Many fans of older iterations of the Yu-Gi-Oh card game have come to Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links in order to enjoy the game they remember from the past. While it originally started with it being focused on the first generation of Yu-Gi-Oh, updates over time have introduced cards and mechanics from Yu-Gi-Oh GX and Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds.
The most recent update to Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links has added Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal to the lineup. This means that XYZ summoning has been officially implemented and even players that don't plan on using it will have to deal with it during competitive duels.
XYZ cards are monster cards that are placed in the extra deck alongside fusion and synchro monsters. They can easily be identified by their black card backgrounds and the XYZ label in their card description.
To unlock XYZ summoning, players must first obtain an XYZ monster card. The easiest way to do this is by completing the unlock missions for Yuma. Players will then get the option for an XYZ summoning tutorial that can be viewed at any time by talking to Tour Guide from the Underworld.
Summoning XYZ monsters is similar to ritual summons and synchro summons, except no ritual spell card or tuner monsters are required. XYZ monsters are also unique in how they do not have levels like most other monsters. Instead, they have ranks.
In order to summon an XYZ monster, players must use a monster that has levels that are equal to an XYZ monster's rank. The levels of the tribute monsters cannot be added up to the XYZ monster's rank, so each monster that is tribute must have the same level as the XYZ monster's rank. Different XYZ monsters require different numbers of monster cards that need to be tributes.
When an XYZ monster is summoned, it will have a number representing the materials used to summon it. When a material detaches, the material card will be sent to the Graveyard. Certain XYZ monsters have special effects surrounding detaching materials in order to get off powerful effects.
With this new update, many competitive decks will start to use XYZ monsters in the PVP scene. Players that want to stay on top of their opponents are recommended to learn how to use this new mechanic in duels. Some players may find themselves completely changing what kind of deck they use with how this new mechanic changes the current meta.
Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links is currently available for iOS, Android, and PC.