A super adaptation of the board game.

Starts out rather random as two novices rely too much on the "Yomi" aspect of trying to outguess each other.

Evolves into a game of valuation. A player who knows the value of each play at any given time, and what his character's ideal move distributions are in a given matchup, will crush an opponent who does not.

And then finally, at an expert level, the mind-games and randomness aspect is rolled back in, but now in a much more satisfying way -- because the lines between an optimal move and a bad one are blurred. If both you and your opponent know the optimal move at any given time, and every move in the game can be countered if it can be predicted... then is it really the optimal move?

The answer lies in the middle ground. This game, at its highest level, becomes a mix of both Yomi (reading your opponent) AND valuation (judging the current game state correctly while planning future turns), so the designer absolutely accomplished his goals.

And it's a good thing, because this game relies on both of those elements. Without the valuation, it becomes a random game. And without the Yomi, it becomes repetitive and scripted.

The human element ensures that the game does not get stale, while the ever-changing game state challenges you to analyze abilities and known information to find the best move on any given turn... and then decide whether you want to use it, play it safe, or counter its counter.

A super adaptation of the board game. Starts out rather random as two novices rely too much on the "Yomi" aspect of trying to outguess each other. Evolves into a game of valuation. A player who knows the value of each play at any given time, and what his character's ideal move distributions are in a given matchup, will crush an opponent who does not. And then finally, at an expert level, the mind-games and randomness aspect is rolled back in, but now in a much more satisfying way -- because the lines between an optimal move and a bad one are blurred. If both you and your opponent know the optimal move at any given time, and every move in the game can be countered if it can be predicted... then is it really the optimal move? The answer lies in the middle ground. This game, at its highest level, becomes a mix of both Yomi (reading your opponent) AND valuation (judging the current game state correctly while planning future turns), so the designer absolutely accomplished his goals. And it's a good thing, because this game relies on both of those elements. Without the valuation, it becomes a random game. And without the Yomi, it becomes repetitive and scripted. The human element ensures that the game does not get stale, while the ever-changing game state challenges you to analyze abilities and known information to find the best move on any given turn... and then decide whether you want to use it, play it safe, or counter its counter.