Following a nail-biting top cut of YCS Providence, in which Charley Futch took the gold with Mitsurugi Ryzeal, a sudden surge of interest in the TCG-exclusive archetype made it one of the most sought-after engines right now. Luckily for players, the second wave of Mitsurugi cards, introduced in the recent Alliance Insight, is made up of entirely commons and super rares, costing just a few cents total. Yet this precise reason is why a beloved employee is currently updating his LinkedIn.
“With deep sadness I must announce that starting from today I now longer work at Konami Card Games of America. It has been my dream job for the past decade, filled with wondrous experiences, inspiring joys and fantastic colleagues, who I will miss the most. Except for my boss, John Konami. Fuuuuuuuck that guy,” posted Michael Rookie, a veteran designer and the former head of Rarity Distribution Department at Konami. The comments below Michael’s private social media account were filled with love and support from fans, family and former coworkers. One reply, coming from the aforementioned John Konami, was less praising:
“That’s exactly the sort of attitude I expect from the person who made the Tenpai deck cost five bucks,” retorted John Konami, airing past grievances. “You made Melodious all common and we sold like nine total cases of LEDE. WE ALMOST WENT BANKRUPT IN THAT TIME, MIKE. You should spend less time making fans happy and better start making money.” The rant continued, finishing with the idea that due to a perceived financial hit thanks to the new Mitsurugi cards all being cheap, the company is forced to invent a new rarity and make all Yummies exclusive to it.
Michael Rookie responded to several questions, like the reason why’d he make the new Mitsurugi cards so low rarity, which is a quite uncommon move for Konami. “It’s a way to give back to fans of Mitsurugi and TCG-exclusive decks in general. The Ashened were trash and Tistina was more like Asstina, so when we were deciding on rarities for Mitsurugi, I figured to throw the players a bone, like when I made Circular a Super Rare back in POTE.” When asked for his feelings of a TCG-exclusive deck finally performing well in tournaments, Michael beamed pride: “Its incredible that it has won a YCS! I couldn’t be happier! Well, I could, I mean, I could still have my job for example.”
With nobody left in Konami to make a surprisingly good archetype low rarity, it’s expected that future tournament-winning decks will start costing over $2,000 or eight egg cartons.
He died as a hero