Ill give you my honest review:
Long post incoming
Context: i am the rank 1 azuki tcg player
Picture below for proof
My history with tcg: i have been competing in tcg since highschool
I have multiple great tournament finishes and ranked ladder finishes, peaking in the top 5 or better in many games
First lets talk the physical cards: when compared to mtg, polemon and yugioh its absolutely no contest. Azuki physical cards are so much better its impressive. The card stock is durable. They feel good, nice weight to them. The foiling textures put MTG and friends to shame
Second the gameplay:
The gameplay is like shadowverse. Ill admit i wish the game had a stack like MTG. Interacting on the enemy turn is limited, but there are ways to interact unlike in pokemon and many other tcgs on the market.
I compare the game the most to OG shadowverse. The games Gate mechanic feels like a combination of shadowverses evolve mechanic, and pokemons bench.
Right now the card pool is limited since were in the first set, but each element has atleast one playable deck you can certainly win with. All the elements feel strong and capable of winning a tournament.
Im sure things will feel even more diverse as the card pool grows, i think atm there are less than 150 cards.
Third: tournament rewards
As someone who was not an azuki holder before i played the tcg (only getting my first Azuki elemental and bean through selling my tournament prizes) i have found Azuki to be by far the most rewarding TCG ive ever competed in. Many games treat their top players like cogs in the wheel.
In azuki the prizing is simply very good
At Azuki I immediately felt like I was a part of something special. The game is young, which is my favorite part in every tcg ive ever played. Metagame is unsolved and playerbase needs innovators.
As for NFTs this is where it becomes the most interesting to me
Already it is clear Azuki has shows they have the capability of PBTs
In a world where people want to grade cards for authenticity, the PBT is a huge upgrade
And as far as player and holder recognition goes?
Already many of the cards have used azukis, elementals and beanz from their respective collections. The token # is marked on the card.
The nft holders can be represented in the game. I might be wrong but i believe the holders also get some form of royalties on this but dont quote me on that one
MTG has stopped turning their major tournament winners into cards. Its a shame. Many historical cards wouldn't exist without the tournament cards.
Snapcaster mage
Avalanche riders
Solemn simulacrum
Etc etc
Mtg stopped doing this
But azuki is bringing it back
Players can be part of the games core history again
Once again i got into azuki through the tcg not the nft
I am a firm believer in where this game is going.
Im happy to continue this conversation in good faith