You’d buy a deck and some booster packs, mix them together, and start playing.

You play as wizards, casting spells and summoning monsters in an attempt to defeat your opponents.īack when I started playing Magic in the ’90s, things were pretty simple. While generally a 2-player game, Magic: The Gathering can also be played in a free-for-all mode with up to 5 players, ages 13+. It is published by Wizards of the Coast, which also publishes Dungeons & Dragons. Created by Richard Garfield in 1993, MTG is still going strong, with regular new set releases and play ranging from casual to professional Esports. Magic: The Gathering is the first, and by extension the most enduring, collectible card game around. I bet you’ll never guess what ended up happening… Wizards of the Coast sent over a few things to check on the current state of MTG. As a busy game reviewer, I told him the only way I’d start up MTG again would be if Wizards of the Coast sent me some cards. For several months, my friend Chris had been bugging me to pick up the game again, so we could play Magic: The Gathering together. Rather than look for a new group to play with, and having no interest in the tournament scene, I hung up my hat and sold my collection on this new and exciting online auction site that had recently launched called “eBay.” And that was the end of that.Ĭut to 2023. We’d all make frequent trips to the local game store, grabbing booster packs and trying to figure out cool decks to build and play against each other.īut much like a band breaking up, our little group drifted apart.

Here we are, 30 years later, with the game still going strong.īack in the ’90s, I belonged to a group of friends that would play Magic. Sometimes it’s hard to believe that Magic: The Gathering, that most ubiquitous of collectible card games, launched in game stores all the way back on August 5th, 1993.

Free to play magic guide