Magic: Duels of the Planeswalkers 2015

 PC
User Score
3.2

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 127 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 26 out of 127
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 127
  3. Negative: 89 out of 127

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  1. Wik
    Jul 28, 2014
    10
    I have just started playing Magic. I really like it. the game look good, and runs good on PC. The card and decks are fun to play. PC players are whiners... thats for sure.
  2. YJMalmsteen
    Aug 9, 2014
    10
    Basically, the game is fun as always but, game resolution and aspect ration change issues bothering me.

    Beside these, i can say i like this game :)
  3. Richard1186
    Sep 16, 2014
    10
    Magic 2015 is really well done. I will not repeat what all the others have said about the game. I will say this, there are a lot of people complaining about the micro transaction in the game for more cards. If you played any of the previous Magic the Gathering games, you will have noticed that they require you to do micro transactions to unlock all of the cards / decks in themMagic 2015 is really well done. I will not repeat what all the others have said about the game. I will say this, there are a lot of people complaining about the micro transaction in the game for more cards. If you played any of the previous Magic the Gathering games, you will have noticed that they require you to do micro transactions to unlock all of the cards / decks in them too. The only main difference between Magic 2015 and the others at this point and stage, is that there is no Two-Headed Giant (2v2), no Archenemy mode, no puzzles, or Revenge campaign. I am certain they will be adding patches / expansions that will add them. Even in Magic 2014, you had to buy the expansion for the revenge campaign and buy separately, several decks. Overall, far better then the previous games and the decks you can build are far better / challenging / fun to use.… Expand
  4. Decepticon0681
    Sep 17, 2014
    10
    I don't understand the bad reviews i love this game better then the rest of the planes walker games its hella fun! Great cards Great decks u can actually create fully custom decks which is the best ever!
  5. gageSCOTT
    Oct 5, 2014
    10
    Unclear why user's are trashing this iteration of Magic, DoP?..in fact, I nearly avoided buying it as a result; however, I'm glad I gave it a shot despite the overwhelmingly poor reviews. Objectively speaking, this game is not worthy of a "10", but I feel obligated because of all of the zero-scores it has unfairly received.

    I have been playing MTG since revised (3rd ed), I play Magic    Unclear why user's are trashing this iteration of Magic, DoP?..in fact, I nearly avoided buying it as a result; however, I'm glad I gave it a shot despite the overwhelmingly poor reviews. Objectively speaking, this game is not worthy of a "10", but I feel obligated because of all of the zero-scores it has unfairly received.

    I have been playing MTG since revised (3rd ed), I play Magic Online and DoP since 2012...I can safely say, Magic2015 is by far, my favorite so far (220 hrs of play logged). It is lacking some important multiplayer components (Two-Headed-Giant, in particular) but otherwise, when looked at as a whole package, the game has improved (in my opinion) in nearly every respect.

    I have spent $10 on this game, and nothing more...this is the least 'pay-to-win' version of Magic thus far. You play and earn a virtual pack of cards added to your growing collection for each game you win. If you don't enjoy playing-to-win, and would prefer just to win, rather than playing, then you have the OPTION of buying more packs. This defeats the purpose of buying this game in the first place, but the option is there. This is also the reason I would only recommend purchasing the $9.95 version.

    You can custom build your own decks! There's no limit to the number of decks that you build, since the builds are saved in your inventory, and you can build a fresh deck with any combinations of colors and cards whenever you want. Now, granted, your card pool is solely based on the number of cards that you have won, so starting out, you will be merely modifying your starting-deck until you earn enough cards to freely build. The starting deck deck is somewhat weak, but gives you a strong push in the 2-colors of your choice. Also, an important note regarding the packs that you win, you can never get more than four of any one card. This is huge! It means no redundant copies of commons once you round out a set of four. The cards in the packs are randomized picks that are pulled from M15, Innistrad, Theros, Ravinca, Shandalar and Zendikar; although there are many notable cards from these sets that are MIA, I was pleased overall with the number of cards in the pool and (for the most part) the cards themselves...don't expect to see any Planeswalkers.

    The biggest complaint I have read is that you cannot start over once you have chosen your starting colors...this is both true and completely false. It is true, there is no in-game "NEW" game selection in the menu, however, you can easily shutoff the cloud-sync under the M15 properties on Steam and either rename or delete your current profile that's saved in the 'userdata' folder on your machine. This will start the game over as if you were playing for the first time. I have done this a dozen times already. Anyone who would like the procedure, I'll be happy to share, look me up on Steam "gageSCOTT" and I'll instant-message the instructions to you. Admittedly, I don't understand why WoTC made restarting the game this tedious, but it is an easy work-around none-the-less.

    The menus are a tad slow and strangely unresponsive, but not to a point that they deserve the amount of complaints they've received. The play is about as fast as you would want it to be, and is fully tailorable in the options menu. The only criticism I have about the strength of the AI, is it's lack of ability to bluff and it's lack of ability to recognize a non-bluff; ex: if you send a 1/1 token, the computer 99% of the time will block it, no matter how much life it has, allowing to destroy a key creature with a simple trick in your hand. The AI does make some non-nonsensical plays from time-to-time, but typically this occurs after I have already amassed an overwhelming advantage and the game is already won anyway.

    This is the best version of Magic to date. I have played more hours in 2015 than I have 2012, 2013 & 2014 combined. The games are fun, the AI decks are challenging (sometimes unfairly so) and for anyone to claim there isn't $9.95 worth of value here is insane. I understand the temptation to submit negative reviews when a game is flooded with negative comments from users, but they just aren't justified here. 2014 was a bigger money-grab, have to empty-slots just to play the custom-pack building portion of the game, which was the best part of 2014, and also the biggest rip-off. The iteration of magic allows you to do this from the start and through-out the entire length of the campaign, and beyond, and you do not have to pay another penny to do so. How can people justify complaining about this!?! I have found this game to be great fun, have built countless number of decks in multiple color combinations, and will continue to do so for some time to come...all for $9.95.    … Expand
  6. JasonFever
    Jul 16, 2014
    9
    Magic 2015 is definitely not Tragic 2015 even though technically tragic events happen within its compelling story. The new slick, sleek & sexy user interface is great and gives Magic 2015 an unintentional sci-fi/fantasy mash-up feel which is oddly welcome. This is a fun game guaranteed to give you hours of magic carpet rides even if you only have hardwood floors.
  7. JapanimeJunkie
    Jul 17, 2014
    9
    Excellent game all the way. I have been playing this series since the first one back in 2010. I have loved each one, and they just keep getting better with each installment. The freedom to finally make your own deck is excellent and the single player story is great and the duels can be very annoying and difficult at times. The challenge is part of the fun :). If you are a MTG fan & haveExcellent game all the way. I have been playing this series since the first one back in 2010. I have loved each one, and they just keep getting better with each installment. The freedom to finally make your own deck is excellent and the single player story is great and the duels can be very annoying and difficult at times. The challenge is part of the fun :). If you are a MTG fan & have yet to play any of the Duels of the Planeswalkers games, then you need to pick this one up. I am looking forward to the expansion and the growth of the card library.… Expand
  8. Blake_Stark
    Jul 18, 2014
    9
    Magic 2015 for PC is an amazing game that will provide hours of entertainment for just $9.99!

    All the complaining is coming from people who think that you can’t make a decent deck without the Premium cards (which is untrue). Even if you believe that, $9.99 + $23.88 is still worth it for this game. Multiplayer may not have two headed anymore but still includes the 2, 3 & 4 player    Magic 2015 for PC is an amazing game that will provide hours of entertainment for just $9.99!

    All the complaining is coming from people who think that you can’t make a decent deck without the Premium cards (which is untrue). Even if you believe that, $9.99 + $23.88 is still worth it for this game.

    Multiplayer may not have two headed anymore but still includes the 2, 3 & 4 player free for all games.

    The open deck building is what really makes the newest version great. You are no longer chained to preset decks. People complain there is only about 300 different cards (340 with Premium packs), but each area has about 60 cards to unlock (most of which you need to unlock 4, 3 and 2 times) and new zones will be added with DLC, so in the future there will be a ton of customization available.

    Overall the game is smooth and a ton of fun. Also, for those of us with Alienware machines, it is really cool to see the game take advantage of the systems lights!

    Highly suggest you pick it up. Don’t let the crybabies turn you off from getting a great game.    … Expand
  9. Maiser
    Jul 21, 2014
    8
    Despite it´s release bugs (problems with shop not working because game can not interact with steam overlay, time taken to navigate in menu....) and "premium" need to pay cards (which are not really neccesary) i would say all this is compensated by the availability of creating your own decks. Now when you play online, you do not really know what you are facing, as decks are not premadeDespite it´s release bugs (problems with shop not working because game can not interact with steam overlay, time taken to navigate in menu....) and "premium" need to pay cards (which are not really neccesary) i would say all this is compensated by the availability of creating your own decks. Now when you play online, you do not really know what you are facing, as decks are not premade like in other games. You can even test your decks playing against them (used by IA).

    Something i do not really understand is how did they do to break off the auto mana tapping system (it worked perfect in other games, this one just insists on breaking one color pool first when you are going multi color), but i hope this is fixed and can be fixed when you push control meanwhile, as it allows you to choose manas.

    I remember new decks being brought in last mtg games within the time. I hope new cards are inserted in this one, and with the actual high range of cards to choose from and new ones, there will not be 2 equal decks.

    To sum up, probably your favourite MTG game if you are more into deck personalization than game modes. If you like other MTG games, it is totally worth to give a try.    … Expand
  10. digitalsage
    Aug 2, 2014
    8
    The complaints about micro-transactions are valid... if you are looking for a low-cost way to play M:TG, stay away. As a card player since Fallen Empires and a computer player since the original MicroProse days, this version is both current and true to the spirit of the card game.

    All of that said, I can't help but wonder what happens to my micro-transactions when the next version of    The complaints about micro-transactions are valid... if you are looking for a low-cost way to play M:TG, stay away. As a card player since Fallen Empires and a computer player since the original MicroProse days, this version is both current and true to the spirit of the card game.

    All of that said, I can't help but wonder what happens to my micro-transactions when the next version of the computer game comes out (which has been an annual ritual of late). Will your card purchases roll over? Probably not. So, beware the investment you make in the cards for the game, as they will likely go up in smoke next year,

    I still have the M14 version of the computer game, and plan to use it regularly to help ease the sirens that shamelessly call out to me to invest more money in virtual cards that will probably be worthless come this time next year.

    Recommended, but as with regular M:TG, expect to invest some in virtual cards to be competitive in multiplayer games.

    If the developers are reading this, your card randomization/sort routine SUCKS. Why do I have more than 1/3 land, and regularly get 1 or NO lands. It seems that if you wait a while and draw a new set of cards, your land distribution almost always is closer to the bell curve. I'm guessing you carried this part of the game over from previous versions, which also suffered from a "sucky sort". If you don't fix this issue, I won't buy the next version. I can sink my money into physical cards if I want to make an investment in M:TG.

    If others are frustrated with this issue, WRITE ABOUT IT ONLINE!    … Expand
  11. Bulvine7x
    Jul 28, 2014
    8
    I have about 8 hours logged into Magic 2015 and I am enjoying it. As a long time(20 years) on and off player who no longer has time or money to play the physical game, it is a great way to get your magic fix. The matches are typically 10 minutes the interface and game play is smooth. I like that I earn a booster pack with every win in campaign mode. I dislike that they took out twoI have about 8 hours logged into Magic 2015 and I am enjoying it. As a long time(20 years) on and off player who no longer has time or money to play the physical game, it is a great way to get your magic fix. The matches are typically 10 minutes the interface and game play is smooth. I like that I earn a booster pack with every win in campaign mode. I dislike that they took out two headed giant mp format, please bring it back. Also the sliver deck you run into in campaign mode is a bit over the top. I bought the $10 base version, and I started with the green and red deck. I think it's silly you have to unlock the deck filter feature but once you do building new decks is fairly easy.For a quick magic fix I think its a good game.… Expand
  12. GOOFIDIOT
    Sep 16, 2014
    8
    Aside from missing 2HG and the puzzle mode this is the best one yet. The ability to create your own deck is awesome and allows for way more strategy and variety. For everyone complaining about the premium boosters... The most competitive deck builds in the game dont require any of the premium cards so if you dont want to buy them you dont have to. They arent that expensive anyways I guessAside from missing 2HG and the puzzle mode this is the best one yet. The ability to create your own deck is awesome and allows for way more strategy and variety. For everyone complaining about the premium boosters... The most competitive deck builds in the game dont require any of the premium cards so if you dont want to buy them you dont have to. They arent that expensive anyways I guess theres alot of poor kids on here. As for me there was only several premium cards I wanted so I spent like 8 extra bucks and got em,… Expand
  13. murlochieftain
    Jul 20, 2014
    7
    I understand that everyone has a problem with the micro-transactions, which give access to "premium" cards. I feel it is important to point out that you do not need these cards to make the best decks. The premium cards will certainly allow you to build certain archetypes, but they don't contain essential cards that will make every single deck better. There are plenty of decks that can beI understand that everyone has a problem with the micro-transactions, which give access to "premium" cards. I feel it is important to point out that you do not need these cards to make the best decks. The premium cards will certainly allow you to build certain archetypes, but they don't contain essential cards that will make every single deck better. There are plenty of decks that can be built from the core cards that don't need the premium cards, and would actually be better off without them. You are limited to one of each mythic, two of each rare, and three of each uncommon, so buying all the premium cards only allows you to use a few of those cards. This sort of balance can be a pain, but in the end I can't help but feel it is slightly justified. You can unlock more than all the cards you will ever need for several decks just by playing the game. Of course these micro-transactions still have the capability of giving a player an edge simply for spending more money.

    The menus and animations are sluggish. I mean they are EXTREMELY sluggish, and the game warrants a better score but these animations are incredibly poorly constructed and it makes the menus seem really clunky. I think this would be an easy patch if Wizards would take the time to do it. This still wouldn't fix what is clearly console-ported menus though, and they are definitely a step back from DotP 2014.

    The reason I am still giving this game a fairly decent score is because it is pretty much everything I have ever wanted from the deck-building perspective. Ever since the DotP series came out, all I ever wanted to do was create my own decks from the cards the game offered. As soon as I unlocked all the cards in DotP 2015, I made 10-12 decks, stemming from ideas I'd had brewing in the back of my head while playing the game. I played each of my new little creations a few times each and refined them accordingly. This, to me, is what Magic is really about. DotP 2015 scratched an itch which badly needed scratching for me.

    Still, the Two-Headed Giant co-op mode is gone, which is a big minus for many, (although I never played it much myself.) I only really miss Archenemy, and maybe Plane-chase but those haven't been around for a good while. I just wish Wizards would listen more closely to the fans of their DotP series, instead of "taking the EA route".

    The verdict: if you don't absolutely love deck-building and creating original decks, I would recommend that you stick with the older DotP series (preferably 2014), especially when they are on sale. DotP 2015 doesn't bring anything new but deck-building to the table. For me, however, that was all the incentive I needed.    … Expand
  14. GigaHz
    Oct 7, 2014
    7
    Considering the surplus of negative reviews, there's not a whole lot I can say that would suggest this game is worthy of a purchase. As someone relatively new to Magic (but not TCGs), a game like this was perfect for me to get comfortable with game flow, strategy and deck building. For newer players this is pretty good value, especially if you don't have experience playing with certainConsidering the surplus of negative reviews, there's not a whole lot I can say that would suggest this game is worthy of a purchase. As someone relatively new to Magic (but not TCGs), a game like this was perfect for me to get comfortable with game flow, strategy and deck building. For newer players this is pretty good value, especially if you don't have experience playing with certain colour combinations or themes.

    There are a few things that can spoil which should be a great introduction for newer Magic players. For one, it is not possible to unlock the Premium cards unless you pay for them. It is possible to beat the game without them but not having an alternative way of unlocking them is pretty depressing. Especially compared to its casual-friendly competition: Hearthstone, where dedicated players can unlock the vast majority of the cards with enough patience and luck. Having a paywall to separate basic players from premium players is not only exploitative it creates a lopsided advantage in favour of those who spend the extra cash.

    As for the core game itself, I like the overall design. The presentation is clean, card mechanics are demonstrated in a clear and concise manner, and it is relatively minimalistic, leaving only the information relevant to the player. This is a welcome change from the looks of MG:O which looks overly busy by comparison.

    The gameplay works as you would expect but there are some slight nags. For one, there's no way to cancel a card from being played if you click on it. The only exception is if it requires some kind of confirmation. This means if you misclick the wrong card, there is no way to cancel your selection and choose the card you would like instead. A major inconvenience for a game centred around strategy. The AI doesn't really feel like it offers much of a challenge so much as it forces the player to be very patient. The AI very rarely has bad draws and will often have perfect counters to the cards that you play. Beating AI opponents doesn't feel like much of an accomplishment, but rather just replaying until you muligan into a perfect hand. The worst part is, the endboss requires that you draw twice (it has two forms). This means you could have an amazing first half and if your next series of draws is terrible, you might as well just hit the reset button and start all over.

    I don't know how the game's shuffling system is coded but it really needs some work. I don't care how unlucky a person can get, I have never had so many games where 95% of my cards were land. It seems to happen very frequently in Magic 2015. Nothing says fun like being unable to play your hand as the AI opponent beats you senseless.

    If you do decide to play with friends it is pretty fun for what it is. It doesn't quite compare to the real thing but it's a good way to scratch the itch.

    All-in-all, Magic 2015 is great if you're brand new to Magic and need something to get you accustomed to the basics. If you're not new, it is very hard to recommend this purchase. Do some research before you buy if you're on the fence.    … Expand
  15. UjuidarEhcram
    Jul 27, 2014
    7
    Magic 2015 is a game based on Magic: The Gathering where you collect cards, build decks, and battle opponents. They've made several Duels of the Planeswalkers games, and I've played all of them.

    Magic 2015 is a huge step forward for the series, yet also a huge step back. It's really pretty frustrating. This game finally implements the one feature people have been asking for since the    Magic 2015 is a game based on Magic: The Gathering where you collect cards, build decks, and battle opponents. They've made several Duels of the Planeswalkers games, and I've played all of them.

    Magic 2015 is a huge step forward for the series, yet also a huge step back. It's really pretty frustrating.

    This game finally implements the one feature people have been asking for since the beginning: the ability to make a custom deck from scratch. You get a pool of cards that builds over time, and you can build your own deck out of the cards you have, and it's a major improvement. The game has several ways of helping you build a deck, or you can hand-select each card, like I did.

    If it wasn't for that, though, this game would be among the worst in the series. There's a somewhat diverse selection of opponents, but the difficulty curve is all over the place. It puts you against a big green deck really early, and that's a tough deck to face with only a handful of starter cards. The puzzle mode from previous games is gone. No alternate play modes either, such as Archenemy or Sealed from previous games. What's worse is that the card pool, even when you've unlocked everything, just isn't quite diverse enough, so there aren't that many great decks you can build out of it. If my opponents can make a Sliver deck, why can't I? As a side note, the menus in this game are really slow and animation-heavy. Magic 2014 had way better UX design... what happened?

    The microtransactions in this game aren't as bad as the infuriating Sealed Deck mode in Magic 2014 (I'm still mad about that), but they keep a few cards locked out of the main game unless you pay more to unlock them. They're good cards, too. The white Paragon, for example, would be an amazing inclusion in the Convoke deck. I think they're usable in multiplayer too, so this could be called a pay-to-win mechanic (you can still build acceptable decks without those cards, but they really help).

    There are two other pluses that I haven't brought up yet. Fighting random opponents in single player is a good inclusion. I wish there were more, though... there are only a small number of opponents per location. Also, as someone that follows the card game's storyline, it's nice to see what actually happens to Garruk (and Ob Nixilis).

    Ultimately, I would still recommend this game if you're interested in Magic, though I don't think I could recommend it over Magic 2014. They're not asking for much with the $10 price tag, and I don't regret having spent the money on this. Magic is still fun. Also, it's nice to build decks from scratch for a change. For now, steer clear of the extra paid content.    … Expand
  16. Trunks252
    Nov 9, 2014
    6
    *NOTE* This review was written after release of the Garruk campaign, which also marked the release of updates to the core game. This review takes into account these changes.

    I can understand why this game was hated, which is why I didn't purchase it until now. No longer are the dlc's necessary to unlocking all the cards, which was the game's biggest flaw (and quite frankly insulting).    *NOTE* This review was written after release of the Garruk campaign, which also marked the release of updates to the core game. This review takes into account these changes.

    I can understand why this game was hated, which is why I didn't purchase it until now. No longer are the dlc's necessary to unlocking all the cards, which was the game's biggest flaw (and quite frankly insulting). Upon seeing the expansion (and with it, updates), I became interested in seeing the changes. After beating the campaign, I had a lot of fun unlocking boosters for each of the collections and building decks with them. The difficulty was mostly a breeze on Mage level, which I chose because of many people's opinions that he game was hard. I can't see this game as very hard at all, but then again I have been playing for ~5 years pretty consistently. There were a couple of opponents I had trouble with, most notably Ajani and SLivers. The sliver deck was easily the hardest in the campaign, but after building a new deck I was able to beat it on the second try. Just fyi, I chose the B/G graveyard based deck and had a lot of fun with it. I had three spider spawnings by the end of the first chapter, which ended up being the mvp in many of my games.

    I never had any troubles with the game "cheating" me like many people have complained about. I also don't see why people are complaining about how slow it is to unlock cards. It is actually really fast. In ~17 hours I have completed four collections with 90% in the last campaign collection. That is a huge card pool to create decks, and I've still got Alara and the Booster packs to collect. Considering it takes hundreds of hours in the previous games to unlock all the cards, I'd say this is pretty fast. Wouldn't you agree? Some people just don't think.

    This game does have several negative traits to it, however. The UI is problematic at best, with bugs, slowdown, and low responsiveness too often. I can tell it was designed specifically for iPad, which is a bad thing considering it is on PC. I also hate how many of the cards in opponent's decks (or Garruk's deck in the expansion) are not available for deck construction. I can understand why they didn't (multiplayer balance), but that doesn't excuse this. They're programmed into the game, so they should be usable. It's also a shame they removed THG and alternate formats.

    All in all, I'm having a lot of fun with this game. I love building and testing out decks, and this game has a decent-nice card selection. The flaws are ever apparent though, and 2013 + 2014 versions are still better. If you like deck building and a challenge, I can recommend this game as long as you have played the previous two versions first.    … Expand
  17. axepix
    Aug 17, 2014
    6
    This game got me into magic but,
    i don't have access to some cards the ai was using which frustrates me.
    on the other hand it did teach me how to play magic. This game is good for a new player because the campaign put me up against most 2 color combo decks. By the end of the campaign i did know what all the colors were about. and the interface is nice and clean too which i love.    This game got me into magic but,
    i don't have access to some cards the ai was using which frustrates me.
    on the other hand it did teach me how to play magic. This game is good for a new player because the campaign put me up against most 2 color combo decks.
    By the end of the campaign i did know what all the colors were about.
    and the interface is nice and clean too which i love.
    Unlocking the cards is a real shore since you have to play the same ai opponents repeatedly to get new booster packs.    … Expand
  18. Dziver
    Jul 22, 2014
    5
    + Free deck building, which previous Magic games didn't have.
    - Menus are horribly slow to use.
    - There are no other game modes besides free-for-all. - You cannot unlock all the cards via gameplay, some have to be bought in boosters via in-game store which costs real money. It costs around 25€/28$ to get them all. - Everything is super white so if you have a bright monitor you'll burn    + Free deck building, which previous Magic games didn't have.
    - Menus are horribly slow to use.
    - There are no other game modes besides free-for-all.
    - You cannot unlock all the cards via gameplay, some have to be bought in boosters via in-game store which costs real money. It costs around 25€/28$ to get them all.
    - Everything is super white so if you have a bright monitor you'll burn your eyes.
    - 60fps mode doesn't stay on, the game constantly changes it to 23fps.
    - When you try to join another custom multiplayer match after finishing one you often crash.
    - Multiplayer lobbies are public by default and quick match system doesn't have any queue so you'll fail to connect 90% of the time.
    - There's a bug that may cause you to lose all your progress and cards, including premium($) ones.
    - Many cards are not working as intended e.g. If you use prey upon or hunt the weak on enemy that has any abilities(life steal, etc.), those abilities do not work. This is just one example, I've found around 10 others so far.
    - You may sometimes get stuck between turns in multiplayer and the game doesn't resync, though this was also a problem in previous Magic titles.
    - There is no way to remap skip button(TAB), or any buttons if you're playing with a controller.    … Expand
  19. Penance
    Jul 16, 2014
    5
    Magic is back for another year, under the usual premise to improve on an the established and solid formula that MTG has been bringing players for years. Despite Magic 2015's attempt to offer players more creativity and customization, the game falls short and is buried under a pile of technical issues and bizarre design decisions.

    Magic 2015 is your standard DotP affair, and offers both    Magic is back for another year, under the usual premise to improve on an the established and solid formula that MTG has been bringing players for years. Despite Magic 2015's attempt to offer players more creativity and customization, the game falls short and is buried under a pile of technical issues and bizarre design decisions.

    Magic 2015 is your standard DotP affair, and offers both new and veteran players a relatively fun experience. The tutorial is easy to understand and completely option (minus the final 'test') that will get you into the meat of the game rather quickly. In terms of the general gameplay, everything that this game offers (single-player, multi-player) is rather standard.

    New to Magic 2015 is the ability to create your own deck for use in single-player and multi-player. Cards are unlocked by grinding single player matches through packs of cards called boosters. One of the worst things that this game does, in my opinion, is partition many cards behind a microtransaction paywall called Premium Boosters. The fact that your opponents may have other, possibly better, cards than you because they decided to pay more money is a huge downside -- and the first bizarre design decision Magic 2015 has.

    The second downside is the games unappealing visual design and user interface. Many of the elements of the UI are familiar to players of the previous iterations, but seem very heavily influenced by this games release on console platforms as well as iOS. Many menus take upwards of five seconds to fade out into white before changing screens. Many features are unnecessarily hidden behind menus within menus and a real pain to access. The notification system fails to actually notify the player on most occasions it seems and provides no real added benefit outside of the already in-place main menu system.

    The entire games visual design looks like it has been designed to be played in a science-fiction hospital, being almost completely white and void of any color and saturation. I found it to be a pain on the eyes and unpleasant, if not mildly irritating. It is worth mentioning that every single attack phase during your games, the playing board will split down the middle for no reason whatsoever - I have no idea what purpose it serves other than to bother the player.

    Pre-made decks, as were present in past iterations of the series, have been completely removed from the game. Players choose a very basic deck based on two colors and are stuck with it until they can grind out enough boosters to create their own alternate decks (provided they get the right cards in their boosters), which is not likely to happen until possibly dozens of hours have been playing into single-player alone. So, make sure you pick wisely! -- there is no feature to reset your choice of deck once the tutorial is completed. If you aren't satisfied with the deck you had no way of viewing before choosing, too bad.

    As mentioned, multi-player is your standard affair with no improvements over the past games. In fact, all co-op gameplay has been removed from this game. No longer can you play two-versus-one in the incredibly fun Two-Headed Giant mode that has been available for the past three years of Duels of the Planeswalkers, nor can you play two-versus-two anymore. Less is not more, and this game does a fantastic job of limiting what was previously available to players in this way.

    I had very few of the reported technical issues with the game. Windowed mode has some awful resolution issues, and some minor issues with video settings resetting themselves every time I start the game. I experienced zero crashing or freezing.

    To conclude, Magic 2015 is a game that is probably not worth the money for anyone who owns the previous versions. It brings nothing new to the table, and removes features completely. When you put down the money for that $10 price-tag, realize that you are paying for only a portion of the game. The developers have put a fair percentage of the game behind a microtransaction paywall in the form of Day One DLC, which an arguably be labeled Pay-to-Win. The interface is ugly and unnecessary, which is very important for a game that might eat hours of your time per session. Any owners of the previous Duels of the Planeswalkers game will be sorely disappointed.    … Expand
  20. CCkAzE
    Jul 19, 2014
    4
    Magic 2015 could have been a 10, but they inexplicably took out all game modes other than single player and multiplayer free-for all. Two headed giant has been a staple of this series, and in my opinon, the most enjoyable game mode of the DotP franchise. It's what kept me coming back year after year. Not only did they take it out, there was almost no warning. I would never have bought thisMagic 2015 could have been a 10, but they inexplicably took out all game modes other than single player and multiplayer free-for all. Two headed giant has been a staple of this series, and in my opinon, the most enjoyable game mode of the DotP franchise. It's what kept me coming back year after year. Not only did they take it out, there was almost no warning. I would never have bought this game if I knew there was no 2HG.

    All that said, the amount of freedom this game gives you to craft your deck is awesome. Unlike Hearthstone, you aren't limited by your "class" in your access to cards. You can literally make whatever deck you wish with every card in the game at your disposal. The types of decks you will encounter in multiplayer will be endless.

    Still, the microtransactions and left out features kill this game, and I cannot recommend it to anyone unless they are a die-hard MtG fan. Wizards of the Coast and Stainless really dropped the ball on this one.    … Expand
  21. Izno
    Jul 18, 2014
    4
    None of the fun premade decks from previous iterations of the game. Microtransactions to unlock all of the cards whereas in previous versions this did not exist. no two headed giant. The included cards and decks that you begin with are trashy even by limited standards. With all that being said if you're addicted to magic you could probably do worse than this product at 10 dollars.None of the fun premade decks from previous iterations of the game. Microtransactions to unlock all of the cards whereas in previous versions this did not exist. no two headed giant. The included cards and decks that you begin with are trashy even by limited standards. With all that being said if you're addicted to magic you could probably do worse than this product at 10 dollars. Still though this is the worst version of the game so far that I have played.… Expand
  22. Lakin
    Jul 20, 2014
    4
    This year wizards made me really sad. This game is filled with micro-transactions even if you buy the most expensive pack. Challanges are gone. Deck building is done poorly, for example no search for words function and theres really not that many cards to have any fun. even if you count copies theres
    like 980cards overall, Yu-gi-oh on Wii had 4000! Background in the game is just plain    This year wizards made me really sad. This game is filled with micro-transactions even if you buy the most expensive pack. Challanges are gone. Deck building is done poorly, for example no search for words function and theres really not that many cards to have any fun. even if you count copies theres
    like 980cards overall, Yu-gi-oh on Wii had 4000! Background in the game is just plain obviously so it runs well on tablets. In the end, magic is still fun which would give like a 7 but those things take it down to a plain average 4    … Expand
  23. MrMT
    Jul 31, 2014
    3
    I have to agree with the low scores here. I live 2013, and played it like crazy. I bought 2014, and was well into it until something wiped my progress, and I was back to the beginning with no unlocked cards. 2015 appears even more predatory - either you pay an insulting amount of money for unlocks, or you grind your way up through endless turgid battles to start building a deck - whichI have to agree with the low scores here. I live 2013, and played it like crazy. I bought 2014, and was well into it until something wiped my progress, and I was back to the beginning with no unlocked cards. 2015 appears even more predatory - either you pay an insulting amount of money for unlocks, or you grind your way up through endless turgid battles to start building a deck - which will never be as good as the one you pay a premium for. ie, this is pay to win. To those that enjoy pay 2 win, have fun. Personally, I prefer a game.… Expand
  24. Meshen
    Jul 16, 2014
    3
    All of the build up to this game has revolved around the fact that true deck building has finally been implemented. This seems like great news, until you realise that there's a measly card pool of approximately 300, which has been split into a 'basic' pool (unlockable by playing) and 'premium' pool (only unlockable via cold hard cash). This 'pay to win' approach would be a little moreAll of the build up to this game has revolved around the fact that true deck building has finally been implemented. This seems like great news, until you realise that there's a measly card pool of approximately 300, which has been split into a 'basic' pool (unlockable by playing) and 'premium' pool (only unlockable via cold hard cash). This 'pay to win' approach would be a little more palatable if the rest of the game was rife with content, but it simply isn't.

    Gone are the prebuilt decks that were great to just jump in with on a level playing field, and also gone are fan favourites in the Two Headed Giant and Challenge modes. Deck building should have been a separate element to coexist with the format DotP fans have come to love. For those who wanted deck building as the centrepiece of the game there has always been MTG Online, so to take away so many great elements and replace them with a limited, micro-transaction filled husk of a game is appauling. Shame on you, Wizards.    … Expand
  25. fenrishero
    Jul 16, 2014
    3
    They advertised it as having deckbuilding. It does have deckbuilding. From a very limited pool of cards. And without cornerstone common cards, like fetch lands, Rampant Growth, Negate or Fireball. Those cards are in the game, but are restricted to inaccessible computer decks. It is likely they'll sell those as the DLC for this version.

    The UI has gotten worse. Clunky as hell, and    They advertised it as having deckbuilding. It does have deckbuilding. From a very limited pool of cards. And without cornerstone common cards, like fetch lands, Rampant Growth, Negate or Fireball. Those cards are in the game, but are restricted to inaccessible computer decks. It is likely they'll sell those as the DLC for this version.

    The UI has gotten worse. Clunky as hell, and clearly optimized for touch screens.

    On the plus side, the premium cards are almost exclusively cards you don't care about, so you won't feel any compulsion to actually buy them. The Store Locator feature is a nice touch, as it reminds you why they'd make such a bad version of Magic: to avoid angering their licensed sellers.

    Bottom Line: At one point, I realized I'd rather be playing Hearthstone. And I hate Hearthstone.    … Expand
  26. CrimsonEwok
    Jul 17, 2014
    3
    Pros:
    +deck building
    Cons: - - -NO TWO HEADED GIANT!!! BOOOOO!!! -Terrible interface(it is a step back from previous entries) -poor card selection -Not necessarily "pay-to-win" but player purchases in the shop can give slightly unfair advantages(not my biggest complaint, but I thought I would mention it) -No bonus multiplayer modes archenemy/plane chase/two headed giant (only up to    Pros:
    +deck building
    Cons:
    - - -NO TWO HEADED GIANT!!! BOOOOO!!!
    -Terrible interface(it is a step back from previous entries)
    -poor card selection
    -Not necessarily "pay-to-win" but player purchases in the shop can give slightly unfair advantages(not my biggest complaint, but I thought I would mention it)
    -No bonus multiplayer modes archenemy/plane chase/two headed giant (only up to 4 player free for all)

    Why am I rating it so low? It takes too many steps back from the games before it. I've played all magic games before it and see no reason I should move on from them besides more people to play with. Since there is no Interesting new mode(and even the removal of a much loved mode) I don't see myself playing this with others much if not at all. I really can't recommend this to my friends so a short lived Magic:DoTP 2015 single player is what I foresee.    … Expand
  27. brotherx
    Jul 17, 2014
    3
    They really rushed this game. Its as if they were testing the waters to see what the bare minimum amount of work they could do and pass off as a game. They went a little too far this time. We have tutorial, campaign, and practice mode and that's about it. No 2HG, no puzzle mode, no archenemy or anything like that. You chose one deck and without telling you the game just locks you into thatThey really rushed this game. Its as if they were testing the waters to see what the bare minimum amount of work they could do and pass off as a game. They went a little too far this time. We have tutorial, campaign, and practice mode and that's about it. No 2HG, no puzzle mode, no archenemy or anything like that. You chose one deck and without telling you the game just locks you into that color unless you reinstall.… Expand
  28. lasthope
    Jul 19, 2014
    3
    making base and premium pull - its crap, really. In fact, in game balance quite broken cause white color really overpowered, and my favorite red color isn't much useful. And game looks awful for pc gamers, because if you really dont like gamepads you will suffer in-game menu very hard. Picking basic deck is a kind of blind choice, only color give you some information, and you have to playmaking base and premium pull - its crap, really. In fact, in game balance quite broken cause white color really overpowered, and my favorite red color isn't much useful. And game looks awful for pc gamers, because if you really dont like gamepads you will suffer in-game menu very hard. Picking basic deck is a kind of blind choice, only color give you some information, and you have to play this deck whole game, cause you have only one deck until you win at least few games, which is hard, because pre built deck can beat campaign one with a great kind of luck only.
    and also my favorite review on this game:
    GARRUK BEGAN THE HUNT FOR YOUR MONEY! CAN YOU STOP IT?(c)    … Expand
  29. Aureliano
    Aug 31, 2014
    3
    I've played magic 2013 and 2014 so i know the stuff. Magic 2015 is a very bad game. They introduced a money to win component an they've realized a new interface full of bugs. And it's not finished: they have eliminated the two headed giants mode (2 players vs 2 players).

    I wish i've never bought it.
  30. smarm
    Jul 27, 2014
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. (Disclaimer)
    I played this game via library sharing on steam. So I have not purchased the game (nor do I plan to). Nor have I shelled out money to make the game "playable" (echos of the "cash grab" comments); The person who owns the game had unlocked all the cards and so I was able to make a deck actually worth playing.

    (Poor AI)
    The AI is a straight drop in replacement for the poorly designed 2014. You can expect to: have the AI's draw exactly what they need when they need it and (seemingly) mess with your draws; So that your draws will be the worst depending on which deck you face.

    So for example, if you have ~30% creature removal, against creature heavy decks you tend not to draw as much as you do against decks that are not creature heavy.

    (On planeswalker difficulty)

    But at the same time the AI is ridiculously easy to beat with a constructed deck. Even given the vaunted "you have the choice to make your own deck", the game becomes tedious against the AI's once their strategy has been neutralized.

    This coupled with the removal of multiplayer features (playing against clever humans rather than stupid AI's), makes this a terrible game with almost no replay value.

    (Crappy card choices)
    Even with all the "premium unlocks" with booster packs, the card selection is very poor.

    I suspect that the card pool they've given you is a random selection of cards that you would get from actual booster packs; Mostly commons, a good amount of uncommons, few rares and only a handful of ultra rares. A terrible idea for a computer game, since you are routinely faced against decks that do not have this weakness, they are carefully constructed and have a reasonable amount cards that make them work correctly.

    (Very poor challenge curve)
    Most of the AI controlled decks (even on the highest difficulty) are ridiculously easy to beat. But then randomly sprinkled into their incoherant story based campaign are decks that are insanely difficult to defeat EXCEPT for very specific removal mechanics; The Hydra deck and the token deck for instance. Being hit for 25 5th turn as a matter of routine is not fun.

    This is so poor that it forces to player to play ONLY in one way to be able to defeat these decks.

    (MTG color strengths are absent)
    White is the most powerful color by far. The other colors cannot come close to competing. For instance, black has 1-2 cards that are creature removal, when traditionally it is the strongest color in terms of removal.

    Green has no large creatures worth the name, blue has little control, red has only a handful of viable direct damage, etc.

    All the strengths of the colors have been neutered of their traditional strengths.

    I feel that the people who designed the color selections did it by randomly selecting cards from boosters. There is no coherant theme or strategy involved in any of the unlocked cards.

    (The deck)
    If anyone's curious, here's the deck I ended up one shotting the game with (I only ever had to play one game against each AI to win):

    20x Plains
    3x Swamp
    4x Nimbus Wings
    3x Armored Ascension
    1x Baneslayer Angel
    1x Cobbled Wings
    3x Elite Vanguard
    2x Mentor of the Meek
    1x Arrest
    4x Deviant Glee
    3x Banisher Priest
    1x Planar Cleansing
    4x Gods Willing
    2x Hero of Iroas
    3x Reprisal 3x Ajani's Pridemate 2x Child of Night I only splashed black since the selection for white cards was so poor. With white creature removal (the only cards worthy of the name, since no other color has anything comparable) as the backbone, then Armored Ascension to make heavy hitting flyers. The rest is details since the computer can't deal with those two cards at all. Fantastically useful was the Gods Willing, but this was the cherry on top of the previous two items and only served to make easy games into ridiculously easy AI stomping games. I did have quite a bit of fun designing and testing this deck, which is why I haven't rated the game lower.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

66
#66 Most Discussed PC Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 25
  3. Negative: 5 out of 25
  1. CD-Action
    Oct 22, 2014
    70
    Duels of the Planeswalkers is an invaluable tool for learning how to play Magic: The Gathering. [10/2014, p.64]
  2. Pelit (Finland)
    Sep 17, 2014
    77
    The card game takes one step forward and two steps backwards. Free deckbuilding is a big plus, but when you consider that the play modes from old Duels are cut completely and some of the card pool available is behind an IAP paywall, the new Duels doesn't compare well against other, cheaper, slicker and - quite frankly - more fun competition like Hearthstone. Duels is simple not on par with the competition. [Sept 2014]
  3. games(TM)
    Sep 16, 2014
    50
    The poor AI becomes increasingly apparent and even more of a chore upon completing the campaign. [Issue#152, p.114]
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