RENTON, Wash., June 24 -- After months of anticipation in online gaming circles and an extensive beta test that included upward of 60,000 players, Wizards of the Coast, a division of Hasbro, Inc., takes its Magic: The Gathering® Online game live today. Players from all over the world are already gathering in Magic® Online's lobbies to be among the first to experience the original trading card game in its official online environment, which features dozens of game rooms for every level of player and approximately 1,500 digital Magic cards to play with, trade and collect. Magic Online is available at www.mtgonline.com and at computer game retailers and hobby stores throughout the U.S. beginning today.
"This is the game online players have been waiting for," said Joe Hauck, vice president of trading card games at Wizards of the Coast. "Nearly 10 years ago Magic: The Gathering created a new genre of gaming and starting today online gamers will be able to experience all of the fun of Magic - collecting and trading Magic cards and connecting with other players whenever they want to for casual pick-up games, league play, tournaments and more."
Some of Magic Online's features include:
- Nearly 1,500 richly illustrated Magic cards
- Game rooms for every level of player
- Practice rooms and a step-by-step online tutorial for new players
- Buddy lists, chat and private chat
- Online trading room, where players can chat about cards they want to trade
- Collection tracker that can be used both online and off-line
- Deck analysis and deck-building tools
- Leagues, tournaments, player rankings and prizes
- Built-in, automatic rules management
Magic Online was developed for Wizards of the Coast by Leaping Lizard Software of Gaithersburg, MD. "Leaping Lizard has done a beautiful job integrating all of the rules and mechanics that make Magic such a great- playing game," added Wizards' Hauck. "With fully integrated rules, experienced players can focus on their game strategy and, at the other end of the spectrum, new players can get right in and start playing. We can also ensure legitimate player rankings in competition."
Game Overview
Magic Online transforms players into wizards and puts them in control of a fantasy world of creatures, spells, artifacts and lands with which to battle opponents. In head-to-head duels, wizards try to be the first to reduce their opponent's life score from 20 to 0, employing strategies and playing cards from their Magic deck. Players can choose ready-to-play theme decks or build a custom deck, collecting and trading cards with others in the Magic community. When they're ready for battle, players click into one of the many game rooms in Magic Online - from Practice and Casual Play rooms to a range of Tournament rooms - and take a seat at a virtual card table to face their opponent!
Free Trial and Tutorials
For those new to Magic, Wizards of the Coast is offering a Free Trial feature with several ready-to-play Magic decks players can use in the game's practice rooms. Players can access the Free Trial feature after logging on to Magic Online. In addition, there is a step-by-step online tutorial to help new players. The starter game, available at retail (MSRP $14.99), includes a certificate players can use for a ready-to-play online theme deck or other Magic cards, a Magic: The Gathering rulebook and the Magic Online manual. Additional cards will be offered in 15-card booster packs (MSRP $3.29) and 60- card, theme decks and tournament packs (MSRP $9.99). In a gaming industry first, players who collect a full set of Magic Online cards will have the option to redeem their online cards for physical Magic cards.
Background
Magic: The Gathering, invented by Richard Garfield and first released in 1993, is the most widely played trading card game with an estimated 7 million players in 52 countries and more than 100,000 sanctioned tournaments held annually.
For more information on Magic Online, visit the game's official web site www.mtgonline.com.
Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., is the worldwide market share leader in the trading card game and tabletop roleplaying game categories, a leading developer and publisher of game-based entertainment products and the owner and operator of one of the nation's largest specialty game retail chains. The company holds an exclusive patent on the play mechanic of trading card games (TCGs) and produces the best- selling Pokemon® and Magic: The Gathering® TCGs. Headquartered near Seattle, Wizards of the Coast has international offices in Australia, Belgium, France, Italy and the U.K. For more information, visit the Wizards of the Coast® website and electronic retail store at wizards.com.
Pokemon is a registered trademark of Nintendo.
Wizards of the Coast, Magic and Magic: The Gathering are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (C) 2002 Wizards. Purchase of Magic Online cards is subject to the terms and conditions of the User License Agreement.
