3 ms·

> For MTG and its ilk, you can buy a card instead of open packs. That's false. The manufacturer (Wizards of the Coast) does not sell individual cards. You have

> For MTG and its ilk, you can buy a card instead of open packs. That's false. The manufacturer (Wizards of the Coast) does not sell individual cards. You have to gamble and buy random packs. You're describing buying specific cards from people who have done the gambling already by buying packs and opening them.

bsder 4y ago
> That's false. The manufacturer (Wizards of the Coast) does not sell individual cards. You have to gamble and buy random packs. This is true but glosses over the fact that you bought a thing. And you can buy and sell that thing--as can others. In addition, most of the "boxes" that were sold for MTG were almost always net positive in terms of money spent. Yeah, make sure you preorder and don't buy from scalpers. However, if you spent $200 on cards you generally got slightly more than $200 in value if you kept them in good shape and then cashed them in later. Contrast this to something like Genshin Impact where you simply cannot dodge the gacha mechanics in any way, shape or form AND you have zero idea what the probabilities are and whether the game company is being consistent (they almost certainly are not). Side note: This example is, of course, one of the reasons why WotC is getting hammered for the 30th anniversary box. The MTG community appears to be quite sensitive to getting taken for a ride. So, there's clearly some difference between MTG-like games and pure gambling or gacha mechanics.
- hypertele-Xii 4y ago
  Can you not sell a Genshin Impact account? My understanding is that selling accounts that have been pre-gambled so to speak has a long history in MMOs and pay-to-win games. If you can't re-sell the virtual items, just re-sell the whole account. MtG cards are things out of physical necessity. If WotC could lock cards to whoever purchase them first, I've no doubt they would. They've been heavily pushing digital versions of the game lately, where they have the ability to control, limit, or eliminate the second hand market.
  - bsder 4y ago
    > Can you not sell a Genshin Impact account? My understanding was that selling these is a bannable offense and that they are tied to the identity of the phone. > If WotC could lock cards to whoever purchase them first, I've no doubt they would. Oh, no doubt. MTGO tried that path and had a bunch of their big players boycott them. WotC got schooled real quick that their top players play this game precisely because they can make money at each level without gambling. This is why MTGO still allows people to purchase individual cards as well as cash out their digital collections for real, physical cards. Yes, it's a historical accident that WotC/Hasbro would change. Nevertheless, it is what sets the standard game apart from mere gambling. (Don't get me started on the gorp that WotC/Hasbro pulls around their more expensive formats--Legacy, particularly. Yeah, that's pretty much back to straight up gambling.)

bsder 4y ago

> That's false. The manufacturer (Wizards of the Coast) does not sell individual cards. You have to gamble and buy random packs. This is true but glosses over the fact that you bought a thing. And you can buy and sell that thing--as can others. In addition, most of the "boxes" that were sold for MTG were almost always net positive in terms of money spent. Yeah, make sure you preorder and don't buy from scalpers. However, if you spent $200 on cards you generally got slightly more than $200 in value if you kept them in good shape and then cashed them in later. Contrast this to something like Genshin Impact where you simply cannot dodge the gacha mechanics in any way, shape or form AND you have zero idea what the probabilities are and whether the game company is being consistent (they almost certainly are not). Side note: This example is, of course, one of the reasons why WotC is getting hammered for the 30th anniversary box. The MTG community appears to be quite sensitive to getting taken for a ride. So, there's clearly some difference between MTG-like games and pure gambling or gacha mechanics.

hypertele-Xii 4y ago
Can you not sell a Genshin Impact account? My understanding is that selling accounts that have been pre-gambled so to speak has a long history in MMOs and pay-to-win games. If you can't re-sell the virtual items, just re-sell the whole account. MtG cards are things out of physical necessity. If WotC could lock cards to whoever purchase them first, I've no doubt they would. They've been heavily pushing digital versions of the game lately, where they have the ability to control, limit, or eliminate the second hand market.
- bsder 4y ago
  > Can you not sell a Genshin Impact account? My understanding was that selling these is a bannable offense and that they are tied to the identity of the phone. > If WotC could lock cards to whoever purchase them first, I've no doubt they would. Oh, no doubt. MTGO tried that path and had a bunch of their big players boycott them. WotC got schooled real quick that their top players play this game precisely because they can make money at each level without gambling. This is why MTGO still allows people to purchase individual cards as well as cash out their digital collections for real, physical cards. Yes, it's a historical accident that WotC/Hasbro would change. Nevertheless, it is what sets the standard game apart from mere gambling. (Don't get me started on the gorp that WotC/Hasbro pulls around their more expensive formats--Legacy, particularly. Yeah, that's pretty much back to straight up gambling.)