File information

Last updated

Original upload

Created by

ssjriou

Uploaded by

SSJRiou

Virus scan

Some manually verified files

Tags for this mod

About this mod

A rebalance mod that changes just about everything. Well over 1000 card stats have been changed, packs have been completely rebuilt, new campaign (133 duels), new banlists, multiplayer support, new music, *some* uncensoring. Relive Duel Monsters, GX and 5d's in a whole new light, and build your own decks that are actually meant for the campaign!

Permissions and credits
Changelogs
For those unfamiliar with Inspector's Cut 1

Spoiler:  
Show

Inspector's Cut completely overhauls the campaign and booster packs. The intention of inspector's cut is to address a few issues I have with not only the link evolution campaign, but the yugioh TCG: 

-Link Evolution's campaign only feels fair to play using the story decks, because the first starter decks give you access to much stronger cards than what the duel monsters campaign throws against you, not to mention several "ahead of their time" types of cards (synchro and xyz monsters, as well as link monsters from the first pack). This results in either a very boring (too easy) campaign, or an occasionally frustrating campaign thanks to strictly limiting yourself to the decks the game asks you to use.

-Link Evolution AND the TCG released several cards that are more or less obsolete from the moment they're available.
Take Legend of Blue Eyes for a prime example, it has over 120 cards in its set and even back when this was the only pack available, only about 30% of the cards in it were worth using, the rest made obsolete with their lesser stats. Link Evolution's first pack simultaneously releases many many cards that are MUCH weaker than the cards you start with, even if you're just counting the first starter deck, as well as the previously mentioned link monsters and the gravekeeper archetype which can be made into a strong enough deck to steamroll a large portion of link evolution. 



Inspector's Cut's packs have been arranged in a manner more to my liking: 


-Stronger monsters are generally put later into the game, weaker cards are made available very early. This means that you'll be playing with and against much weaker monsters than you're used to, but many cards won't be severely overshadowed by other cards from the same set. Not only will battles be more closely matched and less reliant on having the "meta" cards, but weaker equip cards like book of secret arts will feel notably more potent at the beginning of the game. On top of that, the transitions from one pack to another will feel more smooth and for a while the newest pack's cards will generally feel powerful at the time, when they would otherwise often feel pretty pathetic. 

-The campaign has been completely remade to accompany these new packs. You'll never go up against cards that you yourself can't obtain to make it more fair for both sides, and there'll be less point in farming specific duelists for cards. This makes making your own deck actually feel appropriate. 

-On top of all that, because the packs lined up fairly well with an idea I once had for a progression series, I've also made a "multiplayer only mode" for exactly that. Two players can take custom save files and open specific amounts of packs to their liking and then duel each other. I've ALSO made multiple custom banlists for the mod (same list for single and multiplayer), which are fine to use online (though please don't match up with randoms and confuse the few people who can barely ever find a match as-is, it's not like you'll win many games with these decks), and those banlists can also be used for the sake of the campaign so you can once again be on the same "playing field" as the AI. 

!!!You do not need to use the "Multiplayer-Only" files to play the mod against a friend, you can always use the cards you obtained in single player, the multiplayer files just make it easier if you want to ONLY play pvp in a progression series!!!

-A good deal of cards are uncensored, but not all of them based on personal preferences (arguable oversexualization, unpleasant images as well as localizations that make art more confusing... also I genuinely think barrel dragon having laser cannons just makes it cooler). Check the mod's images section for a list of "censored" cards.

-All animations are disabled, this is mostly because of personal preference and wanting the game to play faster especially in multiplayer, but also partially because of Exodia's animation causing game crashes. At least the file size is smaller!



Now, let's go over what Inspector's Cut 2 has changed compared to the original!


-Edited the stats (attack/defense/level/tuner/equip/blah blah blah) of over 1500 cards, *almost* always providing buffs to less popular/powerful cards.
-Removed almost 200 normal monster cards that were just bloating the card pool, as well as a handful of either useless or ridiculous cards, while also re-introducing some "previously useless" cards. (almost exclusively pre-GX cards)
-Many cards have also been upgraded by things like removing summon condition, or changing them from spell to trap or vice-versa. For example, Harpie Lady Sisters is now a normal monster with no summon condition, and Vampire Genesis no longer needs Vampire Lord to be summoned, just to name a couple. 
-Reduced the amount of packs from 43 to 32, but increased the total card count by pulling many cards from zexal and beyond, without actually using any xyz/pendulum/link monsters or effects that mention them. Also made major changes to the order in which cards are released. 
-Changed some pack artwork to better represent new rare monsters in the packs, and added a "yugioh" logo to the pack art. 
-New, slightly more visually friendly google spreadsheet, updated to match the new packs and stats of changed cards.
-Instead of just having 4 duel tracks (typically you'd only hear 3) and 3 menu tracks, each banlist/file has 7 unique tracks. (no difference between campaign and multi-only)


CAMPAIGN:

-Redesigned the campaign to be more like that of the original link evolution, aka based on the anime. Instead of just making decks and assigning "suitable" characters (see: Mako Tsunami for every water deck...), I instead built decks that I thought those characters would use within the available card pool, without just giving them a trash deck.
-In the previous mod, the campaign's decks/duelists were arranged into a long chain, for example the 5th deck (for the "use story deck" option) would fight against the 6th deck, then the 6th deck would fight against the 7th deck, etc. This made reverse duels kind of boring as well as making using the story decks a bit difficult since they were always a bit (or sometimes a lot) behind the next opponent. In inspector's cut 2, I made sure to never use the exact same deck twice, making sure each duel has 2 unique decks (though some of the changes can be relatively minor). While this mod is intended to be played with custom player decks, these changes also allow the story deck option to feel viable and a bit more fun compared to vanilla, even in reverse duels. 
-Removed challenge duels completely, I don't think they're really necessary in this mod because of the effort I put into making most decks somewhat viable, and I don't like the way they're unlocked. I could revisit this some time depending on the future of updated modding tools. 
-Added a few more characters for campaign duels and personal use: Ryo Bakura, "Namu" (non-yami marik) and Esper Roba (tbh I took the sprite from Requiem) (The sprites are very badly implemented as are a couple of old ones yes I am well aware thank you) (I'm also well aware that some sprites are just straight-up gone thank you... maybe I'll actually fix this in 1.7)
-Total amount of duels between all 3 campaigns is now 133, up from 86.
-ALL 133 campaign duels now have duel tips. Please lose all duels to enjoy this extra content. 


ALSO! I mentioned this in the files section as well, but once pack 9 is unlocked/ being opened, Monster Reborn, Change of Heart, Snatch Steal and Harpie's Feather Duster are banned! I didn't feel this was too hard a thing to remember so I didn't make a separate file for an "emergency banlist". All campaign duels are made in accordance to the banlist, including these changes!


This mod does not require any knowledge or experience of my other mod, but those who have played it will have a better idea of what to expect. 


INSTALLATION: 
Spoiler:  
Show

CAMPAIGN: 
-Download the zip file and extract its contents into the main game folder alongside your "YuGiOh.exe" file. This should replace the original 2 files, ygo_2020.dat and ygo_2020.toc in the process. 
-Delete or move your save file (savegame. dat, located in "Steam\Userdata\[string of numbers associated with your steam account]\1150640\remote") so that you'll have a fresh, unplayed file compatible with the mod.
-Now you can run the game from Steam :) You should immediately notice some changes as you open the game.

THE MULTIPLAYER FILES ARE NOT AN ADD-ON, pick one or the other!!!

Regardless of if you're playing single player or multiplayer, you'll want to check out and favorite this spreadsheet, it'll tell you which packs contain which cards and gives a rundown of the banlists, including which cards got added or taken off/ moved around the later ones. It also lists all changes made to cards. 

MULTIPLAYER:
-Download the 1st! multiplayer banlist file, install similarly to campaign above. 
-Delete or move your save file (location noted above) *and replace it* with the provided save file (savegame.dat) from the zip file. Failure to use this save file will give you serious trouble getting the rest of the packs. 
-Now you can run the game from Steam! Remember, custom banlists not only work perfectly fine online but won't get you into any sort of trouble, but please refrain from randomly matching up with strangers online as it'll just confuse and frustrate players just looking for a normal match. 
-Once you're ready to open the yugioh GX packs, switch over to the banlist 2 files (again, replace the 2 files in your main game folder) but I won't include the custom save game in this zip file as you can just keep using the same save game as before. 
-Again, once you're ready to open the yugioh 5D's packs, switch over to banlist 3! Note that the files can take a while for some people to download off of nexus, so consider downloading all 3 zip files ahead of time to prevent any delays. Have fun!


Now, some other notes! 
Spoiler:  
Show


-Cheat Engine is HIGHLY recommended for its "Enable Speedhack" ability, this game feels a lot more fun when sped up to 2 or 3x speed. Music is unaffected! (This also works fairly well when both people use it in multiplayer, by the way!)

-Due to how the game is programmed, unfortunately duel 49 is unlocked by default, and I don't currently have a fix for it. Try not to let it bother you. :) 

-In the previous mod, I included a custom save file for the campaign that skipped several packs and duels. Because there's less "clutter" and this mod "gets to the point" of using 4 star monsters much faster, I didn't find this to be as necessary (though feel free to change my mind). For what it's worth, the "weak monsters only" part of the mod only lasts for the first 2 packs, then a ton of 4* monsters get introduced. 

-The card trunk (deck edit) can be a bit confusing because of the changed attributes. Some cards may "misbehave" when searching for related cards, as they'll "forget" that their stats were changed. For example, some cards might think Chakra is a dark monster compatible with contract with the abyss despite now being a fire monster, but Chakra will still appear when doing a general search for fire attribute monsters. In an actual duel however, cards behave *exactly as they should based on the changes made*.


Q & A: 
Spoiler:  
Show

Q: The AI behaves a little strangely sometimes. ELABORATE IMMEDIATELY!
A: while inspector cut 1's "1200 attack or more for attacking face-downs" rule isn't as big of an issue here, I've still noticed a lot of examples where the AI will just waste their own cards or make other completely unreasonable decisions, but in my testing the AI also has the ability to use those same cards fairly efficiently. If you feel truly robbed of a good duel, feel free to redo some of the campaign duels. 

Q: Where can I find the changes made to the cards? How do I know what cards are in which packs? 
A: This spreadsheet is a bit more well-organized than the last one I hope. If there's a single piece of information that's incorrect on here please let me know so I can change it! 

Q: Why do we need 3 different files for banlists? And why are you even letting me collect banned cards?
A: The game only allows for one banlist, unlike some previous yugioh games that let you cycle between them, which unfortunately means you have to load a whole new giant file just to change the banlist. Also, who am I to judge if you want to use 3 copies of delinquent duo against the campaign AI? Think of it like having godmode enabled or something idk. Also, the banlists are another thing I wouldn't mind some criticism of! 

Q: Can I use your files to make my own mod?
A: I don't mind you making edits for your own personal use, so long as there isn't any uploading afterwards (with the exception of sending files to your multiplayer friends so they can use the same files), *I do not want people distributing edited versions of my mod to the public*. If you really feel the need to make "your own version" of my mod and release it, please contact me to have a discussion, I'd like to hear about what you've done. 

Q: Your card edits suck! 
A: Yes, agreed! (Not really you're an imaginary voice) Let's work together and make a "properly balanced" yugioh mod! Shoot me some suggestions and I'll be happy to make some possible revisions if they make sense!

Q: I don't like that (x card) is in (y pack), you're not following the release order!
A: Card distribution is based on a few things: releasing cards similarly to the TCG's agenda, releasing cards in a mix of order of strength and order of archetype, as well as trying to somewhat keep the packs at roughly the same amount of cards per pack. There will be a few handfuls of cards that might feel "out of place", and as with everything else I'm open to suggestions, which would preferably entail swapping out one card for another. 

 

LAST NOTE: I HIGHLY appreciate both positive/ constructive criticism, it's the only way I can gauge people's enjoyment of the mod! Please leave a comment (and an endorsement?!) regarding anything in particular you liked about playing it, and anything you'd like to see done differently, it would probably make my day a lot better :D



Credits:

-Death, for the modding guide (and for having an available esper roba sprite to grab lol)
-GreatoldGame for giving me some help with the mod (and many others in Death's discord!) and getting my game working again, AND fixing Maide's card attributes editor for me
-dantles1992 for inspiring me to make this sequel and answering some questions about the technicalities
-mtue988 for showing interest and getting me off my ass so I would finish the duel monsters campaign
-Extremely Exhausted Anna for a ton of suggestions and feedback that made it into the 1.1 patch (and some beyond that), as well as helping me figure out Link monster Gate Guardian and constantly reminding me that the mod is somewhat enjoyable (very inspiring!), AND Fire Cracker / Alien Saucer Muusik'i / Knight of Dark World custom archetypes
-ShayZ96 for some card attribute suggestions, even if I thought a few of them were too crazy lol 
-joeyjoejoeshabidoo/hurrdurrmurrgurr for valuable feedback and being the only person to mention that one of my uploads was totally broken
-No Name Brand for a commendable commissioned art edit
-Maide, VERY NOTABLY for the card attributes editor
-nzxth2 for several editing tools
-pixeltris for the duel starter tool

Discord Links:

-Death's Discord, Requiem: you can always get a hold of me here in the link-evo-modding section, or in my mod's thread under mods-showcase. This is generally a yugioh modding server and home of mdpro3, a master duel simulator: https://discord.gg/3mXx68zP 

-MY Discord: If you want to give feedback/ suggestions and have discussions here, or submit edited card art, *maybe* duel other people, participate in a "modded version of card of the day" (it'll totally catch on trust me bro) or... whatever, please do join! https://discord.gg/QBJqujmMhD