Fate Reforged is finally here, but there's far more gaming going on these days. Whether you played in every Prerelease you could have or you changed gears into a getaway into a non-Magicical world, gaming is going through another wave of cultural growth. From our roots new and old in cartridge-contains adventures to the places games have ended up and beyond, this week's picks speak to just how much games mean to all of us.

Picks of the Week: January 18, 2015

Adam Styborski is Content Manager for Gathering Magic, writer of Command Tower for magicthegathering.com, text coverage reporter at Grand Prix and Pro Tours for Wizards, a Pauper Cube developer, and known curmudgeon.You can find him sharing things on Twitter as @the_stybs.

I Really Wish This Wasn't About The Packers

Working in the gaming industry is sometimes surreal. While traveling and writing about the best game on the planet (Magic, of course.) is both amazing and exhausting all at once, it's my not-so-new-anymore duties elsewhere that keep my days busy. While Settlers of Catan may not be the "boardiest" of board games among connoisseurs, it is one that supports both some strategic depth, some multiplayer shenanigans, and an ease of introduction that's found among all the games that have exploded in popularity in recent years.

Almost all of my friends play it. Even my wife notorious for not-learing-to-play-this-game, plays it. It really shouldn't surprise me that a game with this much cultural zeitgeist would make its way to a professional football team (The... sigh... Packers of all team.) but here we are. What a time to be alive.

Surfin' the Mardu Way

• Mardu Scout and Goblin Heelcutter did amazing work for me all day long. With Kolaghan, the Storm's Fury at the top of my action, the ability to deal tons of damage out of nowhere and protect against sorcery-speed removal was invaluable.
• Manifest is just as random and wild as I feared it would be. Generally, it's "just a land" or "just some spell" face down and everybody's happy with a colorless 2/2 but sometimes it's not. Getting my aforementioned Kolaghan blown out from being randomly manifested from the top of my library into a removal spell was just as awkward for me as having one opponent's turn out to be Pine Walker. Yeah.
• I did not see Aven Surveyor anywhere, but faced off against two different double Lotus Path Djinn decks. Fighting the Djinns was easier for my tempo-sensitive deck anyway, but I really wanted to see the Birds in action before I jam them right into my cube.[/card]

This was the most fun I've had at a Prerelease in the long time, and I's super excited to sit down and finish the sketch of my Pauper Cube update with all the play feedback from one long event.

Paint and Plant Show

I love unexpected surprises. On my way into Grand Prix Omaha last weekend I found out I was missing an "art panel" being held on site.

Thankfully, the thoughtful moderator (and judge on staff for the weekend) April King not only recorded the entire panel but provided a thorough transcription of it. As someone with more-than-casual-but-less-than-Mike-Linnemann level of the interest in Magic art, I was enthralled listening throughout the panel. It's full of laughs, insider knowledge, and honesty from some of the hardest working creators in the gaming industry. For an hour long "podcast" of sorts it's amazing.

Alex Ullman is Associate Editor for Gathering Magic, a renowned Pauper (cube and Constructed) player, and member of the victorious 2009 Magic Online Community Cup team.You can find him on Twitter as @nerdtothecore.

This is an odd weekend for me. Normally I would be battling other mages with the latest set in the prerelease. Not this weekend. I'm about to embark on a lifelong journey and will be getting married ten weeks from the day this is published.

Needless to say, I am excited.

But what does this have to do with Magic? The answer is very little. My significant other does not play, but this is not the reason I've abstained from the Fate Reforged events. Rather, I sit in a cabin in New York's Hudson Valley with some of my closest friends celebrating my last days of bachelor hood. It's been full days of good food and drink, and some good games.

My best man (also best friend) knows me very well. He managed to bust out a Super Nintendo. Which leads me to the first pick:

Street Fighter II

Growing up this was a must have for any get together with my circle. We would plop ourselves down, blow on the cartridges, and mash buttons for hours on end. Eventually some of us learned the nuances of match ups and combinations that could not be beat but by then it was time to move on to Super Street Fighter II Turbo.

Last night, however, was all about the original. The moves came back in muscle memory and for a few hours all fell to my hand. That is until another of my groom's party arrived, later than others, and promptly showed me how a real world warrior does business.

I'm not saying we would stand a chance against competitive players of the game but for one evening it didn't matter. We were kids all over again, twenty years later.

Cards Against Humanity

The party game for terrible people. Another friend, close with both me and my future wife, brought up this game. While I had played a few times in the past the cards took on a different aspect when surrounded by those closest to me. The five guests average knowing me 20 years so there were many jokes at my expense and hands only I could win.

A perfect social game for anyone who loves to play other people as much as the pieces themselves and it is only improved upon when surrounded by those who know you the best, and who you know better than anyone else.

The weekend is ongoing. There was a hike and a walk on a frozen lake, and multiple references to “Arrested Development” and “Archer.” The overarching them is this: my pick of the week is finding the people who matter in your life, and making sure you spend quality time with them as often as possible.

Carlos Gutierrez is an Associate Editor for Gathering Magic, an engineer-in-training, and a Commander and Pauper enthusiast. By day, he works as a STEM educator, but he spends his weekends hitting all his land drops and trying new board games, puzzles, and video games. You can find all of him sharing Commander craziness, baked goods on Twitter, and complaints about graduate school at @cag5383.

Call in the Flavor Judge

For the longest time, there was not a single Vorthos bone in my body. I could appreciate some spectacular art or flavor text - just so long as it was on a card in my constructed decks. Over the last few years, that has slowly started to change thanks to awesome Vorthos writers like Mike Linnemann, Ant Tessitore, and A.E. Marling. You'd be hard-pressed to find people who care more about the things that they write about, and that makes all the difference. It's been a slow conversion, but I am slowly and steadily becoming more of a Vorthos, and I've loved every article along the way.

In particular, I really enjoy when A.E. Marling puts on his black robe and picks up the gavel and assumes his role as the Level 20 flavor judge. These articles are always fun, engaging, and enlightening. Between clever quips about cards that didn't quite work out, there are fantastic insights into how different cards can be interpreted as part of the larger story of the set and block. In particular, I hadn't thought about the Siege Enchantments from Fate Reforged as pivotal moments that defined the clans to come in Khans of Tarkir. As a Vorthos-in-Training, there's a lot of awesome flavor that I miss, and A.E. Marling is one of the first places I go to find out what I'm missing.

Alesha, Who Smiles at Death

So much has already been said about this card. The combination of a strange name and unique, powerful effect mean that there's already been a ton of discussion about this card and potentially powerful interactions. As soon as I saw Alesha, I knew I was going to be building a deck around her. You mean they're going to let me play Sun Titan as my commander? Yes. Please. I haven't had enough time to sit and think about a complete list, so there will certainly be something more comprehensive down the line, but here are just a few of my first thoughts, stream of consciousness-style:

• Burnished Hart, Solemn Simulacrum, and Kor Cartographer for consistent ramp.
• Blood Artist, Falkenrath Noble, and Rage Thrower (thanks, Alex!) as rattlesnakes.
• Karmic Guide because you can't rebuy Rage Thrower with Alesha.
• Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, Skirsdag High Priest, and Xathrid Necromancer. Because value.
• Ashen-Skin Zubera and friends. Because I have a Zubera problem.

The possibilities are endless, and I can't wait to sit down and hash them all out. I've been putting off adding a Red deck to my Commander arsenal for quite some time now. With Alesha in print, I absolutely cannot wait.

BEAST 5

The last few weeks have been incredible for fans of Super Smash Bros. Melee. BEAST 5 in Gothenburg, Sweden was the largest European event held to date with over 400 players. This leads into Paragon, the last chance for players to earn points to bolster their rankings before Apex 2015. These community-run events are only getting bigger, which is incredible for a game that is 14 years old. What's even more incredible? Entries into Melee singles met the 1,024 player cap. Not that I'm counting or anything.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to catch much of BEAST 5. Fortunately, I got home and tuned in just in time to catch the finals, and one of the craziest things I've ever seen. Adam "Armada" Lindgren isn't just a Peach main, he is the Peach main, easily one of the best three players in the world right now. In the finals, he squares off against William "Leffen" Hjelte, a Top 10 player who has been putting in hard work and making bold statements that 2015 is his year.

In this set, Armada and Leffen played three close games that went 2-1 in Leffen's favor. Armada spent minutes in the tank and came out with this incredible game that showcases everything I love about this game. Immaculate spacing, brutal punishes, and flawless execution. Apex 2015 can't come soon enough.

Fire Emblem: Working Title

Early Wednesday morning, Nintendo made an announcement that made me positively giddy. A new Fire Emblem game is going to be coming to the 3DS. The game is called "Fire Emblem If" in Japan, but there isn't an official title in English just yet. There's also no release date, but you can glean a lot from the teaser trailer. It looks like the mechanics will be similar to Fire Emblem: Awakening, which I have only recently come to love. The character design and graphics look spectacular, and the trailer seems to imply that there is going to be a female lead, which is exciting news in its own right. We don't know much about this upcoming title, but I know that I absolutely can't wait to see what Fire Emblem If has to offer.

Heather Dawn Lafferty is the Community Manager for Gathering Magic, collector and creator of the 20 Tweets series, and resident Angel.Speaking of tweets, you can tweet her with your thoughts regarding Gathering Magic content, Magic, or Nintendo at @Revisedangel.

Every now and again my passion for social media and the Magic community collide with a deep seeded hatred (I’m talking full on Sith here) of the Reserved List. I gleefully start favoring and retweeting to my hearts delight every nasty, spiteful, well thought out critique of this prison of the awesome forced upon Wizards everywhere. Whenever the Reserved List is broached, up pops the Eternal players, chiming in with their grand thoughts of playing tournaments with gold boarder cards, or beseeching the all mighty Wizard not to let their beloved Vintage/Legacy format die a sad fate without access to affordable dual lands. Looking at you Underground Sea.

Since my feelings on the vile Reserved list are well documented and known throughout the lands I thought I would let you read some of the current thoughts from your Sisters –in-arms (and brothers) so you might share your thoughts on the Reserved List in the comments, continuing the great debate for eternity, or until the Wizard blinks.

Where are you mysterious collector who doesn’t play Magic, but spend thousands of dollars collecting and also is reading this article on a Magic strategy playing site at this very moment. Show THY SELF.

Welp, I with Gerald on this one. I stand with you Gerald in this mighty struggle to rights the wrongs of our Wizard overlords. Fight the good fight Gerald. RAGE ON.

XOXO

@RevisedAngel