This post is for all of you here at TheO who play the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game. Next month, those of us here in North America will be getting Generation Force next month. Meanwhile, the people over in Japan have already gotten the set to come after Generation Force, Photon Shockwave. So, I thought that I'd do as I've done a couple of times before, and share my initial first impression of the set.

This biggest card in Photon Shockwave is probably the set's cover card, Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon. In terms of artwork, Galaxy-Eyes is probably one of the most dazzling cards I've ever seen in the game. Effect wise, this card is the first anti-Xyz monster. Of course, Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon isn't alone in the "Photon" archetype. There are other Photon monsters as well, along with a few related Light attribute monsters and support cards. I'll probably cover these cards more in my Yu-Gi-Oh! Workshop world at some point.

Also in Photon Shockwave are a new group of Reptile, Dinosaur, and Dragon type monsters that have two things in common. They're all of the Fire attribute, and they all revolve around the theme of evolution. Like how a lizard becomes a dinosaur, and how a dinosaur becomes a dragon, and so on. There are also some new cards for Normal monster decks. A few of which might work in Gemini decks. For some reason, most of these new Normal monster support cards are Rabbits. Why, I don't know.

Photon Shockwave also continues some of what Generation Force started. There are still more cards for Fish decks, and the new Wind-Up archetype gets some new stuff as well. As expected, there are a good number of cards from the ZEXAL anime, the previously mentioned Fish and Photon cards being a part of that group. Other members of that group include cards used by ZEXAL's hero, Yuma, and a few more of the "Number" Xyz monsters. Getting to the bottom of the barrel, Psychic, Watt, Naturia, Ice Barrier, and Spirit monster decks all get at least one new card. Finally, there's the assortment of random cards that's usually found in every booster set.

In conclusion, while Photon Shockwave continues where Generation Force left off, it provides some new and interesting stuff as well. In my opinion, I think that while Photon Shockwave is kind of a set for beginners, there's plenty of stuff to attract experienced players too. Photon Shockwave will be available November 15th.