Flesh and Blood, the newest card game in town, has been gaining the attention of the MTG community since its inception. Some called the game a “fad” however the recent event “The Calling” in Las Vegas was a hit in every conceivable category. Positive opinions about the game persevered throughout the event, with many prominent figures in the MTG community continuing to sing praises.
With so much attention on the “new guy in down” we’ve received assurances that WotC “isn’t jealous” and “doesn’t mind you spending time with them” though we’re not convinced.
Since FaB first came around, WotC has been acting a bit strange – product has been largely available, rewards for playing at LGS’ are in abundance and overpriced, high-demand, products have been notably absent in recent months. If that wasn’t enough, gifts of free product and candy have been arriving on doorsteps around the world:
Additionally, the once “pay-to-play-but-rationed-anyway” format, Brawl was turned into 100-card historic Brawl which is now free-to-play permanently. We ended up with multiple free drafts (not even phantom!) codes for free XP and weekly updates with a good deal of transparency.
“They’re even dressing nicer and taking us out. To a real restaurant, not just drive-thru or takeout,” said one longtime fan. However, it’s not all good news. “The extra attention is nice, but it’s becoming a bit much, so much more PDA and always hanging around. They wanted to know if I updated passwords and keep looking at my phone whenever I get a text.”
As for now, FaB is a physical-only product with no digital client which means that it’s not stepping on too many toes, but it may not be that way forever. Given the success of a physical card game during a time that made it near to impossible to play in-person, one can imagine why WotC might be worried that many are, in fact, getting railed by FaB in the broom closet at work.