One of the best things about Magic: The Gathering is the vast number of different ways to play the game. If you’re a competitive player, there’s a wide array of formats to choose from, and the depth of Commander is great for four-player MTG. While this creates plenty of opportunities to play, it also comes with some logistical hassle.
To combat this, some MTG players have recently asked MTG’s Head Designer if a single-player MTG product is theoretically possible. From the sound of things, such a product could potentially become reality, provided enough MTG players want it. Now, MTG players seem willing to make this hypothetical future a reality, sharing their support on social media.
Playing With Yourself
“Groovyengineerphantom: Has WOTC ever considered making a Magic product meant to be played as singleplayer? Similar to the Turtle Team-Up without the co-op part.
Via: Blogatog
Mark Rosewater: We’ve talked about it. Who all would enjoy that?”
While it might seem silly at first glance, MTG players quickly rallied behind the idea of a single-player MTG experience. Noting the lack of “bossfights that utilize the cardboard medium in creative ways,” there’s definitely room for innovation. Some MTG players even felt this development was inevitable, as the board game industry has been on this trend for a while.
Given these responses and the general positive tone across Reddit and Blogatog, it seems players know what they want. As others pointed out, however, MTG already has single-player products. Way back in 2013, Wizards released a trio of Challenge Decks alongside the Theros set, which offered a unique PvE experience.
While each of the three decks had slightly different mechanics, they all effectively played themselves, casting whatever spells they drew. This provided the experience that MTG players are asking for now, and it’s remembered rather fondly, too. In theory, this could mean these past decks are a compelling template for future success; however, Wizards has already innovated.
This year, Wizards of the Coast actually released a new PvE experience in the TMNT Turtle Team-Up box. Like the past Challenge Decks, this new variant pits four players against one automated deck. Social media reactions to this product were positive, too, so it’s good news we’re getting a Hobbit-themed reprint in 2027.
Between Turtle Team-Up and the Battle of the Five Armies Co-Op Kit, Wizards is clearly keen to innovate in this design space. Technically, nothing should stop you from playing these products solo by controlling all the players yourself. While this can technically work in a pinch, it’s clearly not the intended design experience.
A Fun Flawed Idea
Unfortunately for fans of single-player content, these products make purely solo experiences feel unlikely. At best, given how popular multiplayer and Commander are, we might get a new co-op kit with a single-player variant. Considering this is kind of what we’re getting already, I wouldn’t expect a sudden pivot, even if players could be interested.
Beyond the demand for PvE content already technically being sated, the problem of solo play has largely been fixed too. As long as you don’t mind playing digitally, MTG Arena lets you play anywhere, anytime. This, however, doesn’t mean that there’s not room for improvement, and Arena could host a lot of it.
In an ideal world, each Magic Multiverse set would come accompanied by a dedicated campaign on MTG Arena. This could either tell the set’s story through a string of matches against AI opponents with dialogue, or be a giant boss battle. For a capstone set like Reality Fracture, the latter could be a real treat, but that ideal is hardly reality.
Sadly, as the recent sunsetting of Alchemy somewhat proves, there are only so many development resources to go around. Right now, these resources seem devoted to bridging four-player multiplayer to the platform and keeping up with the release calendar. Adding a trio of campaigns, with unique cards, dialogue, and animations on top of this, could easily be too much.
A DIY Format?
Even if Wizards had enough resources to allocate to a digital or paper experience, we’re still a long way off. Given that Wizards works three to four years in advance for sets nowadays, new product devised today won’t launch until 2030. As such, I can’t recommend holding your breath, but it is exciting to think about what the future may hold.
In the meantime, it’s not impossible to make a dedicated PvE experience yourself with enough brewing. Creating a stronger deck to be automatically played and another to fight against it; ideally, you can be your own best enemy. Who knows, maybe this could even create a new PvE format, with players sharing their powerful brews online as a challenge to beat.
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