Image: Workshop Games / Wizards of the Coast
A month after Bank of America downgraded Hasbro’s inventory over fears it was “killing its golden goose” by oversaturating the market with Magic: The Gathering playing cards, the toy producer says that’s not the case. “There is no evidence that Magic is overprinted,” Wizards of the Coast president Cynthia Williams advised buyers throughout a current company technique “fireside chat.”
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Magic: The Gathering is at the moment on its third printing of the newest Warhammer 40K crossover set. To some followers, it’s an thrilling time for the decades-old card recreation about dueling wizards amid a flurry of latest releases and spin-offs. For others, fatigue is starting to set in as they accuse writer Wizards of the Coast and guardian firm Hasbro of flooding the market with too many playing cards. Executives at these firms argue that’s nonsense.
“In aggregate, there is no evidence that Magic is overprinted, and the sentiment of ‘Magic needs to cut print runs to support prices’—that’s a misunderstanding of our business and our customers,” Williams mentioned when requested in regards to the criticism throughout Thursday’s presentation (by way of Polygon). She added that common gross sales for brand spanking new releases haven’t modified 12 months over 12 months and that the corporate is solely printing on demand to fulfill present gamers’ wants. “We have no indication that there [have] been any broad negative changes to interest in trading or post-purchase selling of Magic products.”
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One explicit flash level for some gamers’ frustrations with the path of the sport’s expansions was a just lately introduced thirtieth Anniversary Edition boxed set. It reprinted uncommon playing cards from the earliest days of Magic, permitting gamers a shot at buying them for $1,000 per set of 4 booster packs. It was an overpriced loot field on the one hand, but it surely had the potential to devalue long-time followers’ collections on the opposite . Williams mentioned Wizards of the Coast heard the suggestions from followers and collectors, and adjusted course to supply fewer of the packs because of this.
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But the true subject lies within the rising pains the sport is present process as Hasbro and Wizards attempt to usher in new gamers and earn more money off it. While the sport beforehand catered principally to hardcore aggressive gamers, it’s now making an attempt to domesticate different extra “casual” gamers as nicely, together with by aggressively partnering with different main media properties—Transformers, Lord of the Rings, Final Fantasy—to achieve different followers.
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Williams blamed a part of gamers feeling overwhelmed by new Magic releases in 2022 on scheduling points that led some expansions to occur again to again. 2023 is predicted to return again to regular with six “tentpole” units equally scattered all year long. But some followers really feel the true subject is Wizards and Hasbro making an attempt to squeeze much more income out of a single recreation.
“I think the current Marvel Cinematic Universe trend is very similar. At first, one movie a year was cool and exciting,” one participant wrote on the MTG reddit. “Now it’s fatigue. Three movies in three months, TV shows of different genres, and they all connect, OR DON’T, and sure, someone probably likes MODAK and Loki, but how does that impact She-Hulk?”
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Another fan likened it to cookies as a substitute. “Most Oreo purchases are made by Casual Oreo Consumers,” their Twitter thread parody started. Assassin’s Creed and Doctor Who-flavored MTG playing cards are anticipated to start out transport in 2023.