Magic: The Gathering’s latest cards have a completely unique art style

When a game as old as Magic: The Gathering has stuck to a certain art style since its inception, it’s unsurprising that they would be hesitant to deviate from a winning formula. There have been experiments with different art styles over the years, but nothing that changed too drastically from the core look that fans love and enjoy about the card game.

Which makes the company’s surprise Secret Lair drop called Prime Slime so interesting, as it showcases a new art style that is quite bold, colourful and significantly different. Based on the work of artist, Wizard of Barge AKA Dakota Cates, the new cards have an almost child-like colour palette to them and definitely come across as more playful or even silly compared to the majority of the games darker and more serious styles.

You can view all five cards in more detail below:

These cards (of which there is only five in total) are not likely to be part of any of the more balanced competitive decks, but could find a home in Commander Decks, which is a more casual format of the game. Perhaps the real value of these cards themselves will come in their unique style, as not many players will be able to pick up these cards as they are only available for a limited amount of time. Given how some cards can have quite a lucrative collector value attached to them, expect people to try and take advantage of that market.

It’s great to see Wizards of the Coast try something different with their biggest brand, though even a new look is unlikely to get me into the physical card game gain over the expense of everything. If these cards can sort of creep into the digital formats in rare drops though, that would be pretty cool.

Last Updated: August 20, 2020