Magic: The Gathering is changing how it sells cards to players. Random packs known as Draft Boosters and Set Boosters are going away, and will be replaced by a new product called Play Boosters. It’s a subtle change, Wizards indicated in a private press briefing, but it hopes that the new offering can successfully combine the best parts of both products and reduces the burden of carrying multiple SKUs on local game stores. The change, which will likely include a price hike, begins with the set Murders at Karlov Manor.
Up until a few years ago, of course, Magic only ever had one kind of booster pack. As the brand has expanded its offering in the last five years or so, other kinds of packs have come to market — including Jumpstart and Collector packs. Draft Boosters remained most like the original booster packs, and were most commonly used for pick-up games where cards are chosen on the fly — i.e. “drafted” like players on a sports team — in order to create unique decks to play on the spot. Set Boosters, on the other hand, were geared more toward collectors and fans of other gameplay formats.
Image: Wizards of the Coast
A blog post, released Monday and written by head designer Mark Rosewater, details the various problems and issues that the new Play Boosters are intended to solve. It also includes a detailed breakdown of the odds of receiving certain cards in a pack — and information on pricing.
Will these packs cost more? Probably, Rosewater said.
“Play Boosters match the cost of a Set Booster, not a Draft Booster,” Rosewater said in the blog post, “which will result in Limited environments going up in cost slightly. However, the expected value of the booster went up as well because there are opportunities to pull additional rares and mythic rares. So yes, you will be paying slightly more, but you’ll likely be getting more value out of the boosters. Your rare/mythic rare card ratio per dollar spent will be staying the same.”
Magic: The Gathering’s Murders at Karlov Manor set does not currently have a release date, but is expected in early 2024.
