Magic: The Gathering is adding God Packs to its booster packs and removing foil commons and uncommons from them. The changes start with Nauctis: The Sunken Realm next year, and they are already drawing heat from players who worry the game is headed down the same road as the Pokémon TCG.
Comms director Blake Rasmussen announced the overhaul in a blog post today. The biggest move is the God Pack, a single pack where every card inside is rare or better. One in every 1,000 booster packs and one in every 300 collector boosters will be a God Pack.
What A God Pack Actually Is
A God Pack is a pack where every card is rare or better. The Pokémon TCG introduced them in 2019, and they have become a rare find that drives serious attention online. People post about them on social media, and the Pokémon boom among collectors and influencers has pushed the conversation further.
The Pokémon TCG’s version of the God Pack has turned the game into a financial mess that prices out and pushes out literal children. Magic is now back on this train.
Why The Changes Feel Uncomfortable
The Pokémon TCG’s current state is the context here. Magic is already easy to play, with packs available at normal prices without lotteries or soul-selling. This move feels uncomfortable in light of what its rival has become.
Some players argue the move reads as a money grab. It makes a strategic card game feel even more like gambling at a time when everything feels like gambling.
Draft Rules And The Free Pack Fix
God Packs will be rare in draft as well. Wizards of the Coast has a fix: the person who pulls a God Pack gets another pack on the house at official tournament events. Local shops will use their own discretion.
Meret123, who commented on the announcement, noted that playing against someone with a God Pack in a draft is not ideal. Most decks need a good spread of commons and uncommons to work.
What Else Is Changing
Collector Boosters are also getting smaller. They will lose two commons and one uncommon from the foil slots, and those cards will not be replaced. That means you get three fewer cards in each Collector Booster.
The stated reason is content creators. Most people who open Collector Boosters skip over these cards, and videos practically skip that section of the booster. Removing them is about making room for cards people actually get excited about.
The Editor’s View On Junk Foils
The move is not all bad. Special Japan Showcase cards are no longer exclusive to Collector Boosters, and foil rares and mythics in booster packs will increase in rate.
The editor of this very piece referred to foil commons and uncommons as “junk” foils when discussing a headline for this story. But even the editor admits getting excited when seeing one, and always trying to put foil versions in decks when possible.
The concern is that the change is not about making the game better. It is about making content creators opening packs on stream look and feel good. That is a thin reason for changing how the game works.
Feedback Channels And The Road Ahead
Wizards of the Coast is soliciting feedback in its official Discord. The full impact will not be clear until several months into next year, as the changes shake out.
Better this than packs getting more expensive, the writer concludes. But the unease is real.
- God Packs arrive in every 1,000 booster packs and 300 collector boosters.
- Collector Boosters lose two commons and one uncommon.
- Draft rules give the God Pack holder another pack on the house.
- Showcase cards are no longer exclusive to Collector Boosters.
- Foil rares and mythics in booster packs increase in rate.
Magic players have a few months to get used to the new packs. Whether the game follows Pokémon’s path remains to be seen.
Source material: “Magic: The Gathering Is Adding God Packs And Removing What My Editor Calls ‘Junk’ Foils From Boosters,” Kotaku.
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