I started playing Magic: The Gathering in 1994 when I was 19 years old. Revised was the dominant set, with dual-lands costing only a few bucks compared to the near-$1,000 pricetag for some of them now. I think I bought a Black Lotus around 1995/96 for $100. Today they go for $15,000. Or whatever someone’s willing to pay.

Back then, the collectible card game was purely fantasy-based, clearly influenced by JRR Tolkien and Dungeons & Dragons. And it ushered in an era of CCGs and still has a consistent, loyal following.

However, in the last year it purchased IPs to smear all over its sets. There was one dedicated to Spider-Man, and one for Avatar, The Last Air-Bender. I didn’t buy one card. I’d of course heard of Spider-Man and was vaguely aware of Avatar. But they weren’t Magic. They were cash grabs. Magic did it before with Fallout, Assassin’s Creed, and a few others that slip my mind. Two collaborations that made sense were Dungeons & Dragons, and Lord of the Rings, the latter of which was a phenomenal best-seller.

The last pre-release I attended featured a set called Edge of Eternities, which was outer-space-themed, of all things.

Magic finally got back to its roots with Lorwyn Eclipsed, a set brimming with goblins, elves, giants, elementals, and even a big red dragon. The cards aren’t the most powerful compared to other sets, and that’s good because it makes them affordable. The artwork sets this expansion apart. One of my favorite cards isn’t one I would play. I just enjoy the art:

It captures the flavor from 30 years ago. Sometimes nostalgia rocks.

I also grew up watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And guess which IP is planned for Magic’s next set. Yep. TMNT! And I won’t buy a single card. I’m not sure how much longer MTG can go on. As long as people think up new cards and mechanics and enough people buy them, it can go on for another 30 years. But I’ve been buying less of it over the past few years, and that’s great for my wallet. Playing with those old cards, many of which I still have, against my son is all I need.