two things can be correct at the same time
so, no one has asked my opinion. And it is just another drop of an endless bucket of voices, but as someone who has been collecting and playing magic since just before original mirrodin, as a wee lad, till, well. Now. I think it's only fair I'm allowed to have thoughts on the game.
Universes Beyond. *record scratch*
The current boogeyman of magic. You either love it or hate it if the internet is to be believed. And I am of two minds.
Succintly, universes beyond has not, and will not, kill magic as a card game. It has, however, killed magic as an IP.
The story of magic has always been so tightly bound to the card game it is hard for people to separate the two. Other games, like yugioh, never really had a dedicated story as depicted in game. Sure, there's an anime. But that's about playing the game, not what is depicted on the cards. Magic is unique, in that it's gameplay is tied to a vast interconnecting storyline spanning decades of real time.
And that drew in a lot of players, sure. But not the majority. A lot of players, likely the majority, don't know or care who urza is, or that nicol bolas and ugin are brothers, or that azor the sphinx created the azorius etc etc etc.
They only know what is directly in their face on the card. You've likely seen it before. The player at the lgs that calls every card "he" or that mispronounces names. They don't care who the character in the card is, just what the card does. AND THAT'S FINE. Magic is a game first and foremost. If someone only cares about mechanics I cannot begrudge them that.
But for people that care about the story of magic itself, yes. Its safe to say universes beyond is the death knell. The integrity of the story has been shattered, because the game is now so diluted with outside IP, that cool and unique card designs are being given to sonic the hedgehog characters. Design space that could be used for existing characters and stories is being used up for teenage mutant ninja turtles. The story of bolas' escape and the advent of the omen paths is taking a back seat to a hastily pushed spiderman set.
The end of the phyrexia saga promised a whole new multiverse with new rules. Planes no longer being quite so remote. Planeswalkers becoming fewer and far between. Unique new concepts like duskmourne and aetherdrift(even if aetherdrift didn't quite hit the mark, the concept was ambitious) gave us a taste of what was possible in this new multiverse with doors blown wide open.
But instead, final fantasy broke record sales. Lord of the rings was a booming success. Outside ips make money. Like it or not, people will spend money on things they like. And Hasbro-WotC is a company, first and foremost. Profit is always their number one concern. This is not a condemnation but it is also not up for debate. Regardless of what an internet brand embassador says.
In my opinion, the Magic IP is dead. Irreparable harm has been done to the integrity at this point. However, Magic the card game is in a completely fine spot. It is making money hand over fist. People that know nothing about Magic are buying the cards because they like the characters. And some of those people are sticking around and learning to play the game. Which is fantastic.
Tl;dr Magic the gathering is dead. Long live Magic the gathering.
