"Magic The Gathering: Battlegrounds takes the fun of playing the card game and puts it straight on the xbox. I find it hard to believe that any Magic The Gathering fan won't like this game. I've caught myself playing the game hours on end."
Overall: Overall this was a pretty good game. It was nothing like the card game it was based upon and that was good because it would have been way too boring otherwise. This isn't the kinda game you can play non stop like Halo though. It's more of a once in awhile type game which isn't bad to have in a collection. If you like strategy and aren't all about crazy action all the time this is a pretty good game in my opinion. But definately rent before buying because it isn't a game for everyone. Gameplay: The gameplay is very good. The controls are simple. There is a lot of strategy involved and it is key to pay attention to everything that is going on. You can't just do the same tactic non stop because it won't work against everyone. One creature which came through DC was very cheap and almost impossible to beat which really hurt the game because everyone would use it. This was the only real downfall to me. But, making a very powerful deck was a challenge which was good. It wasn't the case where putting the strongest cards in a deck could make you win everytime. A deck with very weak creatures, if used properly, could be a huge threat. Graphics: Visually this game is extremely smooth I think. The creatures in it look very good and the characters you can choose from each look very individual. The game's colors are very eye catching as well and the arenas/environments which you battle in are very well done. Sound: The voices get repetetive after some time but what do you expect when you're casting certain spells. However, each characters voice is very different and they aren't monotone which is nice.
Overall: This is the video adaptation of the popular card game. As a 'geek' who played the game a lot, I can say that they adapted it well. Gameplay: You are a magician, and so is your opponent. You kill eachother. That's the premise. It works well. I have one big problem with the single player mode. Everytime you kill your opponent, he THANX you! What's up with that!? I'm supposed to be killing him, and he says "Thank you for releasing me."
The other problem was the lack of cards. Each color has 13 cards. You use 10 of those in a deck. This means that everyone will be playing the same green deck. The beauty of the card game was in the creation of YOUR own PERSONAL deck. I don't understand why there are so few cards.
The gameplay itself is great though. I've player A LOT. We've had some tournaments, and I really enjoy the game. Graphics: Pretty. The game looks good. It's not top end visuals, but they're certainly good. When your in a match you're usually too busy to care too much about what the creatures look like, but if you are watching two people play, the game is quite visually apealing. Sound: The sound isn't bad. Every spell is vocalized, and each different caster has a different voice. And there are a lot of casters, that's a lot of voice talent. Suggestions: MORE CARDS. The fun of magic is creating your deck. You took out the best part of the game!
Overall: I liked the idea of this game...being a nerd who played the card as well...but got let down as I played a bit further on. The arcade action was ok...but it just didn't want to make me play all the way. Gameplay: It would be kinda tough to figure out a way to make the move from cards to video game...but it was done ok. I think if you could direct your creatures a little more...or build your deulists stats up even a little more it would add an rpg element that would make the title shine instead of being lackluster. Graphics: The Unreal engine looks good and the creature models look good as well. The levels do well to set a mood for each color. Sound: Nothing doing...very muted sounds of battle even with 5 x 5 creatures per side. No noteable background music and sfx are so so. Suggestions: I didn't get a chance to try xbox live...but I still don't think it would save this title from it's faults.
Overall: Great Game, Vast options, for spells, monsters, enchantments, characters, everything a MTG fan would every need. (cept for a HD- Flat Screen TV lol) Gameplay: Great, Full of battles, adventure, and online play. Plus Arcade, live Updates, Customizable characters, sweeettttt..... Graphics: Great Visuals, musta been hand pixilated by about 100 ppl its so good! spells feel real, when your getting burned by red, it looks like FIRE, not red lights lol Sound: Not all it could of been, when you and your partner are just waiting for your mana to appear, theres absolute silence... no songs, no background music, needs improvement
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