Magic: The Gathering is a collectible card game published by Wizards of the Coast. It’s collectible in the way that cards are released in sets and you can collect and trade the cards to obtain the ones you want or to try and complete a set, which results in a special kind of geeky satisfaction and sense of accomplishment and completion. In addition to the cards’ value to collectors Magic has achieved lasting success by providing an addicting game of strategy and fantasy.
In a game of Magic, each player takes the role of a powerful wizard who casts spells and summons creatures in an effort to destroy his or her opponent (the other player). You create your own deck of cards, and once ready, pit your deck and skill against another player. Despite its simple premise, Magic’s gameplay can become very strategic and deep.
Cards in Magic represent five colors, each which uses its own theme and philosophy of play. Black is based on concepts of death and malice, white emphasizes purity and healing, blue is all about trickery, countermagic, and misdirection, green is nature, growth, and big powerful creatures, and red is based around damage and chaos. In creating your deck you can use one or more of these colors. New cards are obtained by purchasing booster packs, which usually contain 15 cards. Magic cards vary in rarity, either being common, uncommon, or rare. Mythic rare cards were recently introduced as well.
Magic is huge. There are tournaments worldwide, and its following is bigger than ever. My beginnings with the game were when I was in my early teens and played it at my friend Avery’s house. That was in about 1994. Myself, Avery, his two brothers, and two other friends would all play and trade our Magic cards together. We had a fantastic time of it and I have many happy memories from that time. Sometimes we even played group games where 6 or 7 of us all played. We stuck the extra leaves to extend Avery’s dining table and played, quite literally, until the sun came up!
We all took a break from Magic in about 2004 or so. I grew increasingly bored and unhappy with Magic, mainly due to a feeling of staleness and that the newer cards were not as powerful and enjoyable to play as those from the game’s initial sets. Recently, though, I was looking into various geeky hobbies and took a fresh look at Magic. To my surprise, the card formats have been redesigned and now look crisp and attractive. The cards all feature their own art and much of the new art is very impressive. The new cards also are powerful and many of them are even more effective within the game than some of those I liked when I was younger. I also found that Magic has been going strong in all the time I was away and now it’s looking better than ever with the upcoming Magic 2010 core set.
A lot of recent sets have focused on play mechanics, featuring cards that seem more technical than they do… pure, and weren’t as attractive to me. As kids we felt a sense of awe and fear when someone slapped down a Shivan Dragon, and a synergistic combo deck, while technically impressive, just doesn’t have the same emotional magic to it. However, this new core set, Magic 2010, is a throwback to the days of Magic history, when the cards all were based on evocative fantasy concepts and the game was an expression of fantasy and fun. In M10 they’re including some old cards from the Revised Edition we played with as young guys and the design and development of the set has been based around theme, flavor, and fantasy concepts as a guiding principle. It looks fantastic!
To me, Magic lost its magic for a time, but now it’s definitely back. My friend Avery and I decided to get into Magic again and I introduced my wife Candace to the game. She’s already a fan. We play group games with my friend Avery, and I generally lose, just like old times. It’s great!
If you’re unfamiliar with Magic but are interested in giving it a try, there’s a cool New to Magic site site that Wizards of the Coast has, which has a lot of great information. There are even videos on how to play now. I remember reading the little booklet over and over and playing both sides of a game by myself, so the videos look like a big help. If you want to play it and give it a try I would recommend picking up one of the Magic 2010 Intro Packs. These are what we called “Starter Decks” in the old days. These are decks you can buy and play them right out of the box. Grab two different ones and get your spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, or pal to play with you. Alternatively, the check your local gaming shop that stocks Magic products and there will be someone there who will be more than happy to show you the game. The Wizards of the Coast site has a locator that tells you where Magic is sold and played, as well. I find Magic players to be generally social, pretty geeky, and highly enthusiastic about the game. Don’t be afraid to ask if you’d like to learn 
There’s also a game that recently came out on Xbox Live Arcade. It’s called Duels of the Planeswalkers and it’s a lot of fun. It features tutorials on how to learn the game and is a nice, gentle introduction to concepts of playing and deckbuilding. I highly recommend it if you’re interested.
If you’re already familiar with the game I would recommend Dave and Adam’s Card World for bulk purchases of booster boxes. I just preordered two booster boxes of Magic 2010 (one for myself and one for Candace) and after a $10 coupon code I found online I’m paying $80.50 apiece, beating the crap out of paying retail price, and even beating out Amazon and Ebay. It’s the lowest price I’ve seen anywhere, and it includes free shipping, 15 packs of 50 card sleeves, and a drawing to win an Unlimited Black Lotus, the most expensive card in Magic’s history. Sweet deal! I haven’t received the cards yet since I’m writing this before M10 is released, but my friend Avery has bought a booster box and highly recommends their store.
Magic, to me, is a game of fantasy flavor that evokes imagination and brings friends together to have a great time, yet has enjoyable solo elements of deck building and card collecting. It’s multidimensional since you can enjoy playing the game as well as collecting your favorite cards. It’s a fun way to have friends gather around a table rather than staring at a screen to enjoy some gaming.