Summary

  • MTG's 2025 Universes Beyond sets will be all-format-legal, attracting new players but potentially alienating existing fans.
  • More IPs joining MTG crossovers may dilute the game's essence and make deckbuilding challenging for cohesive themes.
  • The new approach to Universes Beyond releases may spark controversy as it deviates from traditional MTG aesthetics.

Magic: The Gathering is set to enter a new era for the game with the release of the Foundations core set, and the big changes coming to the release schedule of MTG products in 2025 further cement this idea. A lot is changing for the game starting with Foundations, from Magic: The Gathering returning to pre-M10 combat damage distribution mechanics to WotC moving away from the traditional release cycle starting in the fall, so players will have a lot of adjusting to do. Another massive change happening next year is that Magic Multiverse sets will be limited to 3 per year instead of 4, and there will be 3 big sets for Universes Beyond.

Universes Beyond is a bit of a blessing and a curse for the game in and of itself since the project arguably allows Magic: The Gathering to gain more visibility and attract more players, but at the same time, it can deviate quite heavily from the core aesthetics of the TCG. This is a debate that has been going on for a while within the community, with some fans referring to MTG as the Fortnite of card games. With the new approach to UB sets in 2025, these pros and cons may weigh even more on MTG.

Magic: The Gathering's Universes Beyond 2025 Release Schedule Explained

As part of Magic: The Gathering's 2025 release schedule, the three new Universes Beyond sets, which currently feature Final Fantasy and Spider-Man as the only two confirmed, will all be Standard-legal. Actually, they will be legal in all formats, unlike some past releases that were instead limited to Eternal formats like Commander, with the products themselves being typically Commander precon decks. However, the 2025 UB sets will be tentpole releases with their full-fledged product offering, ranging from the main set to additional releases. This is a big departure from the philosophy behind Universes Beyond, for better or for worse.

On the one hand, it is true that more crossovers in the form of tentpole sets or even the smaller Secret Lair drops for SpongeBob and Marvel will inevitably attract more people to the game, which can increase its longevity and make for a healthier, more diverse playerbase. On the other hand, crossover sets like Universes Beyond are not for everyone, and making them legal in all formats (particularly Standard) for years may kickstart a handful of controversies. After all, not all players may be happy to draft Spider-Man or have Final Fantasy cards in their decks for three years.

Magic: The Gathering's Crossovers Are Caught Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Both sides have their valid arguments, and while Universes Beyond did already have some tentpole releases like MTG's Lord of the Rings products, these were limited to once or twice a year at best. Instead, this new release schedule will see players engage with three different IPs beyond Magic per year, which can dilute the very essence of the game to the point that these releases may easily be "Universes Within." To see Spider-Man, SpongeBob, and Final Fantasy cards in a game with a very distinct universe and story may seem jarring, especially so for longtime fans.

More importantly, with three new IPs joining Magic: The Gathering's crossovers every year, it may be hard to juggle deckbuilding with cohesive themes and identities. Next year, a given deck may have the cute critters from Bloomburrow alongside Marvel characters go up against cards from Tarkir Dragonstorms and Final Fantasy. It can be appealing for fans of a given IP to see it crossover with MTG and try the game, but it remains to be seen if those players are willing to stick around when their favorite media is no longer in the spotlight and another one is. Likewise, not all Magic: The Gathering fans may be willing to stay when Standard and other formats will slowly become more and more compounded in terms of motifs and designs.

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MagicTheGatheringFranchiseTag
Magic The Gathering
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Original Release Date
1993
Age Recommendation
13+
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Magic the Gathering is a tabletop and digital collectable card game created by Richard Garfield and released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Players take on the role of a Planeswalker and use various cards to battle other players by casting spells, summoning creatures, or utilizing artifacts. It features two main rule categories, constructed or limited, and can be played by two or more players at a time.

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