5 dead trading card games worth a play

Ah, trading card games. Such an intriguing trend. Beyond countless cash grabs, you would be surprised at how many great trading card games there are. These games often shine by the community they foster and the rich gameplay they bring up. Sadly, after production, support and interest for such games wane quickly leaving many gems on the wayside. Well, my friends, I am here to tell you that you should not make the same mistake! Many groundbreaking experiences are waiting for you in this genre‘s history. I‘ll try to list a few particularly noteworthy examples that are deserving of a place in your collection. Without further ado, let‘s explore dead games that still have plenty of life left in their cards.

Vampire: The Eternal Struggle

Of course, I start with a bit of a cheat. I‘ll explain later. Originally released in 1995, Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (V:TES and first known as Jyhad) is set in the universe of such games as Vampire: The Mascarade and Werewolf: The Apocalypse (the World of Darkness). For the uninitiated, the World of Darkness is a darker version of our modern-day world packed with supernatural creatures including mages, shapeshifters, werewolves and, of course, vampires. Besides its compelling gothic horror universe, this game stands out for another of its unique features: it is a multiplayer TCG that‘s actually good. Every player incarnates a powerful ancient vampire. Every turn, they will recruit minions (sometimes beneath the nose of their adversaries), gain control of strategic assets (including locations, weapons, etc.) and battle other players. The key is the fact the game focuses heavily on politics, alliances and betrayals. Most strong actions REQUIRE to win a vote, where each vote is tallied depending on the current strength of the player. For example, if the vote for the card “Anarch Salon‘ passes, each player controlling anarch-aligned vampires (one of the game‘s factions) will get blood (money). In that way, the game stays consistently dynamic and engaging. What‘s more, resources are scarce. Activating any vampire minion uses blood (money). Due to this, alliances tend to come and go quickly, leading to opportunistic gameplay and memorable games.

Now to explain why it is a bit of a cheat: after many years of absence, the license was picked back up by Renegade Studios in 2018. They re-released it as Vampire: The Eternal Struggle Rivals discarding the TCG format. Since this edition did bring other mechanical changes too, I still feel validated in mentioning the game in this list. Either way, V:TES stands out in depth, complexity and thematic ties. A true classic deserving of a try.

The Middle Earth Collectible Card Game

Of all the Tolkien-inspired TCG released until now, I still find the first one the most intriguing and worth a revisit. The Middle-Earth Collectible Card Game (MECCG) from 1995 fascinates me the most because of the ambition of its mechanics. For starters, the game uses unique win conditions. Being asymmetric, one player (the free people) needs to collect enough points to complete one of the various major quests. The other player, the Shadow player, works to halt the free people‘s progress or even corrupt the selected Ring-bearer. What I love most is the gameplay and thematic richness of the cards. Characters move around the map (did I mention that this TCG uses a map?), visit sites, find items, try to complete quests and overcome hazards. Every single one of those elements is determined by BOTH players. By playing hazards and responses back and forth, players create an affluent and unique narrative in every single game. Don‘t get me wrong: the gameplay is complex and rule-heavy, but well worth it. What‘s more, released before the Peter Jackson trilogy, the game interprets the books in a distinct, refreshing and thematic way. I must say that the art is superb. Well worth a detour for any Tolkien fan. MECCG had a series of expansions that continued to expand the world of Middle-Earth, introduce new characters, and add depth to gameplay mechanics. In total 5 expansions came out, the last in 1999. I still play it from time to time. Please do give it a try if you can.

Magic The Gathering

“What? Magic The Gathering (MTG)? The game isn‘t dead!“ You say. True but, oh my friends, this game has so much to offer that has been forgotten. Being as old as it is, the game changed over time, sometimes unrecognizably so. In my mind, many formats in the game‘s history should be experienced. My recommendation would be to seek old standard formats. If you don‘t know, standard is a way of playing with cards only from sets released close together (generally a two years window). With that format, MTG‘s designers could fine-tune cards meant to be played with or against each other. As such, historical standard formats often have a clear design intent, unique gameplay and priorities. A real cultural shock for modern players. Whether you want to gather friends and create decks selecting for the restricted card pool or doing it the old way by opening boosters, here are three formats I highly recommend. First, Ravnica standard (Kamigawa block, 9th Edition and Ravnica block) is possibly my favourite MTG standard format I ever played. The diversity is just insane. If you love grindy games, you can‘t go wrong with Invasion-Odyssey. While not as diversified as Ravnica standard, Theros-Khans is also extremely fun. Just keep in mind that the rules of the game have changed through the years. As such, just make sure to play with the appropriate ruleset. You will have plenty of fun, I am sure.

Android Netrunner TCG

Our next two entries are more recent but still out of print and, of course, excellent games. Android: Netrunner is a Living Card Game (meaning cards are bought not in boosters but in predictable packs) featuring an interesting dystopian cyberpunk universe and unique asymmetric gameplay. One player takes on the role of a corporation, trying to push agendas for points while the second player is a hacker (called “runner“) trying to halt the corporation‘s schemes. During the game, both players will follow an engaging back and forth - with the corporation setting secretly assets of defences and the runner trying to set up tools and find a weak spot. And this is what I love most about the game. With its hidden information and asymmetry, the game promotes a rich strategy. Bluffs tend to abound. Truly, almost any game is unique and complex in its way. This game originally came out in the 90s as a TCG but the Fantasy Flight Games‘ reprint as an LCG made keeping up with the cardpool and meta easy. I am sad to say you missed the competitive metagame for this game as it was truly something worth seeing. If you seek a deeply rewarding and challenging experience, this is the game for you.

Star Wars Destiny - Dice, high production, fun

Last but not least, I want to throw a curveball at you. So here is a game pushing the boundaries of TCGs while still being plenty of fun (contrary to most other TCGs with that ambition). Star Wars: Destiny was a collectible DICE and card game set in the Star Wars universe. That‘s right: dice game. The game combined traditional card game mechanics with custom dice associated with heroes in the saga. As such, Darth Vader had his own dice and actions on it. So did Luke Skywalker. Players built decks around those heroes and all actions, combat and special abilities revolved around the dice for these heroes. What I love most about that game was that, simply put, it just worked. Star Wars: Destiny delivered a truly unique blend of strategy and chance. Players had to (and could) synergize their cards and dice to have a winning chance. Before you ask, plenty of dice mitigation was available so no worries there. I expect the Star Wars IP to be a big draw for many and I have to say that the game respects it properly. To sum up: great use of dice, high production value and just plain fun.

Honorable mention

Very quick honourable mention here. The Legend of the Five Rings (L5R) Trading Card Game from 1995 brings to the table something I have NEVER seen in any other TCG. At the highest levels, the game’s official tournaments and events influenced the ongoing narrative, which was published in novels, official announcements, and updates to the game. Players’ actions in these events would affect the fates of their factions and the world itself. Say the scorpion clan won over the heron clan in the last tournaments, successive cards would show that. This system made each player feel a unique connection to their chosen faction and community. If you want to learn more about the reach of the player involvement I am talking about here, you could check out Matthew Colville's video on the subject. Do dive deeper though.

Closing the shopping list

I think you now have plenty to dig in so I will stop there but note that these are far from the only older TCGs that are worth a look. In a way, the apparent “death“ of these games is part of their appeal. All these games had plenty of time to fine-tune their mechanisms, to build upon their identity in a way that current titles cannot replicate. You should not overlook what‘s outside our capricious and ever-changing modern viewpoint. These classics can still offer you unforgettable experiences soaked in complexity, creativity and theme. So, pick one up and celebrate the rich history of the TCG landscape… one booster at a time.

See you next week.