Magic The Gathering: Duels of The Planeswalkers 2013 is the latest game based on the Magic: The Gathering trading card game. There are several computer games based on Magic: The Gathering, and it's easy to roll your eyes and think "Not another one!", but Wizards of The Coast have managed to keep each game different, of the current generation, Tactics is an attractive game with a strategy twist that aims to appeal to the more serious tournament players, Magic Online is a plain and Duels of the Planeswalkers offers some a nice selection of single player campaigns and some online play (but it's generally not as "serious" as Tactics).
Magic The Gathering: Duels of The Planeswalkers 2013 is available on Xbox 360, PS3, iOS, and PC. This review is based on the PC version (although we did download the trial of the iOS version to see what it was like, and it seemed to run well). This game is not just a quick graphics skin of Planeswalkers 2012 with a few new decks. There are quite a few differences.
Wizards of The Coast are currently working hard to bring new people in to the world of Magic. They're working with trading card and comic book stores, reaching out to the online community, and offering a lot of support to new players. Magic The Gathering: Duels of The Planeswalkers 2013 has been tweaked so that it is easy for newcomers to pick up and play, but it should also provide a challenge for more experienced players.
I have played paper Magic before (but it's been a while), and I'm a huge fan of Tactics, so it didn't take long to get back into the swing of playing Duels of the Planeswalkers. The first few bits of the campaign should be a breeze for anyone that has experience playing trading card games. The scenarios are tailored to teach players basic mechanics, and how to counter various tactics, so as you play through the campaign you'll have encounters with bosses that have specific play styles - for example one early opponent basically swarms you with cheap creatures, another uses trample extensively, and so on. The encounters get progressively harder. The Planeswalkers that you meet should be pretty well-known to experienced players, and if you're a new player (or just want to refresh your memory) you can read the backstories of all of them in-game.
Interesting additions this year include ten new decks (and some cards that are being released in the computer game before making it into the paper game!), optional manual mana tapping, and the return of Magic Puzzles. These puzzles range from the pretty simple, to the incredibly fiendish.
The Planechase mode adds a nice new dimension to the game. In this mode, there's a shared deck of oversized cards that both players have access to. These cards can do a number of things, from killing units or debuffing certain types of units so that they do no damage, to allowing you to gain life on your upkeep. Actions (move to the next plane, or trigger the planar card) are determined by a six-sided planar die with four blank sides and two marked sides (one side bears the Planeswalker symbol, which means that you uncover a new plane card; the other side bears the Chaos symbol, which triggers an immediate effect based on the plane card in play). This adds an element of randomness to multiplayer games.
The graphics in the game are polished, and look good on all platforms, including the iPad 2. The audio is suitably atmospheric too. The one issue I did have was the controls - while you can play with keyboard and mouse on the PC, many of the menus feel like they're designed for use with a controller or touch-screen. Scrolling through menus slowly on a PC is irritating. Fortunately, that's just the menus, and you can play through the rest of the game without too much trouble.
Magic The Gathering: Duels of The Planeswalkers 2013 is a good addition to the Magic series. The single player game is nice for when you have a few minutes. The multiplayer is fun too, and the Planechase mode makes for an enjoyable, accessible four player game. The plane cards are a nice equalizer, and make novices more willing to play.
For the price, Magic the Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers 2013 is a good buy. I would have liked to see deeper deck building options, but on reflection, that's not what this game is about. I can imagine many newcomers to Magic the Gathering really enjoying this game (and hardcore players picking it up just to check out the new decks and scenarios). If you fall in love with Magic and want more depth, you can always pick up the paper decks (you get a voucher for a booster pack for paper Magic when you buy this game), or graduate to Tactics.