Will Magic try again – will the attack on the genre leader Hearthstone succeed?
The genre of online card games has flourished in recent years. This is largely due to Blizzard, who – as in many previous games – have revolutionized the genre through simplifications and accessibility.
Hearthstone is loosely based on the Warcraft TCG, which was discontinued with the release of Hearthstone. However, the real leader in the realm of physical card games has been and still is “Magic: The Gathering”, which has never quite gained a foothold in the digital realm – at least not until now.
In the future, this is supposed to change. Chris Cocks from Wizard of the Coast has announced that they will invest more money in the digital teams to unleash the full potential of the games. The goal is to reinvent the digital versions of “Magic” and the other games.
And the developers seem to be serious: A completely new team has recently been formed, consisting of “old veterans” who previously worked for Valve, Activision, and BioWare.
But with the improved versions of the current games, this is not the end. They want to transfer the worlds they have created into new genres. As an example, Cocks mentioned the possibilities of a Magic MMO or an augmented reality game for Dungeons & Dragons.
There are currently no specific deadlines for the implementation of these plans, but the whole team is already eager to find out how players will “tap Mana and prepare spells in the future.”
Cortyn says: I believe it will be quite difficult to implement the plans regarding Magic. The fact that a 1:1 adaptation has been received poorly by players in the past has already been shown. A simplified version risks quickly being dismissed as a “Hearthstone” clone.
However, we must not forget that there are many Magic fans who long for something new from “their” game makers. Magic is in a difficult position. Whether the mother of all TCGs will succeed in making a successful run in the digital realm, only crystal ball owners can know.
Recently, it was revealed which legends did not make it into the new addon for Hearthstone.
