In case you didn't know, Magic: The Gathering (known to most as just "Magic" or "MTG") is a collectible card game from Wizards of the Coast that can be played physically as a tabletop game, or digitally online.
If you've played any collectible card game before (like Hearthstone, Yu-Gi-Oh, or Gwent), then you know the drill - use your wits and strategy to build a deck, and then battle against others for the win against their deck.
Magic tends to release in "sets" that tell a story, however, they also have something called "Magic: Universes Beyond" where they aim to "combine the world and character of IPs we love" with the well-loved Trading Card Game.
They've previously covered things like Godzilla, Fortnite, and Street Fighter, but coming in Q3 2023 is a Magic: Universes beyond set themed around Doctor Who, including companions, villains, and locations from right across Doctor Who's vast sixty-year history.
The release will align with the 60th-anniversary celebrations and will include content not yet public about Doctor Who. The team at Wizards has been seeing content in production by the BBC for next year and is aiming to highlight the New Doctor, as well as things that will be happening next year and onwards.
It won't be a full booster set, but rather will be comprised of four commander decks - although Wizards can't yet confirm how many cards will be included.
In addition to Doctor Who, Magic: Universes Beyond will also be stepping into the world of Warhammer 40k, with four new decks planned around four of the factions from the Warhammer universe, and each deck will come with a Sol Ring themed around its faction.
The final and potentially biggest crossover comes in the form of MTG: The Lord of the Rings, Tales from Middle Earth. With a release date in Q3 2023, the set will be a Modern Legal, fully draftable booster set, which will include Borderless art cards depicting scenes from the trilogy.
Wizards have stated that the set will be "treated with the care and attention a core set would be", and the borderless scene cards are a good example of this - one example contains a battle from Return of the King which is made up of 18 cards, each a great piece of art in its own right, but even more spectacular when combined.
It will contain items, locations, and characters from the series, as well as key moments and scenes from the books. It will be available physically and digitally on Magic: The Gathering Arena - the online version of the Trading Card Game.
Finally comes a Magic: Universes Beyond crossover with Warhammer: 40,000, including four new commander decks, each themed around a particular faction from the Warhammer universe. Each deck comes with a Sol Ring themed around the faction, and the decks are available in both Regular and Collector editions.
It's going to be a big year for Magic that's for sure, and definitely, one to watch whether you're a fan of the game or not.
