Magic the Gathering: Arena

Talking about Magic the Gathering when discussing collectible card games is like talking about Dungeons & Dragons when discussing RPGs or tabletop games, as you are talking about the tittle that launched the genre. With such a long-lasting legacy at hand, it is no wonder that people started wondering when will a digital version of the game come to the market, and that is where Magic the Gathering: Arena comes into the picture.

Nothing is different in the rule-set of Magic the Gathering: Arena when compared to its real-life counterpart. Players use decks that generate mana and play cards that consume that mana to summon creatures, cast offensive and defensive spells, or other effects. Your goal is to eventually grind your opponent's life points down to zero before he does the same to you, but this isn't as easy as it sounds since surprise spells can turn your entire hand against you.

Just because the game is based on Magic the Gathering doesn't mean that everyone was born knowing the rules, so when you start with the game, you will have to play through a comprehensive, extremely challenging yet equally rewarding tutorial. You'll learn the rules in no time, and you'll also get to win some sweet cards while doing so.

Play styles are as different as the people that have them, so it is no wonder that the game has hundreds of cards that work together in various ways, thus suiting pretty much any play style possible. You'll start with a basic deck of cards, but as you win matches and do quests, you eventually gather enough currency to buy booster packs that contain cards of various themes and with interesting power-ups.

There is no gear, no character level or any other elements that may make a player more powerful than the other, as the only true difference is that of skill. Even someone who's barely finished the tutorial can beat a veteran player if he uses the cards properly, thus the game promotes competitiveness rather than grinding. Because of this, you should never consider matches easy, as if fighting NPCs, since you never know what your human opponent has up his sleeve.

Magic the Gathering: Arena has all eh charm of the physical game without you having to pay even for the beginner pack. More so, you can always find opponents over the Internet, so you never have to feel bad about being the only MTG player in your hometown. The matches are short and intense, and they all feel every bit as different, so monotony will pretty much never settle in, thus making the game an ideal addition to any hardcore gamer out there.