A digital version of a collectible card game is nothing new. However, it is more than fair to say that Magic: The Gathering Arena is what Magic: The Gathering fans have been waiting for years for. This is a free to play online version of the popular card and it does a great job in bringing the card game to the digital world.
How to Download Magic: The Gathering Arena
You can download the game for free (but you should know that there are microtransactions should you choose them later). To proceed, click on the button below the review. If you like collectible card games check out also Hearthstone or Gwent.
The Game Review
Let’s start by saying that Magic: The Gathering Arena does the very best job it possibly could in bringing the game to your PC or the palm of your hand. Some may be a little skeptical about how this will work but work it does and it works very well. If you are a fan of the actual card game, I see no way how this can possibly disappoint you.
One thing that I like and this is speaking as someone who has only dabbled in the game before this. Is the way that Magic: The Gathering Arena actually teaches you how to play the game. Granted seasoned players may turn their nose up at this, but if you are new to Magic: The Gathering or have just not played for many years. This tutorial is fantastic and will get you into the game.
While I thought the tutorial was great, this is a game with a very steep learning curve and I can see that turning off some people. You can play games against the AI which is what I did for quite some time. I am not ashamed to admit that it took me a while to learn how to actually work my deck properly.
Speaking of decks, Magic: The Gathering Arena gives you a few decks at the start of the game and I am sure If you are a hardcore fan of the series you will get a kick out of this. All of the cards that you love are here and of course “collecting” them is how they are going to get you with microtransactions.
Now to be fair, I have played this for most of the last two weeks and I have not spent a penny on coins or gems. Yet I have been able to buy booster packs quite frequently just by playing the game. So, in that regard, I do feel that as a free to play game, Magic: The Gathering Arena is quite fair. For a free to play game it does have more game modes than you would think which is great.
On the flip side of this, I have no doubt in my mind that the best players will be willing to drop serious money on getting decks and booster packs. That is the way the real game works too though so again you cannot really complain about it. There is actually a way to bring a real-world deck into the game, but that is not something I did or looked into. However, I am sure this could be something that hardcore fans eat up.
What I think makes Magic: The Gathering Arena such a brilliant game is that there is always someone to play. This is a game many people get into in high school, but as they get older it gets harder and harder to find people to play with. With this version of Magic: The Gathering. You do not have to nag your wife to play with you or your brother. You always have people to play with who enjoy the game as much as you do.
If you are a fan of the real card game, you will already have this! If you are a lapsed fan, I really do think that Magic: The Gathering Arena is the perfect way to get back into it. For a free to play game I do feel that it is quite fair and I did have a fair bit of fun with it. It does take a while to get into, but when it gets you, Magic: The Gathering never let’s go.
