Welcome once again to a review of a trading card franchise that requires some inside knowledge, as jargon will get tossed about. For those unfamiliar with the mother of all card games that is Magic: The Gathering, explanations will be attempted, but be warned it may contain terms that seem strange.

Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 (DOTP) is the basic card game from the Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) franchise. Rolled up in a game set in 3 difficulties, complete with shards of backstory and a simple campaign, the goal to victory is fairly easy: In a regular match, each player starts with 7 cards and 20 health points that must be reduced to nil through a means of casting magical spells; cards in this case. To do so, players can put down 1 land a turn to generate resources for casting; including artifacts, powerful creatures and a whole barrage of effects. One main aspect to do damage is by having your creatures attack in combat; as each have their own power, toughness and abilities. Other than that, combinations of the proper cards are vital to gain the upper hand on the field as much as possible.

NoobFeed News - Magic The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012
This is what playing Magic is all aboot, kids.

Now that the basics are known, let’s dive into the actual DOTP game. For starters, a simple yet elegant presentation works best in favor of the game and the secondary effects are just subtle enough to add a touch, without being a nuisance. In addition, players can zoom in and get additional info on cards and their abilities, which fit newcomers and non-updated players alike, but also caters to specifics when it comes to some cards. However, navigation throughout the game and its menus is not as sleek as its general perception. Only through a cycle system can players manage their dealings in DOTP, which leads to silly roundabout frustrations.

The core mechanic, on the other hand, is as solid as ever. If you want the review in one sentence, it would be: “This is Magic.” It’s the card game as purely put as it can in a digital environment. With a bar that differentiates the different phases and a clock that can be stopped, players can cast at will. The board has a good overview and most aspects are clear and intuitive to gameplay. Simply pick a card and play it, then wait for a prompt if applicable. If anything, this is already the decisive factor on whether to get this game or not. It’s the same experience, but digitally, so there’s not much of an adaptation to be done.

NoobFeed News - Magic The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012
Yes, I only takes shots of games I win, but at least this was a close call.

But DOTP does take several liberties that can be sizable issues. The biggest miss is the fact that the game tries to concentrate on themes, rather than deck building. In the original, customization of a deck with each individual card is one of the key factors of its appeal. This game however denies the gross majority of that and only offers a sideboard from a set of cards to be added. And as not even lands can be switched out, the custom option is very minimal. This limits the grand tactical charade of Magic a lot, as the uniform experience can tell players what they can expect from a theme deck. It’s fine for beginners or even intermediate players, but the diehard purists that populate this franchise will be disappointed.

Secondly, DOTP doesn’t allow players to tap their own lands for mana; which is the resource needed for spells. Certainly in decks that have more than one color of cards, this can sometimes be a game killer, when the AI taps the wrong source. As every minor step and calculation counts in this game, this is one of the cornerstones of its foundation that gets taken away.

SPOILER: These videos contain solutions from some of the game's challenge puzzles.

A last inconvenience is that even with all the separate timing available, some more delicate responses fail to hit home at critical points. This might just be to an alteration of rulings in general, but for instance returning a creature to its owner’s hand after it declared attack will still get its damage assigned. As damage assignment is only created after the block phase, it seems strange that this can happen. This also requires some actions to be done prematurely, leaving vulnerable spots in a tactical play. And it doesn’t help either that some cards are gltiched, such as effects that trigger when they shouldn’t.

Luckily, most of this will wither away at the ingenious design that has not only created Magic: The Gathering’s success, but that of every other card game in its wake. After a sizable campaign, players can still enjoy playing custom games or take their skills online, where the real magic happens. Now, latency issues and more slight glitches can dampen the fun a little when it comes to finesse, but otherwise the human experience is the bee’s knees in this game. Choosing from a variety of special multiplayer matches, players can either take on others or have AI’s guide their conquest. It isn’t the strongest of computer generated intelligences out there, but with such a detailed gameplay mechanic, it’s hard to imagine doing this flawlessly, without hurting a difficulty curve.

SPOILER: These videos contain solutions from some of the game's challenge puzzles.

In all, Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 is exactly what players can expect from it. It’s the basic and glorious Magic experience in its purest form, but altered to a uniform state. And while this universal appeal will down-tune some of the finer aspects that fans crave, it’s still worthy of purchase, especially at its low pricing. Even with several flaws, there’s always fun to be had when one can show their supremacy over their peers and this game still allows for this to happen. So, whether it is to wet your beak in a new game or further your interests in it, the 2012 edition is still a decent option.

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Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed. (@Daavpuke)

Magic: The Gathering - Duels of The Planeswalkers 2012

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Magic: The Gathering - Duels of The Planeswalkers 2012