In 2020 Hasbro & Wizards Of The Coast released a special edition of Magic: The Gathering cards with characters from The Walking Dead TV series. This was a very controversial move as Magic has had crossovers before, but most were done with a silver border around the card (as opposed to the traditional black) so they could not be used in competitive events. The Walking Dead characters could be used in events where you can use older cards. Whether or not they are worth playing is up for debate, but there is a very vocal contingent of players who are concerned about the “purity” of the game.
Also in 2020, it was announced the expansion to release in Summer 2021 would be based on Dungeons & Dragons (also owned by Hasbro). Players were concerned about the slippery slope and that this might bring other unusual franchises into the mix.
Looks like they were right.
As you undoubtedly know from the title you clicked to read this article, Hasbro revealed during their 2021 Hasbro Investor Event Livestream that Lord Of The Rings and Warhammer 40k would be coming to Magic: The Gathering.
Normally these crossovers have been limited to special releases or a few cards, but that is going to change with the Dungeons & Dragons set this summer. Typical expansions are comprised of around 350-400 unique cards that are themed around different worlds in the Magic: The Gathering universe called “Planes.” Most of these worlds have their own identity within the Magic universe such as:
Innistrad, which is based on gothic horror tropes such as Slashers, Victorian-era vampires, and werewolves with a bit of Lovecraftian flair.
Strixhaven, an upcoming world based on the “schools of magic” trope.
Kaldheim, a snowy plane with dwarves, giants, Vikings, and other brutal, totally metal themes.
Ikoria, where giant monsters mutate into even more gigantic monsters. This set even had a crossover with the Godzilla franchises featuring alternate-art versions of cards within the set. This was met with a mostly positive response as Mothra or Gigan were simply alternate art/names for existing cards and could be effectively ignored if people wanted to just be in the “Magic” universe.
Other crossovers have been silver-bordered like My Little Pony and Transformers, and could only be used in casual play.
Personally speaking, I am firmly in the “CROSSOVER ALL THE THINGS” camp. I may not be a huge fan of some of the properties such as Lord Of The Rings or The Walking Dead, but I never thought I would see a fan-favorite Kaiju such as Gigan or Godzilla in a game of Magic. This also makes the game more accessible to new players that might feel intimidated when getting involved in a 28-year-old game with a very confusing mythos.
Hasbro/Wizards Of The Coast has stated these will be part of the “Universes Beyond” series and will not be legal in “Standard” (which is the primary tournament format for recently released cards). The “Dungeons & Dragons Adventures In The Forgotten Realms” expansion is an exception to this, as it will be standard-legal.
We are embarking on a new era of Magic, and while some may cast their cards into the sea in dramatic fashion, I have no doubt this will be a net gain for the game as long as the sets are fun.
Hey Wizards! When will we see Muppets and Gremlins Magic: The Gathering?
