Is MTGO Wirth Playing?
Online Magic forum
Posted on Feb. 15, 2018, 4:43 p.m. by Epidilius
Basically title. Is MTGO worth buying into?
bulletmonkey97 says... #3
I got into it recently, and it is super convenient, being able to play wherever and whenever.
February 15, 2018 4:49 p.m.
Epidilius,
I'm a big fan. Sure there are plenty of free online options, but the quality of play is (on average) much higher on MTGO ... that plus the convenience (you can get in a BUNCH of reps very quickly) make it a great way to level up.
February 15, 2018 5:20 p.m.
UrbanAnathema says... #5
Also playing Leagues is the most accessible way to play tournament level Magic and post results.
If you are good enough, you can just play off your winnings. I haven't paid to play MTGO in months.
You are also able to cash out at any time for actual dollars at around 90cents to 1 Tix.
February 15, 2018 7:47 p.m.
Its cheaper than you think probably too. Even if you don't enter events and just play in the "just for fun" practice rooms you can play for free forever once you get some decks built. I play edh this way, 1v1 and multiplayer, and its great fun.
February 15, 2018 8:25 p.m.
I have been thinking about selling my decks to transition to MTGO, very interested in hearing people's pros and cons as well.
FNMs are a mission to get to and the timings are always inconvenient, and I can just proxy with friends. So the temptation is real.
February 15, 2018 8:40 p.m.
UrbanAnathema says... #8
Biggest obstacles other than overcoming the concept of rebuking digital versions of the cards is the UI. The interface is not great, and takes some getting used to. But once you do, it's clear sailing.
February 15, 2018 9:53 p.m.
dinosaurjr48 says... #9
I played MTGO for months obssessivly to save money or cards..that doesnt work. what does work!!!!!!?- COCKATRICE! All the cards are free! Theres a huge playerbase! Plus alot of people i see on there like it more because it feels more like real magic. MTGO does everything for you.
February 16, 2018 2:15 a.m.
I play Xmage to test and it's fine for testing decks and getting some reps.If you have lots of money and can afford both paper and MTGO, go for it.If not, choose one.Paper has it's pros:
Interaction with people
Fun with friends
You get something physical (paper)
Cons:
More expensive
MTGO has other pros:
Conveniency
Cons:
Uncertain future, MTG arena coming. Tix value varies.
February 16, 2018 5:06 a.m.
UrbanAnathema says... #11
Arena is never going to replace MTGO. Arena isn't going to offer eternal formats.
February 16, 2018 9:33 a.m.
UrbanAnathema,
I agree that Arena won't replace MTGO in the near term, but for at least two reasons, I'm not so sure about "never":
- As drafts move from MTGO to Arena there will be fewer cards available for the eternal formats. We have a stable MTGO ecomony at this point, but changes in both supply and demand could cause some weirdness until it settles out again.
- Hopefully, it will settle out at a point where Wizards still makes plenty of money. Because keeping two development teams going (one for Arena and one for MTGO) is going to be tough otherwise.
All that said, I'm still VERY happy with MTGO ... sure, there's a little more uncertainly than we had a year ago, but that doesn't mean much!
February 16, 2018 10:48 a.m.
The way it handles rules enforcement is reason enough for me vs. Cockatrice.
February 16, 2018 11:39 a.m.
UrbanAnathema says... #14
clayperce I agree with all of your statements. However I do think that the risk is negligible. Wizards is making a TON of money off MTGO and have an entrenched userbase that have spent a huge amount of money over the years. It would be business suicide to kill MTGO in favor of Arena without somehow giving their customer base a way to transfer the value of their collections to Arena.
The rug is not going to get pulled out.
February 16, 2018 12:13 p.m.
Epidilius,
Just to clarify, I'm with UrbanAnathema 100%. The risk is negligible.
February 16, 2018 12:40 p.m.
All,
I'm 100% not trying to turn this thread into an ad, but I wanted to pass on a few tidbits on purchasing cards:
IMO, Cardhoarder has a GREAT Beginner's Guide to MTGO.
I don't think I've ever bought cards from MTGO itself. Because Cardhoarder's prices are always decent and to "thank" them for the guide, I buy almost all my cards from them. However, on pricey cards, I'll always shop around. I check foils too (supply and demand is obviously different on MTGO than irl ... sometimes the foil version of a card is less expensive than the normal version).
As an example: here's Blood Moon prices at five popular stores:
- Cardhoarder: 8ED: $24.12
- DojoTrade: 9ED $20.62
- MTGOtraders: 8ED Foil $22.95
- GoatBots: 8ED Foil 18.99 TIX (~$20.55)
- GOWikiPrice: 9ED foil 19.50 TIX (~$21.10)
Also, please feel free to hit me up anytime if you want to play Modern vs. Ponza, Infect, or a few random jank decks. I'm clayperce on MTGO too.
February 20, 2018 4:12 p.m.
I would very much like to try MTGO, but I can't afford to buy my collection in paper and online.
Any hints on how to make this work?I could sell paper abrupt decay's and some casual stuff. But that would nowhere near cover the costs of buying into UR for modern.
Also, those who play MTGO and Xmage, how do you compare both of them? Is MTGO worth over Xmage, and why?
February 23, 2018 5:06 a.m.
For me,
MTGO > xMage because of rules enforcement and events.
Rules enforcement places triggers on stack and handles counters.
And in some ways, I use "owning digital cards" as a way to justify proxying my paper cards.
The price of digital cards on MTGO is pretty reasonable... dual lands for < 1 tix... 1 tix ~$1 etc.
February 23, 2018 5:32 p.m.
UrbanAnathema says... #19
My advice is to buy into a deck you are experienced with and then build up winnings in Leagues. My play now pays for itself and all new cards.
February 24, 2018 1:40 a.m.
Proxying paper cards? As in high quality proxies and taking them to FNM's?
February 25, 2018 6:19 p.m.
UrbanAnathema says... #21
No. Buy into an MTGO deck. Then play Leagues and recoup your $.
p3hndrx says... #2
I think so. I play there almost exclusively. <3
February 15, 2018 4:46 p.m.