The gameplay begins with a dialogue between Seto Kaiba and Simon McMooran. First, McMooran allows the player to choose from several starter decks with a lead deck leader; each deck leader is dealt in threes, based on the name that McMooran requests at the beginning of the game.[2][3] Kaiba then allows the player to choose between two teams: the Lancastrians (Red Rose) or the Yorkists (White Rose). Each choice later determines which characters to face in future duels, which are displayed on a world map within the game.[3]
Each duel takes place on a 7x7 battlefield that resembles a chessboard.[4][3] Each space has a unique terrain that is specific to the character they are fighting.[3] Different terrains (such as normal, forest, meadow, dark, sea, wasteland, mountain, toon, crush, and labyrinth) can increase or decrease different types of monsters' attack and defence by 500 points, as well as increase each character's movement space.[4] Three terrains have special effects: labyrinth, which no cards can pass through except for a few monsters with special effects; crush, which destroys monsters with less than 1500 attack points; and toon, which weakens all monsters except toon monsters.[3]