Magic: The Gathering's Spider-Man Cards Look Cool But Prices Have Gotten Out Of Control
Magic: the Gathering recently revealed some of the cards coming to its comic-book-inspired Marvel's Spider-Man set, including Venom, Green Goblin, Doc Ock, and of course the webbed wall-crawler himself. The cards look cool and seem like they'd be fun to play. They're also very expensive, continuing a recent trend of Wizards of the Coast's trading card game charging fans a ton for crossover sets, even before they sell out and get flipped for unconscionable sums by scalpers on eBay and elsewhere.
In addition to teasing the first six cards in the upcoming set, slated to arrive in the second half of 2025, Wizards of the Coast parent company Hasbro also recently confirmed the Marvel's Spider-Man set is a booster-based expansion, meaning no pre-constructed Commander decks. But even without the recent 40-percent markup on those hot-ticket items, the set's baseline booster packs will still be $7 each, and a whopping $38 for the Collector packs sporting special card designs.
That's in-line with the recently revealed Final Fantasy set for Magic: the Gathering, whose prices similarly shocked long-time fans. 'Play booster boxes are $200, Collector boxes are $455, the decks and bundles are $70, this is actually ridiculous,' an MTG player wrote last month about the Square Enix collaboration. 'I get this is Universes Beyond and all that but this is absurd.'
The discourse around the new Spider-Man set has echoed similar sentiments. Two points often brought up by players are that these crossovers remain legal in the Standard Format, so dedicated players who want to remain competitive and not miss out still need to partake. Also, the cards themselves haven't changed. It's the same machines printing designs on the same cardboard as in-universe sets which retail for $5.50, just with extra licensing fees attached.
MTG lead designer Mark Rosewater recently confirmed the resulting $1.50 mark-up for Universes Beyond sets will be standard moving forward. And it's easy to see why when the cards still immediately sell out after becoming available for pre-order. Collector Booster boxes for Spider-Man retailing at a whopping $455 are already out of stock on Amazon, as was immediately the case with the Final Fantasy set once it was revealed as well. Pre-orders for Final Fantasy collector boxes are now listed for around $650 on eBay, while the Spider-Man ones are upwards of $700.
It's a bummer that MTG prices are spiking at the exact moment when Universes Beyond crossovers might bring in new or returning players. Some of my friends are lapsed fans and I lobbied them to go in on a play booster box of Final Fantasy for a chill draft when the set drops in June. The universal response upon sharing a screenshot of the BestBuy pre-order page prices in the group chat was 'hell no.' I imagine it's even tougher for any kids without tons of pocket change or who aren't secretly playing MTG like a stock market in their spare time.
.
For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
a day ago
- New York Post
‘Spider-Man' and ‘One Life to Live' star Jack Betts dead at 96
Jack Betts has passed away at 96 years old. The actor starred on the soap opera 'One Life to Live' from 1979 to 1985, appearing in 20 episodes as Llanview Hospital's Dr. Ivan Kipling. Betts' nephew, Dean Sullivan, told The Hollywood Reporter that the star died in his sleep at his house in Los Osos, California, on Thursday. 7 Jack Betts at The Cocktail Hour play opening, LA, California, April 19, 1990. MediaPunch via Getty Images 7 Doris Roberts and Jack Betts arrive at the party celebrating the 200th Episode of 'Everybody Loves Raymond' on October 14, 2004 at Spago in Beverly Hills, California. Getty Images Betts lived with 'Everybody Loves Raymond' actress Doris Roberts before her death at age 90 in 2016. The two would attend events together over the years and Roberts even directed a play written by Betts, about a soap opera, titled 'Screen Test: Take One.' The close pals first met in 1954 at The Actors Studio in New York City in 1954. Decades later, in 1988, Betts accepted Roberts' offer to move from the Big Apple into the downstairs apartment at her Hollywood Hills home. 7 Actor Jack Betts. Columbia Pictures 'We were best friends to the very end, we had wonderful times together,' he gushed following her death. Betts was also known for starring as Henry Balkan – the Oscorp board chair who fired Norman Osborn (Willem Defoe) – in Sam Raimi's 2002 'Spider-Man.' Norman then became the villainous Green Goblin and vaporized Henry and the board. While on 'The Dev Show' in 2020, Betts spoke about filming the Oscorp boardroom shot and how he asked Raimi, 65, if he could add some of his own spin onto the scene. 7 Jack Betts is seen on May 6, 2016. GC Images 'I really looked [Defoe] right in the eye, and I had kind of a smile in my eye — you know, like, 'You're fired, you motherf–ker,'' the actor explained. 'After, I finished it, [Raimi] said, 'That's it. Terrific. Print that one.'' 'My point being is that I wanted to add something just a little different to it instead of doing it the same way over and over and over and over. [Raimi] he was willing to do that. He really was. Wonderful man to work with.' The Hollywood vet was raised in Jersey City, New Jersey, before moving to Miami with his family at age 10. The actor received his degree in theater from the University of Miami, and shortly after graduation, relocated to New York to begin acting. 7 Jose Ferrer, Jack Betts in 'Another World.' Courtesy Everett Collection Betts landed his first role as a supporting actor in the 1953 Broadway adaptation of William Shakespeare's 'Richard III.' For two seasons, from 1960 to 1962, Betts played detective Chris Devlin in the CBS mystery series 'Checkmate' opposite Anthony George, Sebastian Cabot and Doug McClure. The show, created by Eric Ambler, followed private detectives solving cases in San Francisco with the help of a British criminologist. Betts appeared four times on CBS' Perry Mason from 1961-66 before he met Giraldi about starring in Sugar Colt. He told the director that he could ride a horse and had just won a shooting contest — of course, he had never been on a horse or handled a gun — but he spent the next three weeks learning those skills at John Wayne's ranch before reporting for duty at Cinecittà in Rome. Shortly after, he entered the soap opera world, landing a role on 'General Hospital' from 1963 to 1965. 7 Jack Betts, Barbara Lord, Peter Falk in 'The Bloody Brood.' Courtesy Everett Collection From there, Betts made his mark on the franchises, and along with 'One Life to Live,' he had parts on 'The Edge of Night,' 'The Doctors,' 'Another World,' 'All My Children,' 'Search for Tomorrow,' 'Guiding Light,' 'Loving,' 'The Young and the Restless,' and 'Generations.' Some of Betts most memorable television roles included 'Seinfeld,' 'Frasier,' 'Everybody Loves Raymond,' 'Monk,' and 'Friends.' His last credited series was on the Freeform drama 'Good Trouble' in 2019. 7 Barbara Bain, Jack Betts in 'Silver Skies.' Courtesy Everett Collection When Betts stepped onto the spaghetti Western scene in 1966 as the title character Hunt Powers in Franco Giraldi's 'Sugar Colt,' he was able to turn that film into 15 others until 1973. But Betts didn't get the same credit as a certain fellow western star did. 'In the hotel next to mine was Clint Eastwood,' he recounted in a 2021 interview. 'He'd go up to his mountain and do his Western and I'd go up to my mountain and do my Western. But while his films had distribution all over the world, my films were distributed [everywhere] except Canada and America.' Betts is survived by his sister, Joan – who is set to turn 100 this year – nephew Dean, and nieces, Lynee and Gail.
Gizmodo
a day ago
- Gizmodo
‘Magic: The Gathering' Unveils Its First ‘Avatar: Last Airbender' Card
Magic: The Gathering has been doing crossover packs with various IP, and later this year, Avatar: The Last Airbender is joining those ranks. During this weekend's MagicCon, Wizards of the Coast showed off its first card from the set dropping in late November. Naturally, that card is a Legendary featuring Aang manipulating water, fire, earth, and air while in the Avatar State. On the flip side is him looking up at his Avatar Spirit, with artwork for both sides drawn by Airbender co-creator Bryan Konietzko, a process you can see below. For Magic players, the 'Avatar Aang' side lets them draw a card whenever they bend one of the four elements and transform into Avatar Aang if all four are drawn by the current turn. Conversely, the 'Master of Elements' side lets them 'gain 4 life, draw four cards, put four +1/+1 counters on him, and he deals 4 damage to each opponent' at the start of each upkeep. Coming November 21, 2025https:// — Magic: The Gathering (@wizards_magic) June 20, 2025In its blog post, Wizards teased the Avatar set will let players 'take a ride on a sky bison, channel the memories of past Avatars, and explore a world of untold wonders.' It follows the Final Fantasy set released earlier in June, which was already successful before it even hit stores, and the Spider-Man set dropping in September. Wizards plans to unveil more information on Magic'sAvatar: The Last Airbender set Tuesday, August 12, including mechanics and other cards from the set. The full collaboration will hit shelves Friday, November 21. Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
a day ago
Jon Bernthal reported to join Tom Holland in upcoming 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day'
Jon Bernthal could be set to return as the Punisher in "Spider‑Man: Brand New Day," the next installment in the Sony/Marvel Spider‑Man franchise, according to " The Hollywood Reporter." Directed by Shang‑Chi filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton, the film is scheduled to begin production in England this summer and is set for release on July 31, 2026, Sony announced via Instagram back in March. Bernthal previously portrayed Frank Castle in Netflix's "Daredevil and The Punisher," later reprising the role in "Daredevil: Born Again" on Disney+. While details remain under wraps, it is reported that the movie picks up after the events of "Spider‑Man: No Way Home," where the world's memory of Peter Parker's identity as Spider‑Man was erased. Tom Holland will return as Peter Parker, with Zendaya and Jacob Batalon expected to reprise their roles as MJ and Ned. The extent of their involvement has not been confirmed. "Stranger Things" star Sadie Sink and "The Bear" actress Liza Colón-Zayas are also joining the cast in undisclosed roles, according to IMDB. "Spider‑Man: Brand New Day" will be the fourth solo Spider‑Man film starring Tom Holland and the first directed by Cretton.
