I'll say it: I'm an absolute sucker for tabletop card games, though the days of spending countless dollars on packs are well behind me. Online is where it's at now, as you don't have to buy anything, and challengers can battle via their computers and consoles worldwide. There's a few good online games, but now we're excited to hear that we'll be getting our hands on one of Japan's best: Alteil.

Alteil is a free, web-based card battle game. It features virtual cards drawn by top Japanese fantasy artists, and the whole game is done in a JRPG setting. Media Blasters and DEX Entertainment are working to bring an English language version to US shores as we speak.

You might recognize some of the artists: Katsuya Terada (the Hellboy film, Tekken 5), and illustrators Hitoshi Yoneda (Phantasy Star, Xanadu II), Rei (the Code Geass manga) and Yuji Kaida (Godzilla and Gundam models).  

The best part about Alteil is that it requires no purchase or download, as it's completely web-driven. When available, you'll just sign up, create your profile and start playing. Like many free MMOs these days, you can buy additional cards, but it is not necessary.

I'm really looking forward to giving this a spin when its available. For now, feel free to browse around the Alteil Web page.