Monday, August 31, 2015

Magic 2014 - 6/20 hours

I made a big mistake when buying this game.  Because it was on sale, and because I'm the sort of person who gets irritated if I feel like I'm playing an incomplete game, I bought all the DLC in a bundle. I thought I was buying extra decks above and beyond those available in the base game, so as to have a broader MtG experience. It turns out that I bought some extra decks, but the bulk of my purchase went to unlocking decks and cards that I could well have unlocked on my own, just by playing the game.

It's not so much the waste of money that bothers me. If wasting money on Magic: The Gathering was any kind of deterrent to me, I'd have stopped playing years ago. No, what bugs me is the lost opportunity to pursue these rewards in-game. I like the sensation of advancement. I like the way video games give you the illusion of progression by doling out rewards in exchange for completing challenges. That clear connection between effort and achievement is all too rare in our modern, post-industrial economy.

So, you know, I'm peeved that I managed to deny myself the fun of unlocking new cards. Especially since I have a feeling that the deck manipulation I've done with those cards (basic stuff like trimming useless life-gain cards or adding extra lands to speed up a slow deck) may have given me the edge necessary to defeat some of the toughest CPU opponents.

It's not that big a deal, though. I'm really enjoying this solitaire version of Magic. I like the sheer mechanics of playing a hand and overcoming a challenge. I don't have the foggiest clue what the hell is going on in the campaign's plot, but so long as it's an excuse for gratuitous card duels, I'm finding that I don't really care.

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