@mastermark
I heard about EDH. It sounds fun, but honestly, I probably don't have the energy to learn the ins and outs of another format. The only format that I am interested is Modern, and maybe Zombies/horde mode.
And just to give everyone an update, I officially stopped playing Magic around the time Magic 2015 came out. The M15 prerelease was the last Magic event I have attended to this day. Also, I have passed two sections of the CPA exam, and hopefully, I will be done with the remaining two in the near future. Also, I am trying to network with professionals in my area to make a move soon, as I do not foresee staying with my current employer long-term. I plan to get back into Magic once I am able to successfully tackle these things and my life settles down.
@mastermark
I heard about EDH. It sounds fun, but honestly, I probably don't have the energy to learn the ins and outs of another format. The only format that I am interested is Modern, and maybe Zombies/horde mode.
And just to give everyone an update, I officially stopped playing Magic around the time Magic 2015 came out. The M15 prerelease was the last Magic event I have attended to this day. Also, I have passed two sections of the CPA exam, and hopefully, I will be done with the remaining two in the near future. Also, I am trying to network with professionals in my area to make a move soon, as I do not foresee staying with my current employer long-term. I plan to get back into Magic once I am able to successfully tackle these things and my life settles down.
I've considered it because I'm having a bit of a personal crisis in my life, but my social circle plays MTG and I have no other outlets in my personal life to be social. FNM forces me to be social, although it's a bit awkward because people assume that I know what they're talking about and I really don't. I have to get stuff explained to me constantly because I don't spend my other free time learning about MTG.
If you get back into it later on, you'll regret it.
I take periodic breaks. Vancouver's summers are excellent but also, quite short! I've "quit" magic twice, but only in the sense of hiatus: when there's a beautiful evening and swimming, hiking, or even just hanging out outside with friends is an option, being cooped up inside a sweaty game shop is a less than ideal way to spend Friday night.
I am dedicating less and less time to Standard, though. For a while there were no Modern events in Vancouver, so if I wanted to play that format it meant solitaire or visiting the US, so I reluctantly gave in and played Standard... and in all fairness, had a lot of fun! Now two stores have weekly or biweekly Modern nights on different nights, so I can sink my money into something that doesn't rotate, and keep a toe in Standard with budget decks.
I shifted to Legscy full time a while ago and play pther formats when and if I can. It's more or less a result of my shift not only in interest in the game but also in time I have for the game. I can't dedicate the time I used to for standard anymore unless friends hand me stacks of cardboard on off nights to play FNM or whatever. I hit this same bridge with other hobbies too. It's normal for people to take breaks, leave formats or maybe even leave the game.
Do you actually want to play? If you do then play. Otherwise, don't. It doesn't seem like theres anything stopping you from doing either.
CPA exam and working full-time and networking. I would need to fare decently well in these things if I want to find a new job (don't want to get into the nitty gritty, basically, I don't see a future with the current company).
Do you actually want to play? If you do then play. Otherwise, don't. It doesn't seem like theres anything stopping you from doing either.
CPA exam and working full-time and networking. I would need to fare decently well in these things if I want to find a new job (don't want to get into the nitty gritty, basically, I don't see a future with the current company).
What got to me in the end was the time just spent researching and staying in the game. If I spent that time focusing on more productive things, I think I'd be in a much better position. I built top tier UW Delver during SOM/INN Standard and basically learned metagaming and everything during that time. Then I took leftover cards from that era and built a budget deck during INN/RTR that really stomped face in a competitive store and even won me half a booster box once. But what really enabled me to win wasn't the cards, but the time I spent researching the metagame and countering other decks, as well as staying on top of the market with my investments in the game. It was during this time I started paying attention to speculation and kinda got wrapped up in it.
Eventually I had to really focus on schoolwork during RTR/THS so I shifted back into Modern, which I'd started building somewhere around the beginning of INN/RTR. But I never ended up having time to play my Modern deck and I had to keep updating it, not to mention researching my specs and the meta.
I guess what really woke me up was getting my binder stolen a few months back. I lost nearly $2k worth of cards (most of them spec targets (foil shocks and stuff), plus some high end Reserved List/Gurus). I realized how much money and time I was sinking into a game that I wasn't even playing anymore. So now I'm selling out, but keeping a cheap Legacy Dredge deck around (by cheap, I mean cheaper than any deck I've run in Standard/Modern so far because I tended to spec in foils) just to show people the game and as a sort of memento- maybe I might even hit up the occasional Legacy tournament every couple months if I get the competitive itch.
All right, so what's the point I'm trying to make? Well, I don't agree with part of your statement in the beginning of the thread, where you say you're sick of losing to top-dollar decks, because you also state that you're sick of losing to people who metagame and playtest hardcore. Look, it's either money or time that gets you places and they're basically synonymous when it comes to Magic. If you want to beat top-tier decks, you metagame and find a good budget deck that has a solid matchup against them, which is what I did in INN/RTR. In fact, I was even more successful because of that. But that took time. A lot of time. Basically, what you're saying is that you hate the investment that you have to put into Magic to compete.
I agree. It's taxing. But it's similar to a lot of other hobbies where being good at it means the maintenance is huge, whether monetary (drag racing comes to mind) or temporal (chess?). So perhaps this isn't the right hobby for us, or perhaps, we've just been approaching it wrong the whole time. Maybe it's only now that we've found the right way to approach it. I'm basically doing what you're doing: attending the odd prerelease and not going to FNM or anything- but I've also invested in a format that I don't think takes as much maintenance (Dredge lists have stayed pretty consistent for the past 4-5 years and I hope it stays that way *fingers crossed*).
So what I'm trying to say is -and maybe you've realized it already- just play what suits you best. If you still like the competitive aspect of the game and don't want to keep spending time and money, maybe just stick with Modern/Legacy and stay away from Standard. If you just wanna feel Magic cards in your hands once in a while, then just attending prereleases or draft might be enough. It's not the game's fault that you couldn't play Standard competitively. It's no one's; that's just the way your life turned out.
Currently, I work full-time with a job that I am not a big fan of. I am also just sucking it up to my coworkers and my supervisor so no one really knows this except this one guy, the only guy I like at our department. I am hoping to do well so that I can transfer to our parent company, which does not have a lot of the crap that we have where I work. To go into detail about that would probably fill an entire page by itself. Anyways, I am also studying for the CPA exam in the hopes to further my goal of transferring. You need to pass all 4 sections of the CPA exam for it to count, and currently I have already passed 1, which means 3 more to go. With working full-time as well as studying for the CPA exam, free time is hard to come by.
Going to FNM has been fun. Our card shop have a mix of casual and competitive players, and I have done finished surprisingly well (consistently finishing top 8 several times, which is surprising because I have a budget deck). That being said, I am kinda getting tired of losing to people who either spend top dollar for the best deck or the people who spend countless hours playtesting and deck building. I play Magic only for casual appeal, which is why I only go for FNM and prereleases. I have never been to a Game Day, State Championship, Grand Prix Trial, Pro Tour Qualifier, TCGplayer Invitational, Starcity Open, or any of the other tournaments going around. I have made some pretty good friends at my card shop, so I do not consider my time playing Magic as a loss. Also, I will try to keep my thoughts about prices as short as possible. But Standard is a money sink. You will be paying $20 or $30 for cards that will be in the dollar bin when they rotate. And the prices of Modern are getting insane, with 6 out of the top 8 decks from GP Richmond costing over $1,000 each (including 2 that cost over $2,000 each).
I am already selling the cards that I can (except for my budget Standard and Modern deck, just so that I can still play with other people). Anyone else thinking about leaving Magic behind?
Edit: Passed 2 sections of the CPA exam. 2 more to go.
After moving out of Memphis and leaving behind that playtesting crew there(including Zac Hill and David Glore) I moved on to other hobbies though I did catch the Innistrad prerelease and had a lot of fun. Just too damn expensive of a hobby.
What got to me in the end was the time just spent researching and staying in the game. If I spent that time focusing on more productive things, I think I'd be in a much better position. I built top tier UW Delver during SOM/INN Standard and basically learned metagaming and everything during that time. Then I took leftover cards from that era and built a budget deck during INN/RTR that really stomped face in a competitive store and even won me half a booster box once. But what really enabled me to win wasn't the cards, but the time I spent researching the metagame and countering other decks, as well as staying on top of the market with my investments in the game. It was during this time I started paying attention to speculation and kinda got wrapped up in it.
Eventually I had to really focus on schoolwork during RTR/THS so I shifted back into Modern, which I'd started building somewhere around the beginning of INN/RTR. But I never ended up having time to play my Modern deck and I had to keep updating it, not to mention researching my specs and the meta.
I guess what really woke me up was getting my binder stolen a few months back. I lost nearly $2k worth of cards (most of them spec targets (foil shocks and stuff), plus some high end Reserved List/Gurus). I realized how much money and time I was sinking into a game that I wasn't even playing anymore. So now I'm selling out, but keeping a cheap Legacy Dredge deck around (by cheap, I mean cheaper than any deck I've run in Standard/Modern so far because I tended to spec in foils) just to show people the game and as a sort of memento- maybe I might even hit up the occasional Legacy tournament every couple months if I get the competitive itch.
All right, so what's the point I'm trying to make? Well, I don't agree with part of your statement in the beginning of the thread, where you say you're sick of losing to top-dollar decks, because you also state that you're sick of losing to people who metagame and playtest hardcore. Look, it's either money or time that gets you places and they're basically synonymous when it comes to Magic. If you want to beat top-tier decks, you metagame and find a good budget deck that has a solid matchup against them, which is what I did in INN/RTR. In fact, I was even more successful because of that. But that took time. A lot of time. Basically, what you're saying is that you hate the investment that you have to put into Magic to compete.
I agree. It's taxing. But it's similar to a lot of other hobbies where being good at it means the maintenance is huge, whether monetary (drag racing comes to mind) or temporal (chess?). So perhaps this isn't the right hobby for us, or perhaps, we've just been approaching it wrong the whole time. Maybe it's only now that we've found the right way to approach it. I'm basically doing what you're doing: attending the odd prerelease and not going to FNM or anything- but I've also invested in a format that I don't think takes as much maintenance (Dredge lists have stayed pretty consistent for the past 4-5 years and I hope it stays that way *fingers crossed*).
So what I'm trying to say is -and maybe you've realized it already- just play what suits you best. If you still like the competitive aspect of the game and don't want to keep spending time and money, maybe just stick with Modern/Legacy and stay away from Standard. If you just wanna feel Magic cards in your hands once in a while, then just attending prereleases or draft might be enough. It's not the game's fault that you couldn't play Standard competitively. It's no one's; that's just the way your life turned out.
My condolences about your loss on that binder. Also, I agree about what you said about putting time and money to be top-tier. Since that time I wrote the original post, my days of playing Standard (and sanctioned events in general) are over. The most recent sanctioned event I went to was Magic 2015 prerelease. I ocassionaly show up at my LGS just to trade with people or play some Modern matches just for fun. But all in all, I understand and agree with your post.
I remember almost leaving Magic behind when oil prices were $3-4 a gallon back in the mid to late 2000's where I live since most of my friends who used to show up to play couldn't afford the trip to make it up to my LGS which caused the store owner to minimize table space for business inventory and close the store early on Saturdays. I had a lot of wonderful memories playing Magic in the last 12 years however I've always had that sense of regret where I was afraid to leave the friends I've made playing Magic and other collectible card games in the last decade behind. The pain is almost too much for me to bare but I know that one day I'm going to have to make that life changing decision where I need to let it all go and move on with my life.
I've always been a casual player when it comes to playing Magic as being competitive was too expensive to keep up although I've always tried to build my casual decks around Modern and Extended since Standard and Legacy are too expensive. I lost interest in Standard when Combo died since it's just Balls-to-Wall Aggro and Control nowadays but it didn't stop me from running Combo decks in Modern which upset some of my friends in my playgroup. Most of my friends that I played Magic with in the last 12 years are either too busy with work on Fridays and Saturdays to show up playing, being unemployed as a result of the Great Recession of 2008, married with kids to look after, serving the U.S. military, or being stuck playing MMORPG's like World of Warcraft, League of Legends, and Online Card Games like Hearthstone rather than getting out of the house to play Magic.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
MTG is probably the best TCG I ever played but I recently moved on from it as well. I cant say I ever regretted doing it since it taught me a lot of things. As someone who wants to potentially make games some day, MTG is an impressive game and it is something that anyone who likes games should experience for a little bit.
However, I agree that the direction of the game is kind of getting screwy. I dont like how Standard and EDH are being pushed so much. I am kind of in the camp of those who think Magic is getting "dumber". I really hate thinking that, but I really think it is kind of true. It feels like the game is just becoming too focused about $$$ and the gameplay is hurting due to it. It somewhat feels like the same strategy that every other TCG is going, make cards more powerful that bring in $$$, make the game have more variance, etc etc.
Even if MTG was a perfecet game, I never seen myself playing it long term. I have bigger plans in my life and dont really want to waste my time playing some high variance game that hinders my potential from other things. I was trying to go pro for a bit, playing at GPs and PTQs, and after a while it really felt like a waste of time. Even if I ever "got there" to the PT or whatever, I dont think I would really want to be there. Playing MTG to play more MTG just gets super tedious after a while, especially when you try to chase the tangibles. Most competitive MTG tournaments feel like is playing one tournament to always get to another tournament. Plus I hate how GPs are 15 rounds long, its pretty crappy when you have to play for that long since it doesnt even become fun at that point.
And even casually it felt like a waste of time to me. Both of my LGS near by have their drawbacks. One is overpriced and the other has too many weirdos at it. I just rather do other things in this world than play MTG. Great game, but just not something I feel like I have to be around my entire life. I dont blame people either for giving it up for other things in life. Playing MTG has a cost, which is that your brain is occupying the knowledge from the game. Your brain can only spend so much time focusing on so many things. If you have high asperations in life, its probably best to not get too invested in the game.
Much like how Nintendo and SEGA made me passionate about video games, MTG and Yu-Gi-Oh! made me passionate about Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games even though Yu-Gi-Oh! was my gateway drug to the genre itself. One would find it hard to imagine that MTG would eventually be repeating the same mistakes that we're made with Yu-Gi-Oh! in the last decade up to now where it's not just about overall power creep issues, it's about quantity over quality. A lot of times you won't get the kind of satisfaction playing a Trading Card Game/Collectible Card Game competitively as you would on a casual standpoint or vice versa and that's totally understandable where some games are fundamentally designed to be competitive, casual, or both depending on the coherent nature of it's game mechanics and source material.
I understand where you're coming from though, life's too short to make the best out of one game genre where If you're not able to cherish the memories of all the successes and shortcomings you had with that one game genre then all you're really doing is wasting your disposable income on trying to catch the wind. While many religious faiths possibly condemn that sort of action as vanity, one would look at it as serving his or her own will instead of the will of God where you can't have it both ways. A wise man once said, "You can't have your cake and eat it too". If you focus too much on MTG without trying other Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games that are apart of that same genre then you don't know what you're missing yet at the same time it might be something you'll end up regretting later in life, I learned that the hard way after I quit Yu-Gi-Oh! back in 2004 and never looked back ever since.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Much like how Nintendo and SEGA made me passionate about video games, MTG and Yu-Gi-Oh! made me passionate about Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games even though Yu-Gi-Oh! was my gateway drug to the genre itself. One would find it hard to imagine that MTG would eventually be repeating the same mistakes that we're made with Yu-Gi-Oh! in the last decade up to now where it's not just about overall power creep issues, it's about quantity over quality. A lot of times you won't get the kind of satisfaction playing a Trading Card Game/Collectible Card Game competitively as you would on a casual standpoint or vice versa and that's totally understandable where some games are fundamentally designed to be competitive, casual, or both depending on the coherent nature of it's game mechanics and source material.
I understand where you're coming from though, life's too short to make the best out of one game genre where If you're not able to cherish the memories of all the successes and shortcomings you had with that one game genre then all you're really doing is wasting your disposable income on trying to catch the wind. While many religious faiths possibly condemn that sort of action as vanity, one would look at it as serving his or her own will instead of the will of God where you can't have it both ways. A wise man once said, "You can't have your cake and eat it too". If you focus too much on MTG without trying other Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games that are apart of that same genre then you don't know what you're missing yet at the same time it might be something you'll end up regretting later in life, I learned that the hard way after I quit Yu-Gi-Oh! back in 2004 and never looked back ever since.
Where you talking to me lol?
I was not really talking about other games. I was talking about just life generally speaking. I've played every other TCG and they all are awful compared to MTG except VS System which no longer exists. YGO has too many issues, granite it had a ton of potential to be a great game, its just got so messed up over the years. Pokemon and Cardfight Vanguard are both not real games, regardless of their sales numbers, I would not in a billion years want to associate myself with anyone who is into that stuff. Duel Masters/Kaijudo was interesting, but being owned by a company who primarly cares about MTG, these games were never able to get there. I would have loved if VS system made a comeback, since that game was better than MTG competitively speaking, but I dont see that happening. Every other TCG ever made just doesnt appeal nor matter to me. As much as I enjoyed TCGs over the years, there is also a lot about it that I never really enjoyed. Too many people who play these games have some pretty awful behavioral patterns. I seen TCGs really bring out some of the worst in people since these games create addicting and low morale behavior.
I dont feel bad about quitting MTG since I felt like it was a huge distraction to me. Im trying to get into graduate school and become a writer, and then eventually get into some sort of industry, be it video games, television, youtube skits, plays, music, etc and make a real difference in the world. Playing this game is nice for some amusement, but being competitive just takes up too much of my energy and resources. Being casual has zero appeal to me, since Id rather be casually doing other things, like playing video games, going to the gym, going on dates, working a job, working on my website, writing about stuff, etc etc. Im at the point in my life to where I cant really be wasting my time playing a game that does not really progress my well being. I feel some people dont see that MTG is just one part of life. Its not something thats worth making a lifestyle over. One of the things that really turned me away from trying to be a MTG Pro is that the Pros just dont do that much with their lives. Sure, some guys like LSV, Cheon, Kibler etc have regular jobs, families and other hobbies, but they are a rare bunch. Most of the MTG pros are college dropouts/people who never made much with their lives, who are trying to make a living in the MTG world via being around the game 24/7. That really made me re-evaluate my goals since I did not want to see myself in that spot. It does not look that fun or that fulfilling to be playing MTG nonstop to make meets end.
Yeah did you expect me to quote your last post from this thread earlier when I replied back to you? If other users posted right after you here I would've posted a quote while replying back to you but I didn't. I think that's the first time someone on a message board forum questioned me as to whether or not If I was replying back to him or her.
I was not really talking about other games. I was talking about just life generally speaking. I've played every other TCG and they all are awful compared to MTG except VS System which no longer exists. YGO has too many issues, granite it had a ton of potential to be a great game, its just got so messed up over the years. Pokemon and Cardfight Vanguard are both not real games, regardless of their sales numbers, I would not in a billion years want to associate myself with anyone who is into that stuff. Duel Masters/Kaijudo was interesting, but being owned by a company who primarly cares about MTG, these games were never able to get there. I would have loved if VS system made a comeback, since that game was better than MTG competitively speaking, but I dont see that happening. Every other TCG ever made just doesnt appeal nor matter to me. As much as I enjoyed TCGs over the years, there is also a lot about it that I never really enjoyed. Too many people who play these games have some pretty awful behavioral patterns. I seen TCGs really bring out some of the worst in people since these games create addicting and low morale behavior.
To each his or her own I guess, I'm open minded when it comes to trying out various Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games (even If it's a home brew by my friends at my LGS) while there's some that didn't appeal to me much based on the source material or whether or not If the game mechanics capture the spirit of the source material it's based upon and those type of Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games are usually very hard to come by. It seems to me as though you're dissatisfied with most Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games in general because you didn't get a similar experience with them as you did with MTG and Vs. System. That's understandable depending on how well Organized Play is running and how the Research & Development teams are doing to keep the games in check from unnecessary power creep however to do that on a consistent basis takes a lot of work and commitment from the communities that are supporting the game product. Yu-Gi-Oh! has it rough when it comes to behavioral problems compared to other communities from other Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games where as Pokemon TCG is the most inviting and friendly from my perspective.
I dont feel bad about quitting MTG since I felt like it was a huge distraction to me. Im trying to get into graduate school and become a writer, and then eventually get into some sort of industry, be it video games, television, youtube skits, plays, music, etc and make a real difference in the world. Playing this game is nice for some amusement, but being competitive just takes up too much of my energy and resources. Being casual has zero appeal to me, since Id rather be casually doing other things, like playing video games, going to the gym, going on dates, working a job, working on my website, writing about stuff, etc etc. Im at the point in my life to where I cant really be wasting my time playing a game that does not really progress my well being. I feel some people dont see that MTG is just one part of life. Its not something thats worth making a lifestyle over. One of the things that really turned me away from trying to be a MTG Pro is that the Pros just dont do that much with their lives. Sure, some guys like LSV, Cheon, Kibler etc have regular jobs, families and other hobbies, but they are a rare bunch. Most of the MTG pros are college dropouts/people who never made much with their lives, who are trying to make a living in the MTG world via being around the game 24/7. That really made me re-evaluate my goals since I did not want to see myself in that spot. It does not look that fun or that fulfilling to be playing MTG nonstop to make meets end.
When you put it that way I suppose you could say that gaming in general isn't worth making a lifestyle over especially when it's become glorified by the mainstream media in today's society, not that I'm complaining or anything.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Yeah did you expect me to quote your last post from this thread earlier when I replied back to you? If other users posted right after you here I would've posted a quote while replying back to you but I didn't. I think that's the first time someone on a message board forum questioned me as to whether or not If I was replying back to him or her.
I was not really talking about other games. I was talking about just life generally speaking. I've played every other TCG and they all are awful compared to MTG except VS System which no longer exists. YGO has too many issues, granite it had a ton of potential to be a great game, its just got so messed up over the years. Pokemon and Cardfight Vanguard are both not real games, regardless of their sales numbers, I would not in a billion years want to associate myself with anyone who is into that stuff. Duel Masters/Kaijudo was interesting, but being owned by a company who primarly cares about MTG, these games were never able to get there. I would have loved if VS system made a comeback, since that game was better than MTG competitively speaking, but I dont see that happening. Every other TCG ever made just doesnt appeal nor matter to me. As much as I enjoyed TCGs over the years, there is also a lot about it that I never really enjoyed. Too many people who play these games have some pretty awful behavioral patterns. I seen TCGs really bring out some of the worst in people since these games create addicting and low morale behavior.
To each his or her own I guess, I'm open minded when it comes to trying out various Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games (even If it's a home brew by my friends at my LGS) while there's some that didn't appeal to me much based on the source material or whether or not If the game mechanics capture the spirit of the source material it's based upon and those type of Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games are usually very hard to come by. It seems to me as though you're dissatisfied with most Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games in general because you didn't get a similar experience with them as you did with MTG and Vs. System. That's understandable depending on how well Organized Play is running and how the Research & Development teams are doing to keep the games in check from unnecessary power creep however to do that on a consistent basis takes a lot of work and commitment from the communities that are supporting the game product. Yu-Gi-Oh! has it rough when it comes to behavioral problems compared to other communities from other Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games where as Pokemon TCG is the most inviting and friendly from my perspective.
I dont feel bad about quitting MTG since I felt like it was a huge distraction to me. Im trying to get into graduate school and become a writer, and then eventually get into some sort of industry, be it video games, television, youtube skits, plays, music, etc and make a real difference in the world. Playing this game is nice for some amusement, but being competitive just takes up too much of my energy and resources. Being casual has zero appeal to me, since Id rather be casually doing other things, like playing video games, going to the gym, going on dates, working a job, working on my website, writing about stuff, etc etc. Im at the point in my life to where I cant really be wasting my time playing a game that does not really progress my well being. I feel some people dont see that MTG is just one part of life. Its not something thats worth making a lifestyle over. One of the things that really turned me away from trying to be a MTG Pro is that the Pros just dont do that much with their lives. Sure, some guys like LSV, Cheon, Kibler etc have regular jobs, families and other hobbies, but they are a rare bunch. Most of the MTG pros are college dropouts/people who never made much with their lives, who are trying to make a living in the MTG world via being around the game 24/7. That really made me re-evaluate my goals since I did not want to see myself in that spot. It does not look that fun or that fulfilling to be playing MTG nonstop to make meets end.
When you put it that way I suppose you could say that gaming in general isn't worth making a lifestyle over especially when it's become glorified by the mainstream media in today's society, not that I'm complaining or anything.
Its ok about the quotes, not really a big deal.
Theres many reasons I dont like other TCGs sides MTG and VS. Alot of TCGs fail to capture the essence of what their trying to do. MTG and VS System are the two games that really do it and they part of the few games that were designed for mature audiences. You really dont see that in a lot of games since many games arent very transparent to the public about what they do behind closed doors. VS and MTG both have a lot of effort being put into being good. The designers of these games have amazing artists and visionaries who worked hard at making the games enjoyable.
I played YGO for a good amount of time, about 3-4 years actually. Yes, its got behavior problems, but I feel also Konami is not a very good company in general. Im not a big fan of a company that has also bent over and screwed Castlevania lol. The thing about YGO though is that it was just a weird game. The anime/manga was pretty bad and the design got sloppy over the years. The series went through too many changes and there was no real vision in it. The game now resolves around what should always be hitting the ban list instead of there being a single goal of what a format should be like. I had a decent time playing YGO since I had some decent friends who played the game, but sometimes I wish I never did it as long. It got to the point to where similar to MTG, it just has diminishing returns. I also played Pokemon for about half a year, yeah sure people are nice, but at the same time, the game is not really designed for older people. The game is pretty boring too since they dont balance the colors like they do in MTG and its a really linear game with not that much strategy. Plus competitive Pokemon is a joke, 1 games instead of a full match is a pretty awful idea.
And yes, competitive gaming is a bit overrated. I see the media pushing things like e-sports and poker like its the next best thing. Sure, these games are fun, but I personally could not see myself devoting my life to these things at a potential shot at a fortune. These games keep growing and growing, creating more variance and having more people jumping on the bandwagon chasing what your trying to chase. Similar to how trying to go pro now in MTG is ridiculously hard. Back in the 90s/2000s qualifying for the PT was way easier due to smaller tournaments and also MTG had less variance since games lasted longer and there was less haymakers in everyones deck. Its probably why you had guys like Kai Budde that were 6 time champions. I seriously doubt the game will ever see things like that ever again since theres way too many people playing MTG now. PTs now being 16 rounds and GPs being 15 just make it too hard for repeats to happen as often.
Theres definitely way more interesting and secure things you can do with your life that can also make it so your happy and potentially spike it rich. The time a person invests into a competitive TCG could be spent way more efficiently. If a TCG is what a person loves and does not mind the ups and downs to the lifestyle, then so be it. I personally would never recommend going deep into any card game period.
Theres many reasons I dont like other TCGs sides MTG and VS. Alot of TCGs fail to capture the essence of what their trying to do. MTG and VS System are the two games that really do it and they part of the few games that were designed for mature audiences. You really dont see that in a lot of games since many games arent very transparent to the public about what they do behind closed doors. VS and MTG both have a lot of effort being put into being good. The designers of these games have amazing artists and visionaries who worked hard at making the games enjoyable.
I remember a time when video games were designed for all ages when I was growing up as a gamer but by the time they got too violent with Mortal Kombat the ESRB Rating System was established and the rest was history from there. Now do I expect something similar with the Trading Card Game/Collectible Card Game genre? Not necessarily since most of the TCG's that are out on the Secondary Market today aren't restricted toward specific age demographics as it's not as "cut in dry" like the video game industry is although there is a lack of transparency when it comes to Japanese Trading Card Games/Original Card Games like Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokemon TCG in order to keep those games balanced enough not to power creep themselves to death.
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"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Theres many reasons I dont like other TCGs sides MTG and VS. Alot of TCGs fail to capture the essence of what their trying to do. MTG and VS System are the two games that really do it and they part of the few games that were designed for mature audiences. You really dont see that in a lot of games since many games arent very transparent to the public about what they do behind closed doors. VS and MTG both have a lot of effort being put into being good. The designers of these games have amazing artists and visionaries who worked hard at making the games enjoyable.
I remember a time when video games were designed for all ages when I was growing up as a gamer but by the time they got too violent with Mortal Kombat the ESRB Rating System was established and the rest was history from there. Now do I expect something similar with the Trading Card Game/Collectible Card Game genre? Not necessarily since most of the TCG's that are out on the Secondary Market today aren't restricted toward specific age demographics as it's not as "cut in dry" like the video game industry is although there is a lack of transparency when it comes to Japanese Trading Card Games/Original Card Games like Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokemon TCG in order to keep those games balanced enough not to power creep themselves to death.
Sure, those games arent always for "specific age demographics" but they are designed a certain way to attract a certain group of people. With Pokemon and YGO, both games are kind of mindless and arent very deep or realistic. They kind of feed off people who don't really pay attention to what they are doing with themselves. They both started out as something different and interesting, but as time has gone on, their creators lost sight of what they were originally trying to do so at this point they are just milking their IP to the ground.
Well best of luck to you in your future endeavors JacetheMindFoo, as for me my job at a retail grocer is more important than losing work hours going to college in an unstable economy where I could end up becoming unemployed in the next few months in case the stock market crashes again like it did back in 2008 that plunged us into the Great Recession. I had friends who lost their jobs due to the Great Recession, some of which have been unemployed for 6 years to the point where they we're forced to end their hobby playing Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games since they didn't have the money to keep up with it anymore.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
All other life responsibilities (ie family, work) aside, Magic is a hobby and I am of the firm belief that hobbies should be enjoyable and fit in with your current life. My interest and degree of involvement in Magic has changed as I have changed. There have been times when I played any Magic that I could as often as I could. There were times when Magic was a fun, social game for me and I'd get together with friends and roommates for multiplayer casual gaming. Currently, the only thing that works for me and my current life situation(s) is the occasional FNM. Because of that, my concern is only to build an FNM worthy standard deck- a deck that does well but isn't necessarily top tier and operates along the lines that I like to play (usually either a mana ramp variation or control). Everyone has to analyze their own life and decide where Magic fits and go from there. Some people are like me, just getting in a couple FNMs a month. Others want to go all in and be competitive players, travel to SCG tourneys, and do the whole PTQ thing. Others might draft exclusively, play casual games, play Commander, or something else. It's something each individual has to figure out themselves and there are times and reasons where Magic might not fit in with the other responsibilities that someone has going on.
I heard about EDH. It sounds fun, but honestly, I probably don't have the energy to learn the ins and outs of another format. The only format that I am interested is Modern, and maybe Zombies/horde mode.
And just to give everyone an update, I officially stopped playing Magic around the time Magic 2015 came out. The M15 prerelease was the last Magic event I have attended to this day. Also, I have passed two sections of the CPA exam, and hopefully, I will be done with the remaining two in the near future. Also, I am trying to network with professionals in my area to make a move soon, as I do not foresee staying with my current employer long-term. I plan to get back into Magic once I am able to successfully tackle these things and my life settles down.
Good luck on your exams!
Storm Crow is strictly worse than Seacoast Drake.
If you get back into it later on, you'll regret it.
I take periodic breaks. Vancouver's summers are excellent but also, quite short! I've "quit" magic twice, but only in the sense of hiatus: when there's a beautiful evening and swimming, hiking, or even just hanging out outside with friends is an option, being cooped up inside a sweaty game shop is a less than ideal way to spend Friday night.
I am dedicating less and less time to Standard, though. For a while there were no Modern events in Vancouver, so if I wanted to play that format it meant solitaire or visiting the US, so I reluctantly gave in and played Standard... and in all fairness, had a lot of fun! Now two stores have weekly or biweekly Modern nights on different nights, so I can sink my money into something that doesn't rotate, and keep a toe in Standard with budget decks.
UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU's prison: blue is the new orange is the new black.
Mizzix Of The Izmagnus : wheels on fire... rolling down the road...
BSidisi, Undead VizierB: Bis zum Erbrechen
GTitiania, Protector Of ArgothG: Protecting Argoth, by blowing it up!
GYisan, The Wanderer BardG: Gradus Ad Elfball.
Duel EDH: Yisan & Titania.
In Progress: Grand Arbiter Augustin IV duel; Grenzo, Dungeon Warden Doomsday.
Big Thanks to Xeno for sig art <3.
What got to me in the end was the time just spent researching and staying in the game. If I spent that time focusing on more productive things, I think I'd be in a much better position. I built top tier UW Delver during SOM/INN Standard and basically learned metagaming and everything during that time. Then I took leftover cards from that era and built a budget deck during INN/RTR that really stomped face in a competitive store and even won me half a booster box once. But what really enabled me to win wasn't the cards, but the time I spent researching the metagame and countering other decks, as well as staying on top of the market with my investments in the game. It was during this time I started paying attention to speculation and kinda got wrapped up in it.
Eventually I had to really focus on schoolwork during RTR/THS so I shifted back into Modern, which I'd started building somewhere around the beginning of INN/RTR. But I never ended up having time to play my Modern deck and I had to keep updating it, not to mention researching my specs and the meta.
I guess what really woke me up was getting my binder stolen a few months back. I lost nearly $2k worth of cards (most of them spec targets (foil shocks and stuff), plus some high end Reserved List/Gurus). I realized how much money and time I was sinking into a game that I wasn't even playing anymore. So now I'm selling out, but keeping a cheap Legacy Dredge deck around (by cheap, I mean cheaper than any deck I've run in Standard/Modern so far because I tended to spec in foils) just to show people the game and as a sort of memento- maybe I might even hit up the occasional Legacy tournament every couple months if I get the competitive itch.
All right, so what's the point I'm trying to make? Well, I don't agree with part of your statement in the beginning of the thread, where you say you're sick of losing to top-dollar decks, because you also state that you're sick of losing to people who metagame and playtest hardcore. Look, it's either money or time that gets you places and they're basically synonymous when it comes to Magic. If you want to beat top-tier decks, you metagame and find a good budget deck that has a solid matchup against them, which is what I did in INN/RTR. In fact, I was even more successful because of that. But that took time. A lot of time. Basically, what you're saying is that you hate the investment that you have to put into Magic to compete.
I agree. It's taxing. But it's similar to a lot of other hobbies where being good at it means the maintenance is huge, whether monetary (drag racing comes to mind) or temporal (chess?). So perhaps this isn't the right hobby for us, or perhaps, we've just been approaching it wrong the whole time. Maybe it's only now that we've found the right way to approach it. I'm basically doing what you're doing: attending the odd prerelease and not going to FNM or anything- but I've also invested in a format that I don't think takes as much maintenance (Dredge lists have stayed pretty consistent for the past 4-5 years and I hope it stays that way *fingers crossed*).
So what I'm trying to say is -and maybe you've realized it already- just play what suits you best. If you still like the competitive aspect of the game and don't want to keep spending time and money, maybe just stick with Modern/Legacy and stay away from Standard. If you just wanna feel Magic cards in your hands once in a while, then just attending prereleases or draft might be enough. It's not the game's fault that you couldn't play Standard competitively. It's no one's; that's just the way your life turned out.
After moving out of Memphis and leaving behind that playtesting crew there(including Zac Hill and David Glore) I moved on to other hobbies though I did catch the Innistrad prerelease and had a lot of fun. Just too damn expensive of a hobby.
I've always been a casual player when it comes to playing Magic as being competitive was too expensive to keep up although I've always tried to build my casual decks around Modern and Extended since Standard and Legacy are too expensive. I lost interest in Standard when Combo died since it's just Balls-to-Wall Aggro and Control nowadays but it didn't stop me from running Combo decks in Modern which upset some of my friends in my playgroup. Most of my friends that I played Magic with in the last 12 years are either too busy with work on Fridays and Saturdays to show up playing, being unemployed as a result of the Great Recession of 2008, married with kids to look after, serving the U.S. military, or being stuck playing MMORPG's like World of Warcraft, League of Legends, and Online Card Games like Hearthstone rather than getting out of the house to play Magic.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
However, I agree that the direction of the game is kind of getting screwy. I dont like how Standard and EDH are being pushed so much. I am kind of in the camp of those who think Magic is getting "dumber". I really hate thinking that, but I really think it is kind of true. It feels like the game is just becoming too focused about $$$ and the gameplay is hurting due to it. It somewhat feels like the same strategy that every other TCG is going, make cards more powerful that bring in $$$, make the game have more variance, etc etc.
Even if MTG was a perfecet game, I never seen myself playing it long term. I have bigger plans in my life and dont really want to waste my time playing some high variance game that hinders my potential from other things. I was trying to go pro for a bit, playing at GPs and PTQs, and after a while it really felt like a waste of time. Even if I ever "got there" to the PT or whatever, I dont think I would really want to be there. Playing MTG to play more MTG just gets super tedious after a while, especially when you try to chase the tangibles. Most competitive MTG tournaments feel like is playing one tournament to always get to another tournament. Plus I hate how GPs are 15 rounds long, its pretty crappy when you have to play for that long since it doesnt even become fun at that point.
And even casually it felt like a waste of time to me. Both of my LGS near by have their drawbacks. One is overpriced and the other has too many weirdos at it. I just rather do other things in this world than play MTG. Great game, but just not something I feel like I have to be around my entire life. I dont blame people either for giving it up for other things in life. Playing MTG has a cost, which is that your brain is occupying the knowledge from the game. Your brain can only spend so much time focusing on so many things. If you have high asperations in life, its probably best to not get too invested in the game.
I understand where you're coming from though, life's too short to make the best out of one game genre where If you're not able to cherish the memories of all the successes and shortcomings you had with that one game genre then all you're really doing is wasting your disposable income on trying to catch the wind. While many religious faiths possibly condemn that sort of action as vanity, one would look at it as serving his or her own will instead of the will of God where you can't have it both ways. A wise man once said, "You can't have your cake and eat it too". If you focus too much on MTG without trying other Trading Card Games/Collectible Card Games that are apart of that same genre then you don't know what you're missing yet at the same time it might be something you'll end up regretting later in life, I learned that the hard way after I quit Yu-Gi-Oh! back in 2004 and never looked back ever since.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Where you talking to me lol?
I was not really talking about other games. I was talking about just life generally speaking. I've played every other TCG and they all are awful compared to MTG except VS System which no longer exists. YGO has too many issues, granite it had a ton of potential to be a great game, its just got so messed up over the years. Pokemon and Cardfight Vanguard are both not real games, regardless of their sales numbers, I would not in a billion years want to associate myself with anyone who is into that stuff. Duel Masters/Kaijudo was interesting, but being owned by a company who primarly cares about MTG, these games were never able to get there. I would have loved if VS system made a comeback, since that game was better than MTG competitively speaking, but I dont see that happening. Every other TCG ever made just doesnt appeal nor matter to me. As much as I enjoyed TCGs over the years, there is also a lot about it that I never really enjoyed. Too many people who play these games have some pretty awful behavioral patterns. I seen TCGs really bring out some of the worst in people since these games create addicting and low morale behavior.
I dont feel bad about quitting MTG since I felt like it was a huge distraction to me. Im trying to get into graduate school and become a writer, and then eventually get into some sort of industry, be it video games, television, youtube skits, plays, music, etc and make a real difference in the world. Playing this game is nice for some amusement, but being competitive just takes up too much of my energy and resources. Being casual has zero appeal to me, since Id rather be casually doing other things, like playing video games, going to the gym, going on dates, working a job, working on my website, writing about stuff, etc etc. Im at the point in my life to where I cant really be wasting my time playing a game that does not really progress my well being. I feel some people dont see that MTG is just one part of life. Its not something thats worth making a lifestyle over. One of the things that really turned me away from trying to be a MTG Pro is that the Pros just dont do that much with their lives. Sure, some guys like LSV, Cheon, Kibler etc have regular jobs, families and other hobbies, but they are a rare bunch. Most of the MTG pros are college dropouts/people who never made much with their lives, who are trying to make a living in the MTG world via being around the game 24/7. That really made me re-evaluate my goals since I did not want to see myself in that spot. It does not look that fun or that fulfilling to be playing MTG nonstop to make meets end.
When you put it that way I suppose you could say that gaming in general isn't worth making a lifestyle over especially when it's become glorified by the mainstream media in today's society, not that I'm complaining or anything.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Its ok about the quotes, not really a big deal.
Theres many reasons I dont like other TCGs sides MTG and VS. Alot of TCGs fail to capture the essence of what their trying to do. MTG and VS System are the two games that really do it and they part of the few games that were designed for mature audiences. You really dont see that in a lot of games since many games arent very transparent to the public about what they do behind closed doors. VS and MTG both have a lot of effort being put into being good. The designers of these games have amazing artists and visionaries who worked hard at making the games enjoyable.
I played YGO for a good amount of time, about 3-4 years actually. Yes, its got behavior problems, but I feel also Konami is not a very good company in general. Im not a big fan of a company that has also bent over and screwed Castlevania lol. The thing about YGO though is that it was just a weird game. The anime/manga was pretty bad and the design got sloppy over the years. The series went through too many changes and there was no real vision in it. The game now resolves around what should always be hitting the ban list instead of there being a single goal of what a format should be like. I had a decent time playing YGO since I had some decent friends who played the game, but sometimes I wish I never did it as long. It got to the point to where similar to MTG, it just has diminishing returns. I also played Pokemon for about half a year, yeah sure people are nice, but at the same time, the game is not really designed for older people. The game is pretty boring too since they dont balance the colors like they do in MTG and its a really linear game with not that much strategy. Plus competitive Pokemon is a joke, 1 games instead of a full match is a pretty awful idea.
And yes, competitive gaming is a bit overrated. I see the media pushing things like e-sports and poker like its the next best thing. Sure, these games are fun, but I personally could not see myself devoting my life to these things at a potential shot at a fortune. These games keep growing and growing, creating more variance and having more people jumping on the bandwagon chasing what your trying to chase. Similar to how trying to go pro now in MTG is ridiculously hard. Back in the 90s/2000s qualifying for the PT was way easier due to smaller tournaments and also MTG had less variance since games lasted longer and there was less haymakers in everyones deck. Its probably why you had guys like Kai Budde that were 6 time champions. I seriously doubt the game will ever see things like that ever again since theres way too many people playing MTG now. PTs now being 16 rounds and GPs being 15 just make it too hard for repeats to happen as often.
Theres definitely way more interesting and secure things you can do with your life that can also make it so your happy and potentially spike it rich. The time a person invests into a competitive TCG could be spent way more efficiently. If a TCG is what a person loves and does not mind the ups and downs to the lifestyle, then so be it. I personally would never recommend going deep into any card game period.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Sure, those games arent always for "specific age demographics" but they are designed a certain way to attract a certain group of people. With Pokemon and YGO, both games are kind of mindless and arent very deep or realistic. They kind of feed off people who don't really pay attention to what they are doing with themselves. They both started out as something different and interesting, but as time has gone on, their creators lost sight of what they were originally trying to do so at this point they are just milking their IP to the ground.
"Restriction breeds creativity." - Sheldon Menery on EDH / Commander in Magic: The Gathering
"Cancel Culture is the real reason why everyone's not allowed to have nice things anymore." - Anonymous
"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36
"Most men and women will grow up to love their servitude and will never dream of revolution." - Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
"Every life decision is always a risk / reward proposition." - Sanjay Gupta
Current decks:
Legacy: Zoo, Aggro Elves, The Gate, White Weenie, Red Deck Wins, and Merfolk. Currently building Solidarity.
Casual: Warp World Revolution and Old School Red-Green.
Standard: Ob-Nixilis Wave and Elves.