They might work as a 'hook' product in big box stores that reminded people that the game exists and to go to local game stores for more. The question is would a big store make shelf space for this next to the UNO packs. The way these could fail big is if distributors ended up with a mountain of them and make allocations contingent on taking this garbage.
I like your analogy of "disturbing the echo system" with products like these. And I think it's easy for people who doesn't get the bigger picture, to think regular card stores won't be effected. It's as they say, ripples on the pond. Making a cheap but in the end worthless product will fill the market with draft chaff, and at the same time leaving good product on the shelves, because parents, relatives and kids on allowance, will most likely pick the cheaper alternative when faced with it, as they most likely don't expect a big company like WotC to knowingly print and sell shit in the quest to get all the money. I feel bad for kids getting these packs, in ten years as they look through their collection, and having a binder of commons and uncommons staring them in the face. At least I can look in my binders from 20 years ago and see some slight value. Not as much as it did cost to get it, but it's fair value after getting some entertainment out of it as well. Kids these days might as well use it as fire starting paper when they grow up, which is a shame to say. And what's also annoying is that decent product will be on the shelves, until the stores themselves have to open it up, drop the commons in a discount bin and try and sell off the more valuable cards. It shouldn't have to be that way, it is mistreating the original idea behind the cards, to have fun with, and it is mistreating the customers' hard earned money. And all in the name of WotC/Hasbro's corporate greed. At least there's the more standard product to be had, although it feels great in comparison to products like the Jumpstart set packs, Aftermath, etc. Compared to product in the past, the current era of Magic cards does not hold up well. Which is why WotC/Hasbro try their hardest to make players feel like the heavily price hiked Playboosters (compared to Booster Packs) are a great product. Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if WotC/Hasbro sacrifices some money on these clearly shit products, knowing they will fail, just so players will feel like whatever the current standard booster, is still a decent product. If it's heavy rain, you might even pay overprice for a half-broken umbrella, after all, the poor guy next to you won't even have that.
A product that's $2, contains 15ish common/uncommon cards with the chance at a rare, mythic or featured card is a good idea. That kind of product would sell like crazy for people who just want to gamble and open packs. That would be a great product if wotc made rare cards actually rare again. If that product is a value booster then great but if not then I'm not sure what they're thinking. If you're selling repacks, which everyone does then you get the point of potential value booster spot. You're charging a dollar to get someone to throw your trash out for you and the person buying gets to feed their gambling addiction.
All the cards cost almost the same to print, your choice, as a consumer, is to chose whatever you want to be manipulated by speculation or just proxy everything with a printer. I chose the later.
Starter decks, I get. You want to continue to bring new gamers into the magic community. But yeah, I just miss the days of overall 'Booster Boxes.' And, I'm sorry, but the card foiling during Urzas, Masques, Invasion, & Odyssey Block - some of the most beautiful cards Wizards ever produced. It's been downhill ever since Mirrodin Block and the redesign. At least in my humble opinion. I've been playing since 1993.
"Lets condense the amount of pack offerings to stop confusing customers" 6 months later: Let's add a new booster pack type!! Here I thought new management was going to be good for WOTC.
I agree and for those saying you don’t need value from packs , how do you think you help new players grow collections ? Buy packs with value , trade expensive stuff you don’t need for all the low value but high use stuff you do need. Value always matters for trades for casuals. Saying other wise is being really blind to the reality of how players grow their collections.
Not everything is about getting the value out of cards from boosters (example is your own cheap boosters). If those products can be used to play with (draft, pre-release bundles, starter decks, etc) then having a cheap entry point is a good thing for casuals (such as myself)
Exactly. Most people playing in store events and having access to c/u draft leftovers are NOT casual players. Casual players also may not even be aware of the existence of the aftermarket. And yes, definitely kids who still want to open a pack for the fun and excitement of it, but may not even recognize a valuable card or care about it. There's a whole world of TCG gaming that exists beyond LGS events/singles seller/"get your money's worth" radar.
@@bradcallahan3546 I am not sure why you think I am defending them, I don't even play MTG anymore. There is a thing called "wait and see" though, if they screwed up again then you can take your pitchforks
These packs are a step in the right direction because MTG is a children's card game and the game pieces should only have minimal value, the biggest problem with card games in the last 20 years is that people started confusing game pieces with real, grown up investments.
Agree with everything you said, except that it's a children's game. My group of 7 regulars are all at least 40 years or older, and I've never played with anyone under 15 years old.
"Speaking of stupid hobbies" (shows dogs under table)
Dogs: "What'd we do to deserve that?"
They might work as a 'hook' product in big box stores that reminded people that the game exists and to go to local game stores for more. The question is would a big store make shelf space for this next to the UNO packs.
The way these could fail big is if distributors ended up with a mountain of them and make allocations contingent on taking this garbage.
I like your analogy of "disturbing the echo system" with products like these. And I think it's easy for people who doesn't get the bigger picture, to think regular card stores won't be effected. It's as they say, ripples on the pond. Making a cheap but in the end worthless product will fill the market with draft chaff, and at the same time leaving good product on the shelves, because parents, relatives and kids on allowance, will most likely pick the cheaper alternative when faced with it, as they most likely don't expect a big company like WotC to knowingly print and sell shit in the quest to get all the money.
I feel bad for kids getting these packs, in ten years as they look through their collection, and having a binder of commons and uncommons staring them in the face. At least I can look in my binders from 20 years ago and see some slight value. Not as much as it did cost to get it, but it's fair value after getting some entertainment out of it as well. Kids these days might as well use it as fire starting paper when they grow up, which is a shame to say.
And what's also annoying is that decent product will be on the shelves, until the stores themselves have to open it up, drop the commons in a discount bin and try and sell off the more valuable cards. It shouldn't have to be that way, it is mistreating the original idea behind the cards, to have fun with, and it is mistreating the customers' hard earned money. And all in the name of WotC/Hasbro's corporate greed.
At least there's the more standard product to be had, although it feels great in comparison to products like the Jumpstart set packs, Aftermath, etc. Compared to product in the past, the current era of Magic cards does not hold up well. Which is why WotC/Hasbro try their hardest to make players feel like the heavily price hiked Playboosters (compared to Booster Packs) are a great product. Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if WotC/Hasbro sacrifices some money on these clearly shit products, knowing they will fail, just so players will feel like whatever the current standard booster, is still a decent product.
If it's heavy rain, you might even pay overprice for a half-broken umbrella, after all, the poor guy next to you won't even have that.
A product that's $2, contains 15ish common/uncommon cards with the chance at a rare, mythic or featured card is a good idea. That kind of product would sell like crazy for people who just want to gamble and open packs. That would be a great product if wotc made rare cards actually rare again. If that product is a value booster then great but if not then I'm not sure what they're thinking.
If you're selling repacks, which everyone does then you get the point of potential value booster spot. You're charging a dollar to get someone to throw your trash out for you and the person buying gets to feed their gambling addiction.
All the cards cost almost the same to print, your choice, as a consumer, is to chose whatever you want to be manipulated by speculation or just proxy everything with a printer. I chose the later.
I collect rocks too! I need to fire up my tumbler.
Starter decks, I get. You want to continue to bring new gamers into the magic community. But yeah, I just miss the days of overall 'Booster Boxes.' And, I'm sorry, but the card foiling during Urzas, Masques, Invasion, & Odyssey Block - some of the most beautiful cards Wizards ever produced. It's been downhill ever since Mirrodin Block and the redesign. At least in my humble opinion. I've been playing since 1993.
Odyssey, Judgment, Torment... We are missing for you so much.
The dogs caught a stray lol
"Lets condense the amount of pack offerings to stop confusing customers" 6 months later: Let's add a new booster pack type!!
Here I thought new management was going to be good for WOTC.
Value Boosters are designed to grab the people unfamiliar with the product.
It’s probably going to be sold at dollar tree exclusively
I agree and for those saying you don’t need value from packs , how do you think you help new players grow collections ? Buy packs with value , trade expensive stuff you don’t need for all the low value but high use stuff you do need. Value always matters for trades for casuals. Saying other wise is being really blind to the reality of how players grow their collections.
I actually love this new set ima get 2 boxes for sure
They just got rid of a SKU just to make way for this.... LOL?
Not everything is about getting the value out of cards from boosters (example is your own cheap boosters). If those products can be used to play with (draft, pre-release bundles, starter decks, etc) then having a cheap entry point is a good thing for casuals (such as myself)
Exactly. Most people playing in store events and having access to c/u draft leftovers are NOT casual players. Casual players also may not even be aware of the existence of the aftermarket. And yes, definitely kids who still want to open a pack for the fun and excitement of it, but may not even recognize a valuable card or care about it.
There's a whole world of TCG gaming that exists beyond LGS events/singles seller/"get your money's worth" radar.
Imagine defending WOTC
@@bradcallahan3546 I am not sure why you think I am defending them, I don't even play MTG anymore. There is a thing called "wait and see" though, if they screwed up again then you can take your pitchforks
Are you a causal player or do you not play magic anymore?
@@barrel_rider8391 I am a casual player and I don't play MTG regularly
first!
These packs are a step in the right direction because MTG is a children's card game and the game pieces should only have minimal value, the biggest problem with card games in the last 20 years is that people started confusing game pieces with real, grown up investments.
Agree with everything you said, except that it's a children's game. My group of 7 regulars are all at least 40 years or older, and I've never played with anyone under 15 years old.