Body of Work

So I noticed that today on metagame.com there is a new preview article for a new Marvel Knights card for the VS System CCG. The card sucks, but that’s not my point: The topic today is on set size, and what it means.

In the beginning, as I can’t help but be pulled in this direction, there was Magic. Magic had no expansions planned immediately, it simply had Alpha and soon moved into Beta. I don’t know what players called them back then, but the fact remains that soon there was talk of new cards and Arabian Nights was born. Check out this article for a cool history on how the set came to be.

What is truly interesting to me, other than the simple origin story of how Arabian Nights came into being, is the fact that it is a total of 78 cards! Wow, 78 cards can you imagine a new set for any card game these days that is as low as that? To put it in perspective, Star Chamber: Rebellions is 100 cards with 12 promos, and one of the next sets to come out for Magic after Arabian Nights was Legends, which had a total of 310 cards! (Ice Age had 383!)

Recently you may have noticed I’m not particularly happy with the way that VS System has introduced a completely new play zone, along with drastic changes in the way the game itself is viewed, played, and ultimately learned. For example, I really wanted to show my VS cards to some Magic playing buddies of mine, but since I’ve seen the Concealment mechanic I’ve been too hesitant to do so.

The reason? Simple: They are trying to create a new “block” of cards, starting with Marvel Knights, where the game itself changes dramatically in terms of this new play zone. How do I know? Well, just read the article (most notably the bottom portion). This means that Marvel Knights will be a “major” release at 220 cards, tied with Marvel Origins, the first set, in terms of size. This is because of the new play zone, and if proving popular enough, will lead the charge into “Standard” play, as there is now soon to be 5 sets to collect and play with if you so choose (Marvel/DC Origins, Web of Spiderman, Man of Steel, and Marvel Knights…notice how the new block will begin with Marvel again?). This is way too many for a standard environment, even with one as small as the VS system.

According to Upper Deck, these numbers don’t mean anything. They herald it simply as a better sealed deck set, along with remaining just as easy to collect as the other sets. I don’t really buy any of this, and considering Concealment is something that will hang around the VS System designer’s necks for years, they might as well usher in the new and out with the old. When you make a change this drastic, the other shoe must drop at some point.

However, speaking of points and getting back to mine, the key to set size is what format and whom it is for. The format can be as simple as saying “It is an expansion to this larger expansion.” Okay, that’s fine. But the double-edged sword of making new sets and new cards on a 3–6 month basis is that you’ll soon have too many cards for new players to join the gaming. For example, I have no desire, and definitely not the funds, to play the Extended Magic format. This is a format that encompasses the last two blocks (3 expansions each) and everything that is currently in Standard play. That’s a whole shitload of cards, and VS is gradually getting to that point.

I love to focus on both Magic and VS when I speak of CCGs, because one is the gold standard and the other is a struggling game with a devout (but admittedly few) players and mediocre tournament attendance. The designers, who obviously love their game, believe that a guile move such as including a hidden mechanic and completely new play zone (yes, I’m so clever, I used guile and clever to great effect) will segue their way into CCG superstardom. Or perhaps infringe on some of that Yi-Gi-Oh cash that flows from preteen kids like a waterfall.

As almost every other CCG has tried and failed to incorporate “Classic” (all cards) and “Standard” play formats, this reeks of trying to backdoor that decision and let the playerbase get used to the idea and impact of Marvel Knights before dropping the bombshell after the next two sets, Green Lantern and Justice League, make their premier.

This is a very trying time for VS System, while Magic has truly shown their expertise and foresight with the recent Kamigawa sets. Over time I grew to despise the Mirrodin block, but Kamigawa just keeps getting better. The differences in the two games are many, but one thing remains the same: They both want to produce excellent sets while keeping existing players and attaining new ones. But the transparency in release schedules and formats is a hurdle that Magic climbed over a long time ago. It is now VS System’s turn, and as happens with all CCGs who begin to have more sets than is really necessary, they will succeed or fail depending on how they handle the transition.

Right now I believe the godawful official website could be one reason, as no product pages for non-Marvel Origins and DC Origins expansions is at the very least pathetic. Does no one at UDE other than the devs themselves care about this game? Consequently the lack of content from the developers themselves on the official site—ie, regulating them to the halls of metagame.com—and this sly move to a new block without announcing it as such will prove to be telling if or when there is a player backlash after the announcement.

More on this tomorrow.