It has been numerous years since some of the biggest changes hit Magic: The Gathering, and since then, the card game has exploded in popularity and complexity. New card types, formats, products, and so much more have been introduced to Magic, giving players all sorts of new ways to experience the game.
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Many things in Magic will feel familiar; there are still artifacts, enchantments, and creatures. You still tap mana to cast your spells and activate abilities. And Planeswalkers still keep messing things up for the rest of the people in Magic. If you had taken a multi-decade hiatus from the game, these are some of the biggest changes to the game over the years.
10 Leaving Dominaria
Academy at Tolaria West by James Paick2003 marked the first time Magic: the Gathering truly left Dominaria for other planes. There have been ventures to other worlds before, but with the release of Mirrodin came a huge departure in how Magic approaches not only set design but storytelling in the game.
The plot of Magic was restricted to just three sets before changing planes, characters, and plots. It wasn't until Battle for Zendikar that a single unified storyline occurred over multiple blocks again.
9 New Rarity Types
Introduced in 2008, mythic rare cards represent a higher power card, one that went outside the power range of a regular rare card. Mythic rares have become a staple in Magic: the Gathering and are often the chase cards in a set.
Mythic cards weren’t the first to change the rarity system. Back in 2006, during the Time Spiral block, players could find the purple-colored timeshifted cards. Now between borderless cards, alternate art cards, new types of foiling, and more, there are tons of new and rarer cards to collect.
8 So Much Product
There have been plenty of discussions about the number of products released lately. No matter how you feel about the release schedule, there is no doubt that a lot more Magic products are being released compared to the previous era.
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Before, players would have access to the main set release, a few bundles, and themed precon decks. Occasionally there would be extra products, but they were few and far between. Now there are tons of extra products: Commander precons and sets, Jumpstart packs, Secret Lairs, collector boosters, draft packs, and more.
7 EDH Becomes Commander, Takes Over The Game
EDH was originally a fan-made format from around 1996. It didn’t become a true Magic format until 2011, when it was officially recognized. Since Wizards of the Coast started making Commander products, it has quickly taken over as one of the most popular ways to play Magic.
Commander allows players to experiment with cards in ways they normally wouldn't in other formats and has developed a massive following among players as a result.
6 Secret Lair Crossovers
Perhaps one of the more surprising changes to Magic is the attitude toward crossovers with other games and media entities. Since they were introduced, Magic has created cards for tv shows like The Walking Dead, games with Fortnite and Warhammer 40k, and has even devoted an entire set to Dungeons & Dragons.
Magic isn’t done there either, more Secret Lairs are regularly released, and another major set planned around Lord of the Rings is coming in 2023.
5 Play Magic Anywhere Digitally
Magic: the Gathering Online was released in 2002 and was revolutionary for Magic fans. There had been other attempts at Magic digital games, but they didn’t quite capture the same feeling. Then came Magic Online; suddenly you could play Magic against other players around the world.
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Since then, Magic: the Gathering Arena has been released both on PC and mobile devices, allowing you to play Magic anywhere you want from your phone. There are other games, too, including Magic Spellslingers and Magic: Puzzle Quest; there are plenty of ways to take Magic with you.
4 Influencers Take The Public Eye
There have always been big names in Magic. From the classic days of Jon Finkel and Luis Scott-Vargas, there have always been big names in the gaming scene. With the spread of social media and as Magic: the Gathering has grown, more names have begun to pop up among players.
Now with more players moving to make content based around deck creation, tournaments, casual gaming, and even channels about the lore surrounding the game, there’s much more for players to discover.
3 Planeswalkers Lose Power To Become Cards
Throughout many cataclysmic events in Dominaria’s history, time itself had been almost irreversibly damaged. During the events of the Time Spiral block, several planeswalkers sacrificed themselves to repair time rifts that spread across Dominaria and the multiverse at the expense of permanently powering down planeswalkers across the multiverse.
In doing so, it opened design teams to create planeswalkers cards in Magic for players to build decks with.
2 Embracing Diversity
As more players picked up the card game and started playing with their friends, players wanted to see more of themselves in the cards. Bringing in characters that players could identify with, cards that players could point to and say, "Hey, that character is just like me!" helps all players connect deeper with the game they enjoy.
Just like in real life, there is so much depth and complexity with the players that not including them in Magic would be to the detriment of the game.
1 Tons Of New Formats
The way Magic approaches the game is very different than when it began. Now there are multiple formats, each one filling different roles in Magic. There are even digital-only formats with unique rules and balance changes to cards.
Before this change to the modern formats we know, there was plenty of experimenting with how to create ways for players to play their best cards against opponents who had been playing since the origin of the game.
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