I remember playing the Pokemon Trading Card Game for Gameboy Color as a child. It is a game where you walk around to different gyms and battle trainers and gym leaders using pokemon trading cards. Opponents give you booster packs when you defeat them, and you use the new cards from those packs to build and improve your decks. There is a storyline, but it is very thin; the game is mostly focused on battles.
These days, there are plenty of digital Collectible Card Games (CCGs) out there. CCGs are not the same as the deckbuilding games that are popular nowadays; in a CCG, you can freely assemble and modify any number of custom decks from your ever-growing collection, whereas deckbuilders incorporate deckbuilding into the game and greatly restrict your ability to modify your deck.
Most digital CCGs are built around an online PvP structure, supplemented by a limited challenge mode where you compete against an AI. Microtransactions to buy new cards or booster packs are also common. Presumably the thought is that players will compete against their friends and be driven to improve their decks, occasionally shelling out some money for better cards.
This is a terrible idea.
CCGs that rely on PvP inherently suffer from the problem of network effects, the same as any other multiplayer game. If many people play the game then the game is fun. If few people play the game, then it isn’t fun, even if the basic mechanics are sound. Having a thriving PvP scene is a nice bonus, but it absolutely cannot carry the game.
Why don’t we see more digital CCGs like the old Pokemon game? Because of the (weak) RPG structure, it was a lot of fun even if you didn’t play against other human players (though that was also supported using a gameboy link cable). CCGs actually form a very strong basis for an RPG. Both opponents are playing with the same ruleset, so it is easy to understand what your opponent might do. Booster packs work as natural loot for winning a battle, and it is easy to draw a connection between the opponent and the loot; just brand the booster pack accordingly. The player can also expect to find some of the cards that the opponent used against them in the booster pack, which is a very effective incentive to challenge the same foe again and again.
RPG combat, at least from traditional JRPGs can also often feel repetitive and stale, with the player just finding the optimal attack and hammering it. Even looking at the pokemon games, I find that the RPG combat is much less interesting than the CCG combat – there are so many moves like leer and growl that there is no point in using because the more powerful moves will take out the opponent instantly. Whereas the card game is structured so that almost every move is useful in some instances, often because the player lacks the energy for the move they really want to use.
I think CCG RPGs have a lot of unexplored potential. The CCG elements fix the problem of stale combat and progression mechanics, and the RPG elements ensure that you don’t need a vibrant online player base to enjoy the game. I’m definitely considering trying my hand at one at some point.