Magic: The Gathering - Duels of the Planeswalkers Series



Developer

Stainless Games



Publishers

Wizards of the Coast / Microsoft Game Studios



Genre

Collectable Card Games



Platforms

Xbox, Playstation, PC, iOS, Android



Years

2009 - 2016

Magic: The Gathering — Duels of the Planeswalkers brings the world’s premier trading card game to your living room.

Stainless did that, and then some! 

The first “Duels” game by Stainless was released in 2009 on XBLA and was a massive success prompting many sequels for many years. By January 2011, more than 500,000 units of the game had been sold on the Xbox Live Marketplace.

“Digital Magic 2012-15” was directly attributed to doubling revenues of Wizards of the Coast and increasing awareness of the overall physical and digital brand."


Game screenshot showing a players cards, and cards already played

"Magic: The Gathering will always be remembered as the game that launched a hobby. A thousand copycat collectable card games trail pathetically in its magnificent wake."

Stainless was tasked with making the game of “Magic” accessible and easier to play, with an emphasis on targeting new and lapsed players, through digital means.

How did we do it? 

  • Simplified the complex Magic: The Gathering card game without losing depth
  • Worked in close collaboration with Wizards of the Coast
  • Created a frictionless onboarding experience for new players
  • Implemented convincing AI (first ever for Magic!)
  • Brought graphics & interface up to 21st-century standards
  • Introduced new platforms to expand the user base
  • Actively promoted the Magic brand and physical game through the initial version
  • Created six major iterations, with multiple content drops through the years, on up to 8 simultaneous SKUs and 12 languages

Releases

  • Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers - released 2009 - Xbox, 2010 PC, Playstation
  • Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 - released 2011 - Xbox, PC, Playstation
  • Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2013 - released 2012 - Xbox, PC, Playstation, iOS
  • Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2014 - released 2013 - Xbox, PC, Playstation, iOS, Android
  • Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2015 - released 2014 - Xbox, PC, Playstation, iOS, Android
  • Magic: Duels - released 2015 - Xbox, PC, iOS

Awards



Ranked #1

PSN Sales Chart, June 2012



Best iOS Game

Metacritic, 2012



Nominee, Best Strategy/Simulation Game

Pocket Gamer Awards, 2013

Easily Stainless Games' best effort at providing an accessible yet challenging version of Magic to date.

- Leif Johnson, IGN

If you've retired slinging spells for a while and want to pop back in to see what Magic has become, DotP 2014 will convince you why you fell in love with the game to begin with.

- The Game Scouts

For the cost of a few booster packs, Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 provides a balanced, enjoyable experience that Magic fans of all levels can enjoy.

- Gameshark