Hasbro announces Magic The Gathering & Marvel crossover with 'multi-year deal'
It had to happen eventually, didn't it? Magic The Gathering has been pulling in all sorts of universes, from Doctor Who, to Fallout and Final Fantasy, and Jurassic Park. Now, Wizards of the Coast has announced a crossover with arguably the most famous multiverse of all, Marvel.
As part of a new Universes Beyond Collaboration, fans can expect superheroes, supervillains, locations and story arcs to be represented within Magic. This multi-year and multi-set collaboration doesn't have a release date yet.
Magic The Gathering will add Marvel as part of Universes Beyond
Check out the reveal trailer below - just don't expect any card artwork just yet.
"We are extremely proud to collaborate with Marvel to bring its iconic characters to fans around the world in new ways," Cynthia Williams, President of Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro Digital Gaming explained via press release.
"These tentpole sets will build on the tradition of incorporating beloved fan-favourite characters and elements from world-class brands into Magic: The Gathering."
Dan Buckley, President of Marvel Comics and Franchise, noted "trading cards have always been a part of Marvel’s DNA, so this collaboration takes that experience to a whole new level.
"With the depth that our storytelling and characters bring to the table, we can’t wait for fans to see how the Marvel Universe translates seamlessly into gameplay within these Magic: The Gathering products and sets for years to come."
While this is likely to provide another excellent jumping-on-point for new Magic players, it'll do little to satisfy naysayers who have suggested Wizards of the Coast has diluted the core Magic experience with too many crossovers.
It's also an interesting choice by Marvel, with the company owned by Disney, which recently launched its own trading card game, Disney Lorcana. On a personal level, I'm hopeful we'll see some deep cuts from Marvel's back catalogue, as well as a nice X-Men set - can't have a card game without Gambit, am I right?
What will the Universes Beyond Marvel set look like?
Given we're looking at a "multi-year, multi-set deal," expect a variety of drops over the next few years - but what form they'll take, it's hard to say.
After all, the successful Warhammer 40,000 crossover offered Secret Lair drops, but definitely felt like the Commander decks were the main draw. The upcoming Fallout crossover is also Commander-focused, but the Lord of the Rings set offered much more in terms of boosters, a starter pack, and more.
As an easy mark for both Magic and Marvel, though, I expect whatever form these sets take to hit my wallet pretty hard.
For more on card games, check out our rundown of the best digital card games you can play right now, and an interview with the artist who brought Sauron to Magic The Gathering.
