The Yu-Gi-Oh! National Championship Tournament went down on June 26, 2004 at the Origins game convention in Columbus, Ohio. 230 Yu-Gi-Oh! duelists battled it out to see who would represent North America at the World Championships on July 25 in Anaheim, California. When the dust settled, four Yu-Gi-Oh! duel masters stood above the rest and Kidzworld has an interview with 15 year-old Yu-Gi-Oh! champion Steven Allen Arias!
Gary: What kind of deck do you use to duel?
Steven: I play a Chaos/Control deck. I use a lot of speed, control to destroy my opponent's hand of cards and the Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End card.
Gary: What do you think about the Magic Scientist one-turn-win deck? Would you ever use one in a tournament?
Steven: It's not reliable. You can win with three cards on your first turn, but there's only about a one-in-three chance of drawing a good hand. It's too costly and I wouldn't play one.
Gary: What are your fave Yu-Gi-Oh! expansion sets and why?
Steven: To me the best sets were Magic Ruler and Labyrinth of Nightmare. Both of them had speed, which is what the game is all about, and Magic Ruler was also good for hand-destruction. The new Ancient Sanctuary isn't my style of play, there are only a few cards that can be used in a great way.
Gary: As an expert, what would you like to see in a Yu-Gi-Oh! expansion set?
Steven: Well, something that could help in an upcoming set is more speed, because that's how the game is played.
Gary: So, what are you doing while you wait for the Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championships?
Steven: Right now I'm watching my deck, making sure it plays as well as it can. I'm studying on the internet for all the Japanese sets that we don't have, running combos to get my mind set for all the combos I'll have to deal with at the World Championships.
Gary: Final question - what do you do when you aren't playing Yu-Gi-Oh?
Steven: Sports, lots of sports, lots of basketball. I love basketball, never liked the Lakers though, I like the Dallas Mavericks. I used to play a lot of sports, then about two years ago I started playing Yu-Gi-Oh! and now I play it too.
