It would be an understatement to say that the recent changes to the rules of Magic the Gathering have been merely controversial.  Forums, blogs and twitters have been ablaze with fervent opinions ranging anywhere from staunch support to apathy to hopelessness.  Indeed, with any evolving, complex game there comes the inevitable tweak from on high that alters, for better or worse, the very foundation of that pastime.   Even the American shrine of baseball has been given a makeover once or twice.  With these recent changes to our favorite game, there has been no shortage of verbiage.  This explosion of words has inspired more than one conversation.  The following is just a snapshot of one of those tete-a-tetes.

"I suppose you've heard about the recent rule changes.  Wizards is taking Magic down a dark path and I'm not planning on following."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Bo.  We've done a lot of great planeswalking together, you and I."

"I just can't stand the new direction the game is taking.  I'm all for bringing new players into the game.  I absolutely loved planeswalkers, 2010's return to fantasy-esque ideals and even the "here I rule" campaign.  But when you start messing with the rules of the game.  The nature of the game itself.  Casting aside cornerstones in a vain effort to attract "casual players."  I can't help but speculate that this might be wizard's last grasp at keeping the game profitable at the competitive player's expense."

"Let's break this down a bit.  What I'm hearing from you is that you're fine with the flavor changes to "out of play" and "onto the battlefield" but have a problem with the rest, correct?  So lets get right down to it: What about the rule changes alters the game fundamentally?"

"Correct.  I am fine with renaming zones in an effort to have the game make more intuitive sense.  What I have a problem with is the general direction wizard's is taking the game.  You have to admit.  Combat damage on the stack requires much more skill and cunning then combat damage off the stack.  Period.  Its the general feeling of the "dumbing down" of a game made great by its infinite depth and infinite possibilities.  Post 2010, I feel as though the game got a little bit shallower and I fear this is only the beginning.  What happens when this strategy actually works and thousands more do come to the game?  Is wizards going to "simplify" the game even more?"

"Slippery slope arguments aside, you have to give WotC a bit more credit.  They've kept this magical train rolling through thick and thin, longer then any other CCG in history.  That being said, what you might call "dumbing down" I'd call "making sense".  You say you're okay with making the game more tolkien-esque.  Well, what makes a great fantasy universe great is the fact that everything in it flows intuitively and makes sense.  What makes sense about being able to block with a Mogg Fanatic,  sacrifice it, activate its ability and still have it deal combat damage to other creatures on the battlefield from the graveyard?  I, for one, support the endeavor to have this game make sense not only to hardcore players who might have forgotten why these rules are how they are, but also to the outside observer.  It makes the game cleaner, accessible and intellectually honest."

"Oh, you want to talk about things "not making sense" in the magic universe, huh?  How about a Bloodhall Ooze equipping Lightning Greaves?  How about "two wizards play lightning bolt at the same time and the person who fires last wins out?"  I'm not buying the whole "wizard's just wants to keep the game logical" line.  There are plenty of examples of fallacy in MTG and of course that's expected in a game with 10K+ pieces.  Why should combat damage on the stack be any different?  Its not any more or less confusing then trying to counter a Demigod of Revenge without having its ability trigger.  Thats part of what is great about Magic.   You are rewarded for experience.  The grizzled, veteran players have a distinct advantage because some things in the game you have to have experienced before you fully understand them. Leveling the playing field is one thing, taking away any advantage a seasoned player might possess is another."

"If there's one thing I'm sure of, its that Magic will never be a "simple" game.  Veteran players who are heavily involved in the game, read the blogs, flame the forums and twitter their game experiences will always, always, always have the advantage.  As you said, if nothing else its a game with 10,000 different pieces and its to your advantage to understand not only what those pieces do, but how they interact with one another, making the possibilities theoretically infinite.  You, my friend, will eternally have the upper hand.  Magic is still a game of loopholes and clever tricks.  The game is bound by rules but is full of cards that bend and alter those rules each and every game. When a card like Skullclamp slips out of the R&D department, players exploit that loophole and change the way a normal game of Magic is played.  If you think about it, the game changes and evolves with each and every card that is released.  Combat damage being on the stack was just one of those loopholes.  It has now been closed just as the Skullclamp loophole was back in the Mirrodin days.  But with these changes (and with each release!) come new technicalities for you to exploit.  Take a second look at deathtouch, for example.  An entire multicolored block is now in standard: that changes the game fundamentally.  Wrath of God may or may not be printed in 2010: that changes the game fundamentally. It is the same ebb and flow of opportunity that has always washed over the game."

"I just can't help but feel as though, we, the players who stuck with the game all these years are being set on the back burner.  I've spent literally thousands of dollars on Magic over the years and now, not only are many of the cards I own completely useless, I feel like casual players who haven't spent a dime or minute on this game yet are being favored over people like us.  Not to mention the fact that I had fun playing cards like Mogg Fanatic.  It added another layer to the game and made otherwise useless cards viable."

"Cards come and cards go.  That is the nature of a CCG that rotates card legality.  While a card like Mogg might be out, other cards are helped by these changes.  You'll no longer have to worry about mana burn when tapping lands that have Overgrowth on them or some other 2-for-1 mana deal.  Wake Thrasher just got 2X better as you can tap all of your lands at the end of an opponent's turn without fear of burn.  Theres also something to be said for choosing the correct blockers and attackers now that both players understand that CD is going to happen off the stack.  There are so many facets to this game and new cards are released so frequently now that you'll have no problem finding those gems in the rough.  Yes, MF lost a bit of its shimmer (okay, ALL of its shimmer) but its up to you as that "grizzled, veteran player" you were talking about to find the next Mogg within the new rule archetype before your fellow wizards do.  WotC hasn't chosen new players OVER you, they've simply found a rule that they felt needed to be tweaked.  I'll concede that they never would have changed the rule if they weren't out looking for ways to simplify the game for newer players, but that isn't the main thrust of the change.  I'd like to think they did it first because it made sense and second because it made the game more inviting for noobs."

"Look, I'm not one of those people who are just afraid of change.  I lived through the 6th edition mess and I'm still around.  The difference here is that, while 6th was more of a "clean up" session, this is more of a paradigm shift, with the focus being on new players.  Much like Nintendo has done with the Wii.  Or what they've done with Star Trek, for example.  Marketing for the masses.  The risk is there for a total dilution of what makes Magic great.  Its not a slippery slope argument to say that Wizard's might take further steps in that direction and that's what really scares me.  Of course combat damage on the stack doesn't make or break the game, but it does call into question the motives of it's designers as well as the direction of the game in the future.  What ever happened to "Future Sight"?  Split Second, Delve, Dredge, THATS the direction I want to move in.  A game where a (for lack of a better term) level 60 Planeswalkers get to do level 60 things.  Not a dumbed down version of magic where you play a creature, I play a creature and we see whose has more toughness.  I want a game that IS a little bit intimidating for new players.  Thats part of the challenge, the aura of the game.  Of course, we have to cater to new blood, my Magic buying habits can't support the whole game, but not at the expense of master planeswalkers like you and I, Reinhart."

"Part of the problem here is that this is all coming at a time where standard is so rich, so full of possibilities that any deviation from that seems like a step backwards for advanced players.  We're also moving into the first new Core Set in two years.  Swaths of beloved cards are about to be rotated out of standard.  The new cards all seem to be on the simplistic side (as they often are in the Core Sets).  And all of this mixed with a 6th edition-esque rule amendment.  This is a lot for any loyal CCG player to take in all at once (including me).  The pendulum is swinging hard and fast back towards the basics - the color wheel, creature combat, and player identity.  Since the last core set we've seen a game changing new card type, a multicolor bonanza and countless powerfully complicated cards take the stage.   The game cannot get perpetually more and more complicated with each expansion.  At some point, the game must catch its breath.  Think of it as an opportunity to expand the game, revisit the basics, and enjoy the new cards along with everyone else."

"While core sets are usually thought of as great places to enter the game, I am forced to consider it as an exit point.  But I have poured far too much love and treasure into this magnificent game to simply abandon it before the changes I so oppose even take place.   There may come a day, and that day might even come sooner then either of us know....  but there may come a day when this old wizard puts down his wand and makes way for the next generation of planeswalkers.  But... unluckily for you, my old friend, today is not that day."

"That will be a sad day indeed, Bo.  I do not look forward to it.  Your concern for the game and it's future is shared by many and I hope you continue to voice your opinions.  The game needs players like you if it hopes to weather the gathering storms of economy, change and apathy.

*Editor's note:

Reinhart's spark was triggered 10 years ago, he has been planeswalking off and on since that time.  He currently resides in Seattle, WA with his fiance and two (non-magical) cats.

Bo Levar was a smuggler whose latent planeswalker's spark was triggered by the Sylex Blast on Argoth. Before he ascended he was known as Crucias. He was recruited by Urza as one of the Nine Titans and placed one of the soul bombs on Phyrexia. After their return to Dominaria he discovered that Commodore Guff already knew how the Phyrexian Invasion would end and convinced him to change destiny. Levar died protecting a small colony of merfolk from Yawgmoth's death cloud.

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