The Most Exciting Upcoming Marvel Project Isn’t A Movie Or A Series

There’s still a lot we don’t know about the upcoming Marvel Magic: The Gathering set, including its full name, characters, and release date. However, it has been revealed that it will be a full tentpole set. That means it will introduce hundreds of new cards that come in the typical range of booster packs, and pre-constructed commander decks, making it playable in several of the game’s formats. 

Marvel will be the latest IP to join Magic: The Gathering under the Universes Beyond label, which has been incredibly successful. Released in a wide range of ways from full sets to a handful of cards inside of an existing set, Universes Beyond has brought everything from Transformers to Assassins Creed into the game. Last year’s Lord of the Rings set has become one of the best-selling sets in the game’s history, proving the immense popularity of the idea. 

Despite the success Magic: The Gathering has had, Universes Beyond is also an incredibly controversial idea. Some fans feel it cheapens the game when they bring in outside universes, like Marvel, rather than focusing on the game’s unique characters and settings. Non-fantasy brands like Fallout and The Walking Dead have been particularly divisive due to how different they are from the game’s original high-fantasy genre. 

When Magic: The Gathering initially released Universes Beyond, I was skeptical, but the company won me over with clever mechanical references and lovingly rendered art. I can’t wait to see how the company turns various Marvel character’s powers into game mechanics, but it’s the art that has me excited about this particular set. I love comic art and can’t wait to see Magic artists take on the genre, not to mention the possibility of cards drawn by my favorite comic artists. 

While this is Marvel’s first foray into the world of Magic: The Gathering the comic company has a long history with collectible cards based on their characters, making it a natural tie-in. They have been putting out trading cards, modeled after baseball cards, on and off since the early 90s. In recent years they have also experimented with card games like the mobile card game Marvel Snap and the cooperative Marvel Champions: The Card Game. 

Next year’s set is just the beginning of the relationship between Marvel and Magic: The Gathering, with a multi-year deal existing between the two companies. I can’t wait to make decks built around my favorite characters like Dr. Doom and Kitty Pryde. With multiple years’ worth of cards on the way, I’m also hopeful we’ll get more obscure characters like The Great Lakes Avengers or Stilt-Man. 

It’s hard to say if Magic: The Gathering’s Marvel partnership will take off like their Lord of the Rings set did, but it feels like a match made in heaven. There are hundreds of great comic characters to adapt, and an exciting visual style that could make for beautiful cards. As much as I love the MCU, it can’t compare to the excitement of possibly winning a Commander game by playing a well-timed Doom Bot.