World of Warcraft Trading Card Game Comes to an End

[Steven Bogos]

World of Warcraft Trading Card Game Comes to an End

Set 21, Timewalkers: Reign of Fire will be the final expansion pack for the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game.

The World of Warcraft trading card game was first unleashed on the gaming masses back in 2006, as a fiendish way for Blizzard to get its grips into its subscribers in the time they spent AFK. But it now looks like the end of the road for physical trading cards, with Blizzard announcing that Set 21, Timewalkers: Reign of Fire will be the final expansion pack for the game, marking the end of the TCG's seven-year run.

"We are grateful for being able to collaborate with the artists and everyone else who helped make this game a reality all these years. We're also thankful for all the players and retailers who've participated in the community globally. You made ripping open booster packs, discovering the wonders they held, and then building decks and taking them into battle a truly awesome experience."

As an epic send-off to the TCG, Timewalkers: Reign of Fire will contain every single loot card in the TCG's history. This is a unique opportunity for hardcore WoW fans to get their hands on some of the rarest WoW items of all time, including the mythical Spectral Tiger mount.

Other than that, a short F.A.Q on Blizzard's official World of Warcraft website reveals that players will still be able to redeem any loot cards they haven't yet redeemed, and while Blizzard will no longer be hosting any official tournaments, fans are free to continue to host their own.

This seems like a direct result of Hearthstone, Blizzard's own free-to-play MMOTCG announced a while ago. Obviously, they don't want to cannibalize their own product, though it is a bit sad to see the physical version sacrificed in favor of the digital version. Trading card games, for me, are something that just have to be physical. How about you guys?

Source: Battle.net [http://us.battle.net/wow/en/blog/10734217/World_of_Warcraft_Trading_Card_Game_-8_23_2013]

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[MCerberus]

The card game is dead!
Long live the card game!

 

[TheEvilCheese]

Incredibly tempting to order a case or so of these and see if I can't get lucky and possibly get a good loot card or two to sell on Ebay for fun and profit, mostly profit. Of course I could also end up getting bugger all and end up with a stack of cards I'll never use.

The value of old rare loot cards will plummet with this set. Everyone who's held onto a spectral tiger until now should be kicking themselves.

As said, the original WoW TCG is a better game than hearthstone (maybe I just think that because I'm a big fan of MTG). But I can kinda understand the new model. It's going to make so much money it's not even funny.

 

[rembrandtqeinstein]

Digital cards are infinitely better than physical cards

1. shuffling
2. deckbuilding
3. collection management
4. you can duplicate any game mechanic from the physical world in the digital world, but you can't duplicate many digital effects in the physical world

 

[Charli]

Yep this is because everyone in the Hearthstone beta is declaring it the best thing since a squeezable bottle... They probably were seeing the responses before pulling the plug because let's face it the majority of people playing at physical tournaments are either playing magic, yugioh, or a few other games.

Now excuse me while I stash this fel drake loot card until the demand reaches fever pitch. Cha ching.

Also Hearthstone will be expanded on, I don't think people declaring that it's not as deep as the physical copy of itself seem to realize that over 20 additional sets have gone by and that it's safer to start out simple again before you start fucking up the rules to tournament and professional levels of crazy pants.

Remember how yugioh started out? CHESS was more deep than it. Now the game is utterly bananas.

 

[Quazimofo]

Yep this is because everyone in the Hearthstone beta is declaring it the best thing since a squeezable bottle... They probably were seeing the responses before pulling the plug because let's face it the majority of people playing at physical tournaments are either playing magic, yugioh, or a few other games.

Now excuse me while I stash this fel drake loot card until the demand reaches fever pitch. Cha ching.

Also Hearthstone will be expanded on, I don't think people declaring that it's not as deep as the physical copy of itself seem to realize that over 20 additional sets have gone by and that it's safer to start out simple again before you start fucking up the rules to tournament and professional levels of crazy pants.

Remember how yugioh started out? CHESS was more deep than it. Now the game is utterly bananas.

While financially it makes sense, and they are doing the smart thing and making the game deeper over time rather than try to re-create what is there, it is still a shame to see a solid and fun game die. I've not played it myself, as I wasn't even aware of its existence until I was a regular at a hobby shop wargaming, but I could see based on my observations of the card players the depth and entertainment the game provided.

I guess I'm a purist. I feel like playing card games, or most games really, in person simply cannot be matched by any online program, no matter how robust. I certainly hope this is an isolated incident and other CCGs maintain their hard-copy presence. I'd hate to see this become a trend and lose all the card games to online.

 

[PH3NOmenon]

Every single loot card? Every single loot card? Every single loot card?

Didn't stuff like the spectral tiger go for a couple of hundred bucks? Are people raging over this? At what rarity are they including them?

This would basically be like MtG reprinting original alpha cards, sort of. There'd be a massive outcry about that.

 

[Aris Khandr]

Digital cards are infinitely better than physical cards

1. shuffling
2. deckbuilding
3. collection management
4. you can duplicate any game mechanic from the physical world in the digital world, but you can't duplicate many digital effects in the physical world

I'm inclined to agree. I suck at shuffling. It just isn't a skill I ever picked up. If I try, my cards mostly end up all over the floor. Or bent all to hell. Generally a pain. Not that I'm playing any CCGs anymore. I get the Magic release on steam each year, but that's the extent of it. I like the idea of having more card games online, though. I generally like the idea of having everything online.

 

[Baldr]

Every single loot card? Every single loot card? Every single loot card?

Didn't stuff like the spectral tiger go for a couple of hundred bucks? Are people raging over this? At what rarity are they including them?

This would basically be like MtG reprinting original alpha cards, sort of. There'd be a massive outcry about that.

At it's height of popularity the Spectral Tiger was fetching close to $1000, then dropped to around $300, then rose again to $400 as in Mist of Pandaria, you were allowed to summon one for yourself and sell the other.

I have a collection of of over 800 wow cards of various generations and all the Raid Decks, there are some faults in the game. But I'm looking forward to Hearthstone. I'm having a great time in the Beta.
http://www.twitch.tv/thebaldr/b/450357235

 

[roguewriter]

Only disappointment here is that I'll miss the Art Books they've published collecting the best art from all the various decks. Picked up the first two coffee table volumes and they are *incredible* to flip through. Such amazing art went into the card game.

 

[funksobeefy]

I always try to play TCGs on computers, but they always lack something. Something about holding hte cards and talking to your opponent face to face and visting the the local gaming house.

So sad to see physical version die to a digital game

 

[Starik20X6]

We sell the WOWTCG where I work, and I don't know if it's just me, but it feels like we can go months between selling a single booster pack...

 

[ArdoNorrin]

I mentioned this in the story comments, but the big reason for this is that Blizzard and Cryptozoic are now competing head-to-head with Hearthstone and HEX: Shards of Fate. It doesn't make sense for them to continue the joint venture when both are making products that compete against it for the same audience.

At Gen Con last week, it was not unusual to see more people standing in line for the 32-seat HEX LAN league than playing WoW TCG, while at its height, WoWTCG was generally the 3rd-most played TCG in the TCG room. Upper Deck's scandalous mishandling of the game (manipulating the singles market) hurt the game considerably, causing the devs to strike out on their own, with Blizzard's blessing, to save the game. From talking to people who played, it sounds like UDE killed a lot of the player trust in the game, regardless of the publisher.

Having watched some of the Hearthstone beta, and having played the pre-Alpha HEX build at Gen Con, I think that this is really the last obstacle before we get 2 excellent online TCGs (I couldn't imagine the passive-aggressive marketing if they were both still trying to make the WoWTCG work). Personally, I think HEX has a lot more going for it as a game from the TCG aspect than Hearthstone -- although Hearthstone is more polished at this point and will get a nice boost from the Blizzard name.

 

[tautologico]

I just don't understand it.

I have played both the WoW TCG and the beta of Hearthstone

And the WoW TCG is in deeper, more balanced and simply better designed in every way.

I cannot fathom why they didn't just make an online version of the game they already had.

And I don't say this as a fanboy or anything like that, I've only played either a bit, but it still baffles me why they would bother creating an all new game when they have a great one already that has had years and years to be expanded and balanced.

Cryptozoic (the people that did the WoW TCG) is creating a new digital MMOTCG called HEX that is a deeper TCG like WoWTCG. Actually HEX is a lot like Magic with a bunch of "digital" mechanics on top (mechanics that would be hard to get working on a physical card game). Cryptozoic ran a very successful kickstarter for HEX and is gearing up for a beta soon. So if you want the deeper TCG there will be one from the same people who did the WoW TCG.

Blizzard made Hearthstone that's their own game, and Cryptozoic probably realised it would be better to have a game based on their own IP. Also, WoWTCG has been in decline for some time now, so they probably decided not to go on with it.

 

[AdmiralCheez]

I can't seem to get into digital trading card games. For me, actually holding the card is much better than looking at a picture of a card. It just doesn't have the same feel to it.

 

[Aeshi]

Wait, people actually PLAYED that?!

I thought people just bought the cards for the chance to get one of the ones you could use in WoW itself.

 

[JSoup]

I imagine this is going to drive up the price of already expensive loot cards even more. Aside from that, I'm rather sad to see it go. I've always been more of a collector than a player and I absolutely love what the TCG art team has been able to produce.