2008 Woodie Awards
Card game 'Magic' new student center pastime
Issue date: 3/22/06 Section: News
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Staff Writer
Amidst the class schedules and project due dates, a small group of students gathers in the Tingle Student Center to participate in an unconventional sort of entertainment - they play the trading card game Magic: The Gathering.
"It's not a serious competition thing, it's just something we do to hang out during our free time," said Daniel Howell, junior broadcast media.
Magic: The Gathering is essentially a medieval fantasy themed trading card game. "I hate to say it, but it's almost like Pokemon," said Howell. Unlike Pokemon, however, Magic is an internationally recognized game with an extremely intricate rule set.
"There is literally a 75 page rule book that covers just 'basic' game play," said Howell. Magic tournaments held in cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Paris and Rome attract thousands of professional collectors and players, with prizes reaching into the tens of thousands of dollars.
"It started out as a group of about seven of us," said Howell. "This semester I think we're up to about 30. For me, it's a chance to fellowship with my friends since it's something we've all got in common. It's also fun because it doesn't really matter how many times you win or lose, there's always something fun going on during the game."
Magic is a trading card game played with two or more people by taking different types of cards ranging from the mundane to the rare and expensive and arranging them into playable "decks." Players then try to win by laying down cards in their deck designed to give them an advantage or undermine their opponents.
"You drop a land [A certain type of card] and then play cards on top of it. It's essentially a turn based card game, like Spades," said Howell. "The object is either to cause your opponent to run out of cards, or more often than not to reduce him to zero points. Everything you play will either hurt them or help you."
Magic, which was created in 1993 by the Seattle based company, Wizards of the Coast, has received media attention on and off through the years, most notably because the game features some cards which some have argued are demonic or occult-themed. Wizards of the Coast has altered and entirely removed some cards over these controversies in the past.
"I always have a hard time answering this one," said Howell. "There are some symbols in there that maybe be misinterpreted that way, but as far as the game itself, it's just a game. But anything that you would spend any more time on than you would reading scripture or focusing on your relationship with Christ is going to have the same effect."
"In several cases, it's been a witnessing tool, just by virtue of having it in common with someone and being able to talk with someone while we play," said Howell.
Several of the students have discussed holding a Magic: The Gathering intramural tournament night in order to better publicize the event; however, the group currently meets only recreationally. Howell and his friends can be found playing Magic in the Tingle Student Center periodically when they aren't in class or busy studying.