“I originally developed Yomi so that everyone could experience the kind of dynamics that happen in fighting games,” said Sirlin. “I’m thrilled that it’s appealed to the tournament crowd as well as casual players. This latest version has years of polish and testing behind it, so it’s a great time to dive in.” 

Players looking to expand their options can purchase more characters according to the following schedule:

• March 6 (PAX East): Menelker & Persephone
• April 3: Rook & DeGrey
• May 1: Valerie & Geiger
• June 5 (Origins): Gloria & Gwen
• July 3: Lum & Argagarg
• July 31 (GenCon): Vendetta & Zane

Menelker, Persephone, Gloria, Gwen, Vendetta and Zane are all new Yomi characters. Individual decks will be sold for $9.99 each. All cards are printed on high-quality card stock with reinforced core and protective coating, making them very resistant to wear-and-tear.

Sirlin Games raised more than $217,000 — greatly exceeding its $30,000 goal — for the new and updated characters in a Kickstarter project which finished July 17, 2014. As the company has with both of its previous Kickstarters, all rewards were shipped on time by the end of December 2014. Backers who pledged for them have already received the new and improved character decks and other items; the above schedule applies only for general retail availability.

Also available as a result of the Kickstarter is the Yomi EX Powerup, an expansion for Yomi that comes with extra-powerful special moves and character cards for each of the 20 characters. These cards are not intended for serious competitive play but provide a “just for fun” alternative style. The EX Powerup expansion also includes a box designed to hold and display all 20 character decks for $39.99. It is currently available for purchase.