Home Gaming Hearthstone is to Magic the Gathering as WoW was to Everquest?

Hearthstone is to Magic the Gathering as WoW was to Everquest?

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Hearthstone money

Collectible card games have been around for a long, long time. I never got into Magic the Gathering, but it was ridiculously popular. Hearthstone has seemingly tapped into that market and made it highly profitable, prompting the sudden surge in digital card games. Blizzard has done this in a genre before, and they know how to stay on top for years, especially when they’re taking in this kind of money.

SuperData has crunched the numbers and come up with an interesting data. Digital card games on mobile, PC and tablet are on track to earn $1.3 billion this year. That’s not too shabby considering the genre hardly existed a couple years back. Of course, the biggest player is Activision Blizzard’s Hearthstone:

With 20 million monthly active users across PC and mobile, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is doing for digital collectible card games what World of Warcraft did for massively-multiplayer online games a few years ago. The game is currently leading both the market and the charge for a new generation of cross-platform card-based games. Leveraging the rise of large-screen smartphones and “phablets”, the complexity and accessibility of the overall collectible card game genre is well positioned to reach a wide audience and perform well financially.

Incumbent Wizards of the Coast, known for its Magic: the Gathering, has been much slower to adopt to this new market. But the company cannot be counted out just yet: most recently it released its first smartphone-based game titled Magic Duels: Origins. The question is, of course, whether consumers care, and whether Magic: the Gathering will suffer the same fate as Everquest.

The deeper stats explain that PC players are more loyal and spend 11% more, and that almost half of the gamers in this genre play on multiple platforms. Most interestingly, though, Hearthstone brings in about $20 million a month. Not bad for a free to play game that appeals primarily to a more hardcore audience than games like Candy Crush or Fallout Shelter.

Magic the Gathering used to be the collectible card game, unless you played one of those Pokemon or YuGiOh games. Now, it is fading in to niche obscurity as Hearthstone comes to the fore. Will we see things change in the coming year, or has the WoW effect already taken hold?

Last Updated: August 12, 2015

55 Comments

  1. Ottokie

    August 12, 2015 at 11:34

    MTG to me is still the top of all TCG’s, the art is on a level that blizzard will never reach. Hearthstone is just a RNG game of luck vs credit card.

    Reply

    • Sageville

      August 12, 2015 at 11:43

      “Hearthstone is just a RNG game of luck vs credit card.” – I disagree with this statement (or the exact same can be applied to MTG if you refer to the RNGness of the card/booster draws).

      MTG is just a far more involved and complicated version of Hearthstone, or if you will Hearthstone is a dumbed down version of MTG.

      I do agree that the art is way better, but I think it’s to easy to simply dismiss Hearthstone (I love both, but Hearthstone is cheaper)

      Reply

      • Ottokie

        August 12, 2015 at 11:49

        Good point, but MTG is a physical game with real cards, sure you can buy lots of booster packs and have a chance of getting some good cards. In Hearthstone you also buy boosters (digital), but if you don’t like the cards, you just “dust” them all and get yourself an unstoppable Legendary Ragnaros card that just cuts through anyone.

        Reply

        • Thinus Swart

          August 12, 2015 at 11:59

          Really don’t agree with the “Pay-2-Win” opinion mentioned here. There are no cards that are ‘unstoppable’. I’ve beaten plenty of Ragnaros players with simple strategies, from a simple ‘Shadow Word: Death’ to an ‘Assassinate’.

          I agree that MTG is deeper and more involved, but too many people dismiss Hearthstone as “too much RNG”. It really is an intricate and involved deck-building game.

          Sure, RNG can screw you over, but the exact same thing can be said of MTG.

          Reply

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 12:10

            MTG has a much worse pay to win thing going actually.

            With every new set released you can buy a booster box (Not the fancy ones with the books and all that jazz. An actual physical box filled with boosters. The boxes that stores order to put out as stock)

            These boxes are pretty much almost 100% guarenteed to contain at least 1 copy of every card in that specific set. So if you have the coin you can pretty much guarentee to get the best cards just by forking out cash.

            At least with Hearthstone you can’t jippo your boosters this way.

            #StirringThePot

          • Ottokie

            August 12, 2015 at 12:12

            Lets all just agree to disagree xD

          • Sageville

            August 12, 2015 at 12:22

            We aren’t leaving here till you agree with everything we’ve said!

            You can come out of your room when you’re willing to be reasonable!

          • Ottokie

            August 12, 2015 at 12:49

            Hahaha I’m just glad there are other TCG players on Lags 😛

          • Sageville

            August 12, 2015 at 12:52

            Don’t tell, we have images to uphold.

          • Alien Emperor Trevor

            August 12, 2015 at 15:14

            NERDS!

          • Sageville

            August 12, 2015 at 15:16

            GASP!

          • HvR

            August 12, 2015 at 15:33

            Dammit Time journalist get back in the troll box.

          • Sageville

            August 12, 2015 at 12:25

            I’d say both do have a pay-to-win factor, but as stated, strategy is more important in both games methinks….mind you anyone got any cheap Black Lotuses for sale?

            With hearthstone however, you can get every card given time played, this isn’t true of MTG.

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 12:31

            Lol. Cheap Black Lotuses. Hehehehe.

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 12:31

            Lol. Cheap Black Lotuses. Hehehehe.

          • Draco Lusus

            August 12, 2015 at 12:37

            You can build a competitive, budget deck in Standard for R200-R500. That can beat R5000 decks. Same can be said for a Modern deck, that will cost you a R1000, that can beat a R15000 Modern deck…it is all about budgets and your play styles. You can buy singles online at places like Dracoti.co.za. Build a decent deck and have fun. You don’t need to be a retard and go buy a case of booster boxes. That is just retarded…

          • Lardus-Resident Perve

            August 12, 2015 at 12:42

            True. Very true.

          • Thinus Swart

            August 12, 2015 at 12:47

            I haven’t spent a single cent on Hearthstone…

          • Thinus Swart

            August 12, 2015 at 12:49

            Also, while your argument that buying a booster box is a silly way to do it, it doesn’t invalidate @LlewellynCrossley:disqus’s comment that MTG is way more pay-2-win than Hearthstone.

          • Draco Lusus

            August 12, 2015 at 12:53

            It does somewhat…people can buy/build the best tier 1 deck with enough money. It will help them to win more games, but it won’t make them a better player. And they won’t be able to beat the people with similar power decks when it comes down to it. Sure it is RNG in theory, but it is more strategy to deal with the RNG

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 13:11

            My point I was trying to get across is that it’s easier to get the specific cards you want in MTG with money than in hearthstone. That’s all

          • Sageville

            August 12, 2015 at 12:55

            Feels like Card game discussions are way more civilized than other games…

          • Thinus Swart

            August 12, 2015 at 13:32

            Not sure if you’re sarcastic or not…

          • Sageville

            August 12, 2015 at 13:35

            Well, no-one has questioned my parentage once yet…

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 13:10

            I was stirring the pot as was indicated by my #stirringthepot 😉

            Was just pointing out that MTG is actually easier to pay-to-win if you really want to get technical.

            That all being said, yes, you are 100% correct. I’ve seen some of the most simple, easy to play decks beat the stuffing out of “High end” decks simply because the strategy behind the “simple deck” was just so well designed.

            These games are all about how you synergise your cards

  2. Ranting Raptor

    August 12, 2015 at 12:00

    I’m sorry but is there any proof that Magic The Gathering is becoming a niche obscurity?

    I know that the digital proof shows Hearthstone outweighing MTG, but the fact is MTG is a physical based card collection game. Yes it has a digital footprint but it isn’t, and probably will never be, the main focus. The main focus is on the physical card game.

    To my knowledge, MTG is still the biggest and most competitive physical collectible card game around. Earning insane amounts of money through their collectible card sales.

    If I’m wrong I’ll be genuinely surprised and slightly sad. But I am pretty confident when I say that MTG doesn’t have the digital footprint of hearthstone because it has a much larger footprint in physical.

    Reply

    • Draco Lusus

      August 12, 2015 at 12:34

      You are not wrong. I think it will take a little time for Magic Duels: Origins to pick up, hopefully when they have released more sets and get a new developer (Stainless Games are freaking pathetic)…

      Reply

      • Lardus-Resident Perve

        August 12, 2015 at 12:35

        Still waiting to play it on my computer. Seam version has a lot of issues. My current one: “Unknown Error” on start-up. Sticking with the physical version for now.

        Reply

        • Draco Lusus

          August 12, 2015 at 12:42

          The first week the servers went down daily…was poor form. Wizard didn’t announce the release date until a few days before and then delayed it to the end of the month and they still had issues. I liked the previous forms, but this is clearly a move to get onto the Hearthstone bandwagon. Hope it works out, cause new sets to align with the physical releases could be cool.

          Reply

          • Lardus-Resident Perve

            August 12, 2015 at 12:43

            I got an old version, but did not buy into paying money for a new version each year. They are heading down the correct path I think…if they could learn how to code…

          • Draco Lusus

            August 12, 2015 at 12:46

            Yeah, no idea why they stayed with Shitstain Games…M15 release was a joke.

      • Ranting Raptor

        August 12, 2015 at 12:35

        I honestly don’t see MTG getting a massively digital footprint to be honest. Yeah it’s pretty cool stuff but my honest opinion is that they will remain firmly planted in physical based stuff because of the type of environment MTG has created around tournaments and competitiveness.

        Reply

        • Lardus-Resident Perve

          August 12, 2015 at 12:36

          Ja, really liking the Friday Night get togethers at the local shop. Good atmosphere and gets me away from the PC.

          Reply

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 13:08

            And that’s exactly what I’m talking about. The whole MTG scene is all about sitting opposite your opponent at the same table. A very different world to online TCG

      • HvR

        August 12, 2015 at 12:36

        Think Duels is MTG third or fourth attempt at going digital,

        Reply

  3. Dutch Matrix

    August 12, 2015 at 12:08

    But is it Yu-Gi-Oh? Or whatever that’s called?

    Reply

    • Ottokie

      August 12, 2015 at 12:11

      Reply

      • Ranting Raptor

        August 12, 2015 at 12:12

        loooooool. Winner!!!

        Reply

    • Ranting Raptor

      August 12, 2015 at 12:11

      “Or whatever that’s called”

      The fact that you hyphenated it perfectly the way it’s meant to be, indicates you know EXACTLY what it’s all about

      Reply

      • Dutch Matrix

        August 12, 2015 at 12:17

        Sadly no. I only know about it through this colleague I had at work. He would drone on and on and on and on about it. How it was better than MTG. How MTG players were all a bunch of wankers. How he was the most awesomest player on the face of planet earth!
        And the stats! My Lords! He could not shut up about Stats!

        Reply

        • Ranting Raptor

          August 12, 2015 at 12:32

          But talking about it doesn’t mean you should know exactly how to write it out. We are on to you dutchy.

          Reply

          • Dutch Matrix

            August 12, 2015 at 13:52

            Keep in mind, at one point Yu-Gi-Oh was so huge, they even had it printed on toilet paper.

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 14:59

            Ok fine. You have given a good enough reason as to why you may know. But I have my eye on you now dutchy

          • Dutch Matrix

            August 12, 2015 at 15:00

            Oh you can keep your eye on me as much as you like. Last time I played a card game was Rummy with our church youth group.

        • Ranting Raptor

          August 12, 2015 at 12:32

          But talking about it doesn’t mean you should know exactly how to write it out. We are on to you dutchy.

          Reply

  4. Daniel Hallinan

    August 12, 2015 at 12:11

    Magic: The Gathering is actually STILL growing, and it’s growth is surprisingly exponential. It’s bizarre, considering its age, but it’s definitely healthier than it’s ever been. (On a side note, Pokemon is still crazy popular, surprisingly – but the players tend to hide away until there’s an official event for them).

    There’s actually no real clash between Magic and Hearthstone, as most magic players (in my experience) happily play Hearthstone as well. Its F2P nature means there’s no financial tug of war, and it slots into the time they have when not playing Magic itself.

    Interestingly, the other reason for their co-existence is that they are designed for different habitats. Hearthstone was designed from the ground up to be a digital product, which is a big part of its success. However, as soon as you make it physical, as soon as you put it on an actual table, it falls apart mechanically and losses the vast majority of enjoyment it elicits.

    Ultimately, there’s no real reason either of them endanger each other.

    Reply

    • Lardus-Resident Perve

      August 12, 2015 at 12:28

      I see Pokémon players every Friday actually. The Pretoria Pokémon League gathers at the same place I play Magic – Battle Wizards Centurion. Fewer players than the Magic, but they had 17 players last week.

      Reply

  5. HvR

    August 12, 2015 at 12:26

    Sitting on toilet playing Hearthstone you can not see the tears in your opponents eyes as he sits helplessly as your Black/White Shadow warriors crushes his hippie green monster army.

    Reply

    • Sageville

      August 12, 2015 at 12:28

      I have an image of two peeps in adjacent stalls, playing each other, but never knowing they were just a creepy hand under stall away from each other, so sad.

      Reply

      • Ranting Raptor

        August 12, 2015 at 12:31

        Until the victory shout and losers moan… Then it will end in a massively long awkward silence as they realise the symphony of sounds accompanying their game was literally from their opponents shitting themselves

        Reply

        • Sageville

          August 12, 2015 at 12:51

          Followed by that awkward pause where you are both waiting for the next stall to leave so as to not face each other IRL…

          Reply

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 13:12

            HAHAHAHAHAHA

          • Dutch Matrix

            August 12, 2015 at 13:37

            This! Best Thread Ever!

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 12, 2015 at 14:59

            agreed!

      • Ranting Raptor

        August 12, 2015 at 12:31

        Until the victory shout and losers moan… Then it will end in a massively long awkward silence as they realise the symphony of sounds accompanying their game was literally from their opponents shitting themselves

        Reply

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