would it be better for the game?
For those of you who do not view it as a problem, try playing against the Rob D's Uxie deck up in Chicago. Fueled by 50 trainers, the deck takes a 13-minute first turn and consistently defeats 3 to 4 Pokemon when he has the option to play second. While not unbeatable (or near it), even decks designed to be good against it can be defeated on Rob's first turn if he plays second.
Curious to hear any ideas, as well as issues I may have missed.
1) Duration of Tournaments
Over the years, the speed of a Pokemon TCG game as slowed down. What originally used 20 minute time limits per games had to be extended to 30 minutes, then to 40 minutes (and now a similar 30 minutes+3 turns). Let's face it: the game is different than it was in the base set days. And whether or not that's a good thing isn't worth debating because we can't change the cards they print in Japan.
These long games are a problem because they make finishing tournaments in one day difficult. Sure, we can pull off City Championships in a day, but come States & Regionals, these tournaments can easily run past midnight.
What solutions do I have? Well, there's the simple ones, such as reinstating draws. Every tournament, I see games drag into sudden death. The larger the tournament, the more likely a game is to drag in sudden death after time has been called. Reinstating draws would shave a small amount of time off of small tournaments, but could save hours in a tournament like Nationals or Worlds.
Another solution would be hosting tournaments with different formats. I know Japan has 30-card (or is it 40-card?) deck tournaments with 3 or 4 prizes. What about trying that over here? It would give players a chance to play against more opponents too, since you could fit more rounds in a tournament. Sure, I'd rather play 60-card Pokemon, but if we can't allow adequate time for 6 prize games, what's the point? That brings me to my next issue:
2) Match Play
There was recently a change in the Best 2 of 3 procedure that allows the winner of Game 2 to be decided by whoever had drawn less prize cards, regardless of how many prize cards they had drawn. This allows a loser of Game 1 to score a quick one-prize win in Game 2, and possibly the same in a sudden Death Game 3. The winner of Game 1 often feels cheated because he can win a lengthy, legitimate Game 1, and lose the series to a player who only drew a total of two prize cards.
Now, why was the 4-prize requirement lifted? Because players often don't have time to draw 4 prizes in Game 2. So the options are either: leave someone who lost Game 1 feel cheated since they often don't have enough time to draw 4 prizes in Game 2, or leave some Game 1 winners feeling cheated that they won a legitimate game and lost two illegitimate games to lose the whole series. Neither of these solutions were good, and choosing one is simply picking the lesser of two evils. So, let's think outside the box? We either need to have longer tournaments, or have an entirely different format. Any other ideas? That's why I'm posting this. I'd love to hear them.
3) Turn 1 losses
Turn one losses leave people feeling sour, too. They've been around since base, became more rare in the 04-07 era, then returned with cards like Crobat G & PokeTurn in 2008. While almost everyone dislikes the idea of a Turn one loss, whether or not it is an issue that needs "fixing" is up for debate. Is it possible Organized Play can implement a rule that prevents or lessens the odds of a turn one loss? If so, would it be better for the game?
For those of you who do not view it as a problem, try playing against the Rob D's Uxie deck up in Chicago. Fueled by 50 trainers, the deck takes a 13-minute first turn and consistently defeats 3 to 4 Pokemon when he has the option to play second. While not unbeatable (or near it), even decks designed to be good against it can be defeated on Rob's first turn if he plays second.
Curious to hear any ideas, as well as issues I may have missed.
), I haven't been playing long enough to really have much experience, so I just won't bother commenting. 
