A year on and the next instalment of Magic has arrived once more, Magic The Gathering 2014 – Duels of the Planeswalkers (XBLA) to be exact. It is the “boss” of the Digital Trading Card world (and the real one to be honest) so their release has to not only satisfy the current crop of Magic addicts but also entice new blood and hopefully increase their sale on real cards. I was impressed with last year’s so much that I could barely contain my excitement when I got my hands on this, have they delivered once more?
For those who aren’t aware, the game comprises of choosing a deck of cards based on a magic colour (or multicoloured if you feel comfortable enough) and using this you battle opponents to take their life counter down to zero. Each of the ten new decks will have strengths and weakness, whether its multiple small creatures, few large creatures or just a whole load of game changing spells. You can win any way you wish to in this turn based trading card game, but your competitor will be doing the same.
Well for the new batch of fans or rookie Magic players they have an in-depth tutorial that places you into situations to help explain how to cast spells, delivering creature damage and sorceries amongst other things that you will need to grasp. Once you have been through the optional (so all you experienced players can move on to the real battles) training it will give you a battle versus Chandra who you will actually be accompanying in the campaign.
As mentioned the actual campaign involves you fighting on a quest with the Planeswalker (a powerful mage) Chandra Nalaar to eventually track down the evil Ramaz. Along the way there are fifteen brand new encounters which involve the A.I. having the same set of cards to play each time so it encourages you to adapt and find a way to defeat them. Across the six planes (parallel universes) you will face a boss in each and beating these will unlock their deck for you to use. There is also a little side section for fighting a couple of extra Planeswalkers and in the process adding a few more decks to your arsenal.
I found this pretty testing at times, especially with the encounters as although you know what they will do, most of them you have to come out swinging from the start which relies on having a quick deck and/or the luck of the draw. One thing it did was push me towards trying out other decks that I weren’t comfortable with in order to try a new tactic and rethink my strategy.
After completion it will unlock a smaller and tougher campaign in the form of Revenge mode, where those fallen Planeswalkers are basically out for revenge. Hence this time round it won’t be as easy for you will need to use a deck you know inside out and a little be of luck. By now you’ve probably unlocked every deck on offer and you will need to have a few back up decks as you face them all again.
The Challenges mode is back, throwing you into almost impossible recovery tasks mid game where there are limited solutions for you to come out the eventual winner. Blimey they are not for the easily frustrated but they do show you a few techniques and awesome cards that can win any game when the chips are stacked against you. The whole ten of these will either enhance your strategic processing or have you searching the internet for answers, by avoiding the latter it will benefit a players all round play.
I haven’t even acknowledged the coolest new addition to this year’s edition, Sealed Play which is simulating the real world experience a little more. It requires opening a few random booster packs to begin with and in turn building a deck ideal for your tastes. Then through another mini campaign it will allow the player to win more booster packs, however if you are a little uneasy at constructing a deck worthy of challenging others it lets you add a couple of cards you like and auto-build round them.
Fancy a quick game? Then it has Free-For-All for up to four entities or Two-Headed Giant which is 2 versus 2 with each team having a bit more life than usual. These are available online too in Ranked or Player matches with the Two-Headed Giant being an instant favourite for me. Although there are a few quitters, I’ve managed to strike up plenty of winning partnerships in my matches so far and I’ve had a great time in the meantime. Sealed Play is another online option but oddly I haven’t found any matches for that just yet whereas the rest there’s always someone, I guess I will have to bide my time before world domination with my deck.
In short you need to have a slight interest in card or trading card games in general to start with but as the main screen title suggest “Ignite Your Spark” it has certainly ignited my passion for all this Magic again. The decks have familiar feels to them but there are new cards that have enhanced my favourite Red deck. Being able to unlock decks and cards plus managing them to suit by trimming them down adds longevity as well as the online side. It’s everything it should be and more. 800 Microsoft Points is an absolute steal so at least download the trial if I still haven’t convinced you.
