First Digimon TCG promo pack teased, card effects revealed in livestream & Memory Gauge explained

An older and younger brother play the 2020 Digimon card game in Bandai's concept trailer.

In a livestream aired at 3 AM Pacific Standard Time, Bandai Namco revealed several upcoming promotional cards for the 2020 Digimon Card Game, and also showed a 2020 concept trailer for the entire Digimon franchise that revealed two more Digimon effects from the upcoming TCG. Bandai also opened an official Digimon Card Game Twitter account shortly before the livestream aired, where it gave us our first look at the product packaging for the Starter Decks "Gaia Red," "Cocytus Blue," and "Heaven's Yellow." The header for the Twitter account--which also appears as the illustration for the game's first promo pack--suggests V-mon, Liollmon, Kokuwamon, Betamon, Tentomon, Dracomon, Plotmon, Goblimon, Pico Devimon, Patamon, and Guilmon, are all coming to the card game.

The header for the official Twitter account.

The Starter Decks are on-schedule to launch in April at 500 yen per deck. The packaging states that the game is for ages 9-and-up, which is noticeably higher than the current standard for TCGs: Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokémon, Buddyfight, and Cardfight!! Vanguard are all recommended for children 6-and-up.

New card reveals

Metal Garurumon
Level 6/Data/Cyborg
11000 DP
Entry Cost 12, Evolution Cost 4 (From Level 5)
Effect unknown.

Angemon
Level 4/Vaccine/Angel
4000 DP
Entry Cost 5, Evolution Cost 2 (From Level 3)
Effect unknown.

Gabumon
Level 3/Data/Reptile
Entry Cost 3 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
2000 DP
[Attacking] When it attacks a Digimon, [illegible] 1 of that Digimon's Evolution Sources.

Leomon
Level 4/Data/Beast Man
Entry Cost 5 Evolution Cost 3 (From Level 3)
5000 DP
[When destroyed] Summon 1 Child-level Digimon from this Digimon's Evolution Sources without paying the Cost.

Note that this is the first instance of "Summon" (召喚 shoukan) appearing in effect text.
Promotion Pack ver. 0.0 cards

These cards will appear in promotional pack ver 0.0, which are not for sale and will be distributed to "various places." Fans are encouraged to check the official site and Twitter account for more information at a later date.

The promo packs will most likely be given out as participation prizes at hobby shops that host 2020 Digimon Card Game tournaments, as an incentive for players to participate; this is how Bandai and other manufacturers have done similar promo packs in the past. Several of these cards are partially obscured or at too low a resolution to make out distinct kanji, thus the effects below are incomplete.

Piyomon
Level 3/Vaccine
Entry Cost 3 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
2000 DP
[illegible] ...destroys your opponent's Digimon... [illegible] ...draw a card).

Gomamon
Level 3/Vaccine
Entry Cost 4 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
2000 DP
[When it attacks] (Once per turn) Your opponent's Digimon's Evolution Source... [illegible] ...gets Memory +1

Tailmon
Level 4
Entry Cost 4 Evolution Cost 2 (From Level 3)
4000 DP
[illegible] Look at 3 cards from the top of your Security, return (?) as many cards as you like to the top of your Security in any order, and put the rest on the bottom.

The Security mechanic is also mentioned in War Greymon's effect text.

Agumon
Level 3
Entry Cost 5 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
3000 DP
[When it Enters] Destroy 1 of your opponent's 3000 DP or less Digimon.

Gabumon
Level 3/Data
Entry Cost 4 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
3000 DP
[On-Entry] 1 of your opponent's Digimon's Evolution Sources, [illegible] from the bottom.

Patamon
Level 3/Vaccine/Mammal
Entry Cost 4 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
2000 DP
[illegible] When... [illegible] 1 or less of your Security, [Recovery 1... [illegible] ...1 card from the top of your deck to the top of your Security.)

Livestream content

During the official Digimon livestream Bandai representative Goto-san described the TCG as "a game where both kids and adults can enjoy battling and collecting," and presented several slides clarifying elements of the game. Digimon begin as a "Baby" level card that features a Digitama, Baby I, and Baby II Digimon in a single illustration, which is considered Level 2. They then evolve to Child, Adult, Perfect, and Ultimate, with cards being overlayed on top of one another so that the colored text of each card is visible beneath it. Level 2 Digimon can also have inheritable effects like higher-level ones, but the example card was not legible.

Metal Greymon
Level 5/Vaccine/Cyborg
Entry Cost 7 Evolution Cost 3 (From Level 4)
[When it attacks] [Once per turn] When this Digimon destroys your opponent's Digimon by battle, put this Digimon in the Active state.

Greymon
Level 4/Vaccine/Dinosaur
Entry Cost 5 Evolution Cost 2 (From Level 3)
4000 DP
[Security Attack +1] (When this Digimon attacks Security, increase the number of cards it flips over by +1)

"You can send out your favorite Digimon right from the first turn!?
Your opponent's marker moves proportionate to the cost paid.
Exceed 1 and it's your opponent's turn.
Enjoy simple, innovative & dynamic battles."

Goto also gave a brief explanation clarifying the Memory Gauge system. Players can actually play Digimon of any level right from the first turn of the game, but this will move the Memory Gauge toward the opponent equal to the Digimon's Entry Cost, and if it surpasses the "1" mark it ends the current turn. This means that you could theoretically play a Level 6 Digimon like War Greymon right on the first turn of the game--but you would be giving the opponent a massive amount of Memory to spend, so they would be able to play even more Digimon than you without their turn ending.

The stream also partially revealed the Starter Deck print of Gabumon, which has a different effect from both the promotional card and the version seen in the trailer. Agumon is unchanged from the website version, and Patamon's text is illegible save for the fact that it happens when it attacks and modifies the opponent's DP. The cards are illustrated by Watanabe Kenji and As'maria, two of the franchise's longest-serving artists.

Gabumon
Level 3
Entry Cost 3 Evolution Cost 0 (From Level 2)
2000 DP
[During your turn] (Once per turn): When your opponent's Digimon's Evolution Source is [illegible] until end of turn, this Digimon's DP gets +1000.

At this point, it appears Digimon cards can have two kinds of effects: those written in the colored effect boxes at the bottom of a card, and those in transparent boxes imposed over the artwork. Only colored effects appear to be inherited by evolutions, which is how Metal Greymon and War Greymon were portrayed on the official site, as well as Leomon and Gabumon in the new trailer.

For example, the promo print of Agumon has a transparent box effect that destroys an opponent's 3000 or less DP Digimon when it enters play, while the standard Agumon's colored effect gives it +1000 DP during its owner's turn. The former is the kind of effect a game designer wouldn't want players getting to recycle all the time, while the latter is much more balanced as an inheritable ability. Some of the effects already allow powerful combinations; combining the entire Starter Deck War Greymon line together creates a Digimon with 13000 DP that can break 4 Security in one attack while also destroying an opponent's Digimon by battle.

First Gameplay Impressions of Digimon World -next 0rder-

Demo play site, uploaded by @digimon_info

Over December 19th and 20th fans could demo Digimon World -next 0rder- at Jump Festa 2016. The simulation RPG drew a crowd soon after opening its doors, with waiting lines for the game being around 20 minutes; each player was allotted 5 minutes of time with the game, and given a pair of Agumon and Gabumon stickers for playing. Here's a collection of first impressions from various players that posted on Twitter and other blog sites about their experiences.



From Digimon Headline

Rough impression of gameplay. First of all, even though I had two partners, the hunger and toilet timing was the same. This time it was Agumon and Gabumon, but what happens when the partners' ages are different is unknown... Also, after battle both partners run over to below the protagonist, and their Happiness  stat can be adjusted by praising or scolding them.

(The Happiness (なつき度 natsuki-do "emotional degree") they're referring to is probably the same Happiness from the original Digimon World and Re:Digitize/Decode that reflects a Digimon's attachment to its tamer. Ordinarily both Happiness and Discipline act as regulating factors that affect a Digimon's natural evolution, with Discipline increasing as Happiness decreases, and vice-versa. Interestingly, none of the first play impressions have mentioned Discipline as being in -next 0rder-; the stat may be absent from the game.)

From Digimon Headline

The after-battle fanfare and menu selection sounds were similar to the original Digimon World. It feels a little nostalgic.

From Sasakani (3rd & in 2nd place in the previous DIGIMADO tournament)

Thoughts after playing the NekuOda demo:

• Enemy Digimon are very fast on their feet.
• When giving a Digimon meat, or praising them, you can see their evolution conditions? I was able to evolve to Seadramon, Tyrannomon, and Garurumon.
• The Digimon's response time for each command is short.

From DigiKz

I could play for 5 minutes. You could choose between playing as either the male protagonist Takuto or the female protagonist Shiki. This time, I thought that the male protagonist seemed like the #1 candidate for main character, but because Shiki-chan seemed pretty nice, I selected her. If I buy the game, I think I'll probably begin as her.

In the demo you were thrown into an unknown grassland without explanation. Your partners [as Shiki] were Piyomon and Palmon (this time they apparently train simultaneously). If you chose Takuto it seems your partners were Agumon and Gabumon (I went with Keichi-san and saw him play as Takuto). For the time being, I walked around and encountered Goblimon. We rushed right into battle.

The battle system was autobattle, I didn't understand it well but it seems you told the Digimon what techs to use with the L & R buttons. You cheered with the O button, I don't know what kind of numerical value it increases. Anyway, we somehow won (because it's a demo). Beating Goblimon took a while because of how slow they go down. After winning a battle, it seems you could praise the Digimon (but I was able to battle without a relationship to them). When in the menu screen, Shiki-chan called over Piyo and Pal to the menu display. It felt like it took a little while. While the menu screen was up, the 5-minute timer stopped. However, in going through the menu you could only use items, you couldn't see the Digimon's individual status. I wonder if this feature was restricted for trial play? Even so, it really wasn't for the best, just battling Goblimon running through the grasslands. The trial version was honestly not that fun...

You also couldn't advance to other zones. Digitama were omitted, and before I could approach another Goblimon, time was up. I think it would have been a little more fun if I had more time with the demo. At the end, I received Dot Agumon and Gabumon stickers.

Dot Agumon & Gabumon stickers. Original image uploaded by @sasakani_cool

Poster for -next 0rder-, original image uploaded by DigiKz

Digimon World -next 0rder- will launch in Japan on March 17th, 2016, on the PlayStation Vita for 6,800 yen.

Adventure tri. Movie 1 "Reunion" Opens at Almost 60 Million Yen

November 25th, 2015. Japanese anime news outlet AnimeAnime reported that the first chapter in the Digimon Adventure tri. theatrical films, Reunion, opened at over 59,000,000 yen during this preceding weekend. Reunion made the currency equivalent of approximately $480,000, but was shown at a relatively small number of theaters compared to other films. Only ten theaters nationwide screened tri., with total attendance at 36,000 viewers. The film's overall budget and the amount spent on marketing is unclear, but official Tweets from Toei and related companies have described it as a "big hit."

The second film, Decision, will premiere on March 12th, 2016.

New -next 0rder- Screenshots Tease Messaging, Twin Partner System

November 6th, 2015. The Digimon World -next 0rder- title site has updated with a new batch of screenshots, this time focusing on the game's dual partner care system. Each partner Digimon is assigned to one of two slots in the field, and while they live on synchronized sleep schedules, they behave asynchronously making their own comments and moving independently of one another. The Digimon partner system has structural similarities to the 2007 Digimon Twin virtual pet, which like -next 0rder- split the tamer's partners into L and R Digimon.

The screenshots also tease a messaging system, with notifications similar to Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth's DigiLine. The DigiLine system allowed the player to text in-game characters with preprogrammed responses, but given -next 0rder-'s much smaller cast, this feature may have a slightly tweaked purpose.

The previous batch of screenshots showed the game's variety of environments, and diverse partner Digimon. Digimon World -next 0rder- will launch on the PlayStation Vita and PSTV in 2016.

Wormmon is interested in something "Over there!" but bumps into Lopmon while trying to get at it.

Both Digimon say "I'm sleepy..." simultaneously...

...and both of them share a bedtime.

-next 0rder-'s Dual Battle System Shown Off in Latest Batch of Screenshots

October 9th, 2015. The official Digimon World -next 0rder- title site has updated with a new batch of screenshots showing off the game's dual Digimon battle system, which allows the player to fight alongside two Digimon at once. The 10/9 batch of screenshots show male protagonist Takuto fighting alongside War Greymon and Metal Garurumon, and female protagonist Shiki with Piyomon and Palmon. While War Greymon and Metal Garurumon's Omegamon Jogress evolution was briefly teased in the most recent promotional video for the game, it's currently unclear if Shiki's Digimon can perform a similar fusion.

The previous batch of screenshots focused on environmental changes in -next 0rder-, and the Digimon's various emotional expressions.

Digimon World Website Updates with Shiki & Takuto's Profile

August 22nd, 2015. The official Digimon World -next 0rder- portal site has updated with a unified character profile for protagonists Shiki and Takuto, the former of which was revealed only a few days prior. The profile clarifies that Shiki and Takuto are only default names, and describes them as follows; "Third-year high school student studying for exams, having finished their club activities. When they were little, they had an interest in the Digital Monster game. In their fifth year in elementary school, they were the runner-up in the national championships." Internally Shiki is identified as "heroine" within the website's image files, and Takuto as "hero."

In addition to its character and movie pages, the revamped -next 0rder- website also contains currently-unused sections for game specifications, an introduction, an explanation of the game system, screenshots, and a "special" tab. The website has also adopted a convention of replacing all Os with 0s,

New Digimon World Female Protagonist "Shiki" Introduced in V Jump Magazine

"A New Adventure Begins in a Mysterious World!!"

August 19th, 2015. Chinese gaming site yxdown uploaded a photo of the most recent V Jump magazine's DigiNavi column, which includes a special surprise for Digimon fans; the latest entry in the Digimon World franchise will be the first to allow the player to select a female player character, default name Shiki. Advertised with Piyomon and Palmon as a counterpart to Takuto's Agumon and Gabumon, Shiki is described as a cool young maiden, interchangeable with Takuto. Development screenshots show her traveling with a Gabumon, suggesting that the game's initial partner Digimon will not be gender-exclusive. These shots also show how -next 0rder- displays Digimon emotions in the field, ranging from expressions like delight and anger to being downcast.

V Jump also provides a peek at the protagonist's classmate, third-year high school student Hirose Kouta (広瀬コウタ) and his partner Guilmon. Kouta is said to be a "good guy" in the same class as either Takuto or Shiki, and his partner's name is Yukimura (ユキムラ). According to V Jump, the game's story follows the (male or female) protagonist on their journey from the real world to the digital world, in connection with the Digital Monster liquid crystal virtual pets. The issue also makes note of the Digimon World series' fifteen year history, emphasizing -next 0rder-'s relationship with the original game. More information will become available as clear scans of the issue emerge.

In other news, over the 18th both 4Gamer and Famitsu published digital equivalents to previously print-exclusive updates on -next 0rder-. Inside Games has also published versions of press screenshots sans the watermarks. The screenshots and information presented are identical to those found in their print equivalents distributed to Japanese retailers earlier in the month, save for one new statement from 4Gamer explaining -next 0rder-'s initial concept. "The concept art depicts the protagonist, Agumon, and Gabumon, looking up at a phone booth and floating island. What awaits them in this floating island?" Translations of other statements from the articles can be found on their respective pages.