Magic: The Gathering - Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 Review - Xbox 360

Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalker 2012 Review:

As a huge fan of the original Duels of the Planeswalkers that came out back in 2009, this sequel provides some much-needed changes and updates to the game. Although, I hope that title with “2012” in it doesn’t hint at yearly versions of this title. But with much improved deck management and the added Archenemy mode, Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalker 2012 nearly feels like a new title rather than an update, which is much appreciated.
 

I’d Tap That

For the uninitiated, Magic: The Gathering is a card game that represents spells that you’re casting against your foe or foes. You’re role-playing the part of a Planeswalker, a very powerful sorcerer in the realms of Magic who can cast a multitude of spells and duels constantly with other Planeswalkers. There’s an actual fiction woven into the fabric of the game, with character names like Garruk Wildspeaker and Nissa Revane, but you can push all that aside and simply boil down Magic down to its mechanics.

The game is powered by five different types of mana: red, white, black, green, and blue, with each represented by a different type of land that the power comes from: mountains, plains, swamps, forests, and islands, respectively. You play these land cards to begin building a mana pool, which is what you “tap” from to play other types of cards, s uch as creatures, enchantments, and so on. Your goal is to drive your opponent’s Life down from 20 to zero, thus winning the duel.

The Enemy of My Enemy Is… My Archenemy?

In the world of paper Magic: The Gathering, Archenemy is a popular mode pitting three players against one powerful opponent. Not only do they have more health, but they also wield a separate Schemes deck that can bring wild changes to the gameplay. You might find yourself in a good position, only to have one unfortunate scheme wipe you off of the battlefield.  In Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012, it works much the same way with you teaming up with two AI planeswalkers, or flesh and blood allies through online multiplayer.

You and your two cohorts will play your hands simultaneously, and as you can buff and enchant your friends, it makes for some very interesting gameplay. Archenemy is extremely fun to play, but sadly there’s no way for you to play the Archenemy itself in this mode, which is a real missed opportunity. Who wouldn’t want to see if they could take on three foes at once and win? Granted, the Schemes give you a slight advantage, but as you’ll see when you play through the Archenemy Campaign, working together will yield victory.

Swab The Decks

The biggest complaint about the original Duels of the Planeswalkers was the fact that you could not fully manage your decks. Yes, you could unlock new cards, but you didn’t have full control over your own deck management, something that the real-world of Magic is all about. Planning, testing, and constantly re-working your decks is the sign of a true Magic addict.

Duels 2012 does have a Deck Management system that allows you to add and subtract cards, and even to unlock full decks by purchasing “Deck Keys”. These can complete a deck, or unlock Foil Cards as well, to the tune of about one dollar per deck key. Of course, you can unlock those same cards through the Campaign, so really you’re just getting a jump on your deck if you purchase early.

Sadly, there’s no true deck customization, allowing you to mix a blue and black deck together on your own. Granted, Duels 2012 takes deck managing a few steps in the right direction, but this remains the one thing that Magic fans will complain about, and rightly so. It seems like there shouldn’t be any reason, once you have the mechanics and the AI down, that players couldn’t construct their own decks.

Booster pack microtransactions would be a welcome addition as well, as would the ability to port your decks and unlocks over from the original Duels, which many players coming to Duels 2012 will have probably already played.

Mana y Mana

With few changes, other than Archenemy (Two-Headed Giant returns, as does three and four player Free-For-All), added to the Multiplayer, the core changes of Duels 2012 come down to the new decks (ten new decks featuring new cards direct from the Magic 2012 set and Campaign and Archenemy unlocks) and the much-improved interface. Is it enough to lure old and new players alike? My current addiction to the game answers that with a resounding “yes.”

But that’s not to say that things are perfect. Besides the aforementioned deck management issues, the AI can also be baffling plenty of times. Many times you’ll be locked in a battle with your computer-controller opponent, facing death, and just when they can strike the deathblow… they don’t. Then on the next hand you come back and win. In fact, I’ve pulled off several mind-boggling victories when I should easily lost.

This is very frustrating because it teaches you bad habits that would translate poorly to actual tabletop gameplay. The game needs to feature expert-level AI opponents that offer as strong a game as real opponents, particularly because Jimbo415 may drop out in the middle of his match with you online, which can be just as annoying.

You’ll Just Plain(swalker) Want This

Despite the grousing, Magic: The Gathering – Duels of the Planeswalkers is extremely fun. Fans of Magic will easily take to the turn-based gameplay and probably start playing online immediately, while newcomers will appreciate the How To Play tutorials as well as the tips that can be turned off throughout each match).

The other bonus (or danger) with Duels 2012 is that I’ve had two people watch me play this that then wanted to get into the paper card game, so we started having real-life matches. Which then included trips to the store so they could start building their own decks. What can I say? It’s a gateway drug to Nerdtown. Awesome, fun, exciting Nerdtown.