{"id":12159,"date":"2012-07-11T12:44:04","date_gmt":"2012-07-11T17:44:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/techcitement.com\/?p=12159"},"modified":"2013-02-07T14:12:13","modified_gmt":"2013-02-07T20:12:13","slug":"review-step-in-the-left-direction-with-magic-the-gathering-duels-of-the-planeswalkers-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/techcitement.com\/entertainment\/review-step-in-the-left-direction-with-magic-the-gathering-duels-of-the-planeswalkers-2013\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Step In The Left Direction With Magic: The Gathering \u2013 Duels of the Planeswalkers 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"
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For those of you who don\u2019t know why the Magic: The Gathering<\/em> is interesting: these\u00a0motherf*&!ers plane shift between exotic alternate realities whilst summoning beings of incomprehensible power to battle against one another\u00a0or creatures capable of devouring entire dimensions, all elegantly expressed through the joy of a children\u2019s card game<\/a>. Awesome, right? It is.<\/p>\n I played the hell out of Magic 2012<\/em>. I loved my old Blue\/Green deck, but I craved more. I needed something new. Something shiny.<\/p>\n Release of Magic 2013<\/em>\u00a0on consoles, PC, and iPad brings a major aesthetic overhaul, tempting new players with an even more accessible approach. The single player<\/a>\u00a0offers three returning gameplay modes and one addition: Campaign, Revenge, Challenge, and the newcomer Planechase. Campaign and Revenge feature six different\u00a0universes\u00a0(zones) in which players maul robot wizards<\/a>. Yes, that’s right, robot wizards. Campaign welcomes the addition of the Encounters, where players must overcome a synergistic pattern. For example, the AI throws down a card that wins the game if it collects 100 tokens, cards that generate tokens, and one wall per turn. Attack economy becomes ever present as the AI wins in so many turns if you can\u2019t get past the blockers. This new mini-mode can be fun, but it feels tedious at times; much like fighting a hydra with a guillotine machine<\/a>. Revenge is a more difficult extension of Campaign: same realms, same game, and new (i.e. tougher) beings to slaughter. The challenges, a puzzle mode where players have one turn to solve the puzzle and kill their opponent, have gotten more difficult since Magic 2012<\/em>, truly teaching card synergy via negative reinforcement. Finally, Planechase is a free-for-all with a D6 thrown<\/a>\u00a0into the mix. More on that later.<\/p>\n The pre-fight deck selection screen is overlaid against far-off realms, far more visually\u00a0striking than its predecessor’s. Locations are randomized in custom\/online games and the images pair with the opponent\u2019s zone in single player. While these renderings are not of AAA\u00a0quality, the player\u00a0selects<\/em>\u00a0this world. They\u00a0travel<\/em>\u00a0there. It subtly imbues Magic 2013<\/em>\u2019s simplistic storyline with a legendary quality. Now, instead of just clicking on the next opponent in the new plane, a real sense of accomplishment is gained from completing these zones and moving onwards to (more) victory. I suddenly give a damn again about practicing basic arithmetic\u00a0as a wizard.<\/p>\n