Magic: The party is now Fortnite, and worse

There is quite a lot of doubt and worry when the wizard of the coast introduces the concept of the universe beyond magic: the party in 2021. Universe is a nickname for cards and collections marked as Magic Print: parties that exist outside of the normative stories of Magic. Although the outing universe can be seen as a creativity, it is often allowed to magic: parties can explore different IPs that exist outside of their universe, while tweaking these characters and concepts to fit the mechanics and gameplay of a 30-year-old trading card game. Essentially, it’s a magic way to cross with your beloved franchise, while also allowing these IPs to add transaction card game adaptations to their portfolio without creating separate dedicated games.

When announcing experiments on licensed IP, Magic's chief designer Mark Rosewater said the universe beyond would be Only exists in “eternal” format and stays away from the more competitive standard format of magic. The decision will give players the option of a casual or less approved format with The Walking Dead, Street Fighter, Fallout or Assassin's Creed or if they wish to ignore it completely.

However, fast forward to 2025, and the transcendent universe has evolved into another beast. Not only does it make up half of Magic: The party’s Tentpole suit is released this year, but with the release of Final Fantasy in June, Beyond the Universe is now legal in all competing formats in the game, with the last of the standard included. This is the problem.

In the standard format of magic, it is advantageous to learn the legal card's kapop to maintain competitiveness. The format even uses a rotating system for published collections, meaning that newly released cards can only be played in the standard. While the system can be frustrating when a card you like gets booted, it ensures that the card pool is both easy to learn and manage. Additionally, these limitations are a guide for players to encourage them to adapt and create competitive decks. So far, these cards have always remained in the MTG universe, and for many players the standard is the “purstrous” way to play their favorite games.

Now is Magic’s latest suit, based on the popular video game series Final Fantasy, for the first time ever to bring the characters and world of External Magic into its competitive standard scenario. Last season in Magic’s Digital Client Magic: Party Field,,,,, I spent a lot of time climbing the standard rankings using the inspirational deck and Final Fantasy VII's Sephiroth. The deck is strong and feels the theme with its centered character. But, many times in my rankings, I can’t help wondering: would I even bother with this deck if I weren’t a VII fan of Final Fantasy? Of course, it's powerful and keeping it real to the characters, but what about non-fans? I wonder if the opponent I met had zero experience with Final Fantasy,,,,, Perhaps working hard to participate in the scene due to a lack of interest, now reaching it in a competitive sense. That was the time to hit me: Soon, I will be that very player.

Remember that 50% of the MTG suites released in 2025 are outside the universe. There are only three other sets to go, two of which are outside the universe: Spider-Man and Avatar: The Last Air Clan. Like Final Fantasy, these sets will enter the competitive standard card pool. There is nothing inherently wrong in itself, but why should I interact based on IPS that IPS is not interested in to stay in a competitive scenario? For the game's competitive “meta”, I had zero interest in using cards and nickel comics and cartoons with Miracle Comics, but now at least I'm forced to understand what these cards do. Here I began to sympathize with the players who had no connection to Final Fantasy but were forced to focus on the scene or were left behind.

It’s easier to accept changes in tone and art style when magic focuses on its own primitive world. The offender at the junction of Thunder is based on the wild theme, but it still features characters and concepts that already exist in magic. But when IPs like Final Fantasy or Spider-Man are introduced, there are levels of external influence and expectations that Magic loses some identity in the process.

When introduced into the universe, it is designed as a timeless format and an optional “fun” transfer for new players. Now, it quickly took over the game, turning it into a merger of licensed characters and affecting competitive games. I like to play magic, I like to play competitiveness. I'm glad there are more people playing this great game for going beyond the universe, but that's not the only point. When most newer players never line up for ranking matches or look up metadeck lists, the universe doesn’t need to have a place in a highly competitive scenario.

Sometimes it's OK to make magic magic.