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| In my ever present lack of mind, I managed to screenshot almost everything except the title screen. Triple points? (Teehee) |
Do you like Magic The Gathering, find shuffling tedious, or simply need something "new" *cough* to try out and do? If you said yes to any of these things, then you might find some enjoyment in Magic The Gathering: Duels Of The Planeswalkers 2013.
Those of you with significant mental acuity are likely already or about to ask: "2013? But isn't it almost 2015?". In which case you would be correct, I am perhaps somewhat late to the discussion in terms of this game. Although, that could be said for most games I've discussed considering this blog did only start in June. (Half a year now, goodness how the time flies.)
In any case, my good friend Richard decided to grace me with a copy of this game so that I could play it with him from the other side of the world while he waits to become a part of Her Royal Majesty's Navy in UK. (At least, I hope that's how you refer to it. I'm going to defer to ignorance if I'm wrong.)
In any case, lets talk about the game. MTG: DOTP 2013 (Longest acronym of my life...) is the computerized version of the massively popular trading card game Magic The Gathering which you are guaranteed to have heard of if you know anyone that is just a little bit nerdier than average. DOTP is the 3rd of three such computerized version of the game, focusing on people who prefer to have computers do all the shuffleing/counting/mathing done for them, as well on those who would like to play Magic with distant friends or from the convenience of their homes. It's also pretty good for playing against the AI if you have no internet. (Though that could easily get old quickly.)
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| The flashy, card based menu makes no allusion to this game being anything more than you expect. But then, it does what it does pretty well. |
DOTP is, for all intents and purposes, Magic The Gathering for computers and consoles. It is admittedly a hard thing to sell if you have little knowledge of the actual card game, though some reviewers have pointed out that, apart from having an experienced Magic player teach you, this is about one of the best ways you could learn to play. DOTP's AI can hold it's own, the tutorials are well explained and the Campaign does a great job of introducing you to new ideas, decks and tactics in a fun and only occasionally frustrating way.
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| Some basic statistics about your game habits or records, as well as a plain viewing of my childhood nickname. |
Perhaps the only original part of DOTP is what is called the "Planechase" mode, in which a normal game of Magic is played between up to 4 opponents, but with an added random element of a deck of Planes with their own effects and a die which allows the players to enjoy the benefits of the plane or cause it to change, often resulting in a frantic and different experience to the usual duels. I will point out again that this lack of originality is not a bad thing. Like Call Of Duty and Assassins Creed, things are made the same, because people enjoy it. Had this game been anything more or less than what it is, it would have been grossly criticized for having utterly dropped the ball and trying to be something it's not.
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| A rudimentary "deck builder" lets you change out a selection of cards from pre-defined decks and choices. It's fairly restricted compared to the real cards game, but it' is functional and approachable. |
That said, DOTP does what it does well, has leaderboards and online play, achievements, a fair length set of campaigns and challenges and a deck builder. More or less everything you could expect or want from it. Everything works very well give or take one or two interface issues, and the gameplay is solid, unabashed Magic. For anything more than that, you're going to have to step away from the computer and find your local hobby store that stocks Magic The Gathering cards and knows where it's players congregates. Is it worth your time? Yes. Despite it's occasional limitations, DOTP is definitely fun and enjoyable computerised version of Magic, and certainly worth a couple bucks considering the many hours you can sink into the game. (If Steam happens to put it on sale this Christmas, do yourself a favor and buy a couple copies for yourself and your friends. Head to head matches are always a giggle.)
In any case, that's all I can say on the game. Feel free to peruse the rest of the screenshots below as they tell their own story. Otherwise, if you think this game is good, or completely disagree and think I'm weird for playing a tabletop game on a computer, do be sure to let me know down in the comments below, or via Facebook/Twitter. We here at TCSA love to hear your feedback. And of course, if you enjoy finding out about awesome stuff on the web and world then do please be sure to like the Official TCSA Facebook page and/or follow us on Twitter using the associated buttons on the bar to the left to get all the latest posts as they're published. Also, do be sure to share posts you enjoyed with your friends as it helps us out a great deal. Regardless of what you do, I thank you for having taken the time to read this post; hope that you have/had an absolutely FANTASTIC day, and I will speak again soon.
Happy gaming my friends.
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| My friend and I having a "two-headed giant" match versus the AI. While not an easy match, there are some fantastic cards that can completely turn the tide when used correctly as we soon found out. |
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| The interface for starting new games is fairly simple and easy to figure out. No complaints here. |
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| I think I speak for everyone that's played DOTP when I say: "F*** this encounter." |
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| Came for the game, stayed because of the pretty pictures and the game. DOTP does a good job of showing off it's fantastic illustrations, very few of which were actually made for the game itself. |
