Okay, so let's break this down in a few different ways, shall we? I'm a recent Yomi fan who's been pretty pumped about this new release onOkay, so let's break this down in a few different ways, shall we? I'm a recent Yomi fan who's been pretty pumped about this new release on Steam. You're someone who's probably trying to figure out if they should buy this game. Let's see what we can do about this.
Yomi will likely appeal to...
* People who are put off of the dexterity requirements for competitive fighting games
* Competitive gamers looking for a new strategic game to master
* Game design fans looking for a new, interesting, well-balanced design
* Players who want to master a game and learn how to outfox their opponent directly
What is Yomi?
Yomi is the Capcom arcade fighter of card games, literally. Well, not entirely literally--it's not actually a Capcom project, although the game's designer (David Sirlin) did work on Streetfighter HD Remix. It takes the concepts behind the world's most popular competitive fighting games and translates them into a strategic card game.
There's four different types of moves (Attack, Throw, Block, and Dodge) which form an interacting triangle that should be familiar to fighting-game veterans: Attacks damage the opponent and blast through Throws, which also deal damage and wreak havoc on Blocks (which give you more cards) and Dodges (which let yoou counterattack), which in turn are great counters to Attacks. It's a cycle that gets easier and easier as you play the game, and then you start introducing wrinkles like character abilties, different cards, and special moves.
How Yomi Plays
There's really three parts to Yomi play, and you have to get good at all of them. They feed into one another, so the better you get at one, the better you'll get at others.
Hand value: you have to be able to look at your hand of cards, and figure out what your strongest options are. If you're low on cards, Blocks become valuable. If you have a lot of high-damage cards, you'll want to look for ways to combo those cards into an attack to deal lots of damage to your opponent. Understanding how strong your cards are in a given situation is key to winning Yomi.
Character playstyle: each character plays very differently, and you have to understand what your character's gameplan is--as well as your opponent's character. For instance, Argagarg the fish-person is playing a long game, with a special ability that deals damage to an opponent every turn. Jaina the hothead Phoenix Archer is a reckless rushdown character, with an ability that lets her return valuable attack cards to her hand after she combos them away...but she takes damage for each one.
Reading: also referred to as "yomi" by Sirlin and many players of the game, this is the skill of noticing patterns in your opponent's play and exploiting them...while realizing that they know you're doing it and are trying to outmaneuver you. This is the hardest part of the game to get a handle on, and it's a skill you'll have to hone very carefully over time, after you get used to different characters. It's also the most satisfying part of the game: when you get a read just right for the crucial final attack, it's glorious.
The Digital Client
So, how's the implementation on Steam? Well, it's largely the same as the web client, but there's a few distinctions I noted, mainly in terms of performance. Steam Yomi is much, much smoother and faster, and it loads all the parts of the game much quicker. Having a bigger resolution is just wonderful, and it makes the cards look even better. So, relative to the web client on FantasyStrike.com, it's a massive step up.
Now, compared to other digital card games, I think Yomi winds up as a solid middle-of-the-road. It doesn't have the rockstar pizzaz and spectacle that you'd find in Blizzard's Hearthstone, but the interface you do get is clean, fairly straightforward, and it feels smooth. There's a lot of little touches, like the visuals on the combat wins, which add up to a very enjoyable experience. I'd say it's comparable to what you'd find in the Sentinels of the Multiverse app, if not a bit better, and it's clearly head-and-shoulders over something like the app for Ascension. There's also lots of nice helpful bits to the in-game interface, such as the quick-access reference cards for both characters or the cards that you can sort and rotate in your hand as you like.
The Final Verdict
Yomi's not the fanciest game out there, but it's certainly tight, brainy, and sharp. It receives a high recommendation from me, both for a top-notch game and a smooth digital implementation. The 10 characters you get from the start are really fun to play with, and if you're interested in some more out-there playstyles, there's an expansion you can get in the game for $15. It'll last you a very, very long time.
FIGHT!!!… Expand
