Yuna Not Restricted in UNION ARENA English Version and Updates to Rare Battles
Happy Sword Art Online Vol. 2/Evangelion release day!
Today both Sword Art Online Vol. 2 and Evangelion UNION ARENA sets have released, and along with them a drastically different UNION ARENA English meta is born. However, the biggest news isn’t just that these sets are now available, or even that two cards were cut from the Evangelion English version – indeed the biggest news might just be the fact that the highly anticipated Purple Yuna deck does not seem to have been hit with a restriction.
Purple Yuna was so strong when it came out in Japan that it was originally hit with a restriction that only allowed players to run two copies of the one-cost Yuna in their decks. However, Sword Art Online Vol. 2 release day is almost over and no such restriction has been announced. Now more than ever, it seems highly likely that the powerful Purple Yuna deck will be played in the English version at full power – something which will have dramatic implications for the UNION ARENA meta moving forward.
Additionally, images of a leaked email from Bandai that could have huge implications for local play and Rare Battles have been making waves on social media. We’ll get into all of this more in the article below.
No Yuna restriction has precedence in the English version
Long before the Sword Art Online set released, I posited that – given how powerful Evangelion looked to be – Yuna might not face the same restriction in the English version that it did in the Japanese version.
How crazy would it be if they didn't limit the one-cost Yuna? #UNIONARENA pic.twitter.com/GRVjay9UVu
— Joseph Writer Anderson (@Jnderson007) December 19, 2025
After all, the world that Purple Yuna came into looked drastically different than the one we have today – there was no Evangelion back then, for starters. Indeed, given the apparent power levels of decks like Purple Gaius, we need a strong, healthy meta with plenty of other deck choices to help keep things balanced.
This isn’t the first time that restriction rules have changed between the two different versions of the game. Back in the day, the starter deck Sukuna was originally restricted in the Japanese version of the game to two copies – a fact which lead many to believe the same might happen in the English version at some point. However, the restriction never occurred, helping boost the competitive viability of the Sukuna deck which had a strong presence at the top level in many UNION ARENA Regionals.
So it’s not the first time the rules have changed between formats, and it’s likely not the last.
Implications of an unrestricted Purple Yuna
Choosing not to restrict Purple Yuna has a pretty profound impact on the UNION ARENA meta. For starters, Purple Yuna will likely shoot to the very top of the format once players take a collective sigh of relief at this strong deck not being restricted. Furthermore, Purple Yuna being at full power helps fill a void that might otherwise exist for a powerful, midrange strategy.
I’ve been playing a ton of Purple Yuna since the set launched and see it’s potential as a top tier, midrange style deck – a necessary deck archetype to fill the void that might otherwise exist between the likes of Purple Gaius on the control end and Red Kenshin on the aggro end.
Having Purple Yuna at full power increases the likelihood of its play share skyrocketing in the upcoming tournaments – a powerful check on the format that should help a more varied environment – one where a lot of decks are viable – to thrive.
So in effect, Purple Yuna being available at full power is about more than just countering Evangelion – it’s a powerful deck that can counter the decks that counter Evangelion – creating a varied format that’s not just “play Purple Gaius or play against it.”
While it seems more likely than ever that Yuna will not be restricted, I will make one disclaimer that Bandai could choose to restrict Yuna at any time as that’s their prerogative. Right now, however, it doesn’t seem likely that they will be doing so.
Changes coming to Rare Battles in April, 2026
While the lack of a Purple Yuna restriction has the bigger, immediate impact, a note has been circulating on social media that seems to be an official Bandai email that shares big changes coming to the local tournament scene effective April 2026. Starting in April, Rare Battles will be limited to Gold/Silver Member stores, meaning that local shops that haven’t hit that threshold will essentially be knocked out of the running to run Rare Battles. Additionally, stores that host Rare Battles will not be able to run regular store tournaments while running Rare Battles. The note states that this is to “further enhance the value and excitement of UNION ARENA events.”
While it might be tempting to see this as a negative move by Bandai to cut smaller stores out of the running for tournaments with bigger prizes, there could be a silver lining to this. Indeed, I’ve heard many stories of situations where smaller stores without the player base to actually run a Rare Battle as it was intended to be run have simply given Rare Battle cards instead of regular Winner Cards.
Limiting Rare Battles to stores with the right amount of players to actually support them could help maintain the integrity of the Rare Battle format that really is intended to be an IP-locked battle.
Assuming that this email making waves on social media is true, stores that are not Gold/Silver Bandai sellers can still run store tournaments during the regular Rare Battle period.
UNION ARENA has perhaps never been this exciting. With a major event coming up in a matter of weeks in Vegas, two huge new sets just releasing, and big changes coming to the local scene, 2026 is shaping up to be another big year for the game. Over all, these changes should be seen as a positive rather than a negative – only further demonstrating Bandai’s commitment to supporting the growth of UNION ARENA into a game that we can all be excited about and proud of being a part of.
