Magic: The Gatheringhas received a boom in new players thanks to recent collaboration efforts, but has long-time Commander players feeling left behind. Starting as an experimental fringe format in 2011,Commander has grown to become one of the most popular and profitable formats inMagic: The Gatheringtoday, benefiting greatly from its ease of access and social focus. While Wizards Of The Coast has been successful at attracting new players to the format, controversies over product releases and recent card bans have left a negative impression on some diehard fans.
Thankfully, for fans of the popular card game and the equally iconicDungeons & Dragons, WOTC has gotten much better at applying fan feedback. Responding toD&D Beyond’s criticismover eliminating cross-compatibility with 5e, WOTC immediately took the backlash to heart, hearing out fans and making changes to improve the experience for returning players. Continuing with the trend of acknowledging the fanbase,WOTC is introducing new initiatives to tackle ongoing areas of improvement within their game formats, and preventing future controversies over poorly received changes.
The Commander Panel Is A Great Step Forward
Giving The Community A Meaningful Voice For The Game
TheCommander Panel is a community-focused group with a diverse group of 17 members from different backgrounds, being involved in vital decision-making with WOTC. WhileMTGalready has groups that oversee detailed changes made to the Commander format, this panel is intended to give a voice to a wider variety of players with nuanced perspectives. Rather than being bogged down by reviewing every card or minor update,the Commander Panel will provide feedback on new mechanics, individual cards that need a second opinion, or changes made to the Commander format as a whole, such ascard bansor rule changes.
Given that much of the Panel team is made up of content creators, each member has a direct line of communication with numerous fans of the format, giving the everyday player more of a voice.Panel members are also encouraged to voice their opinions openly on social media, being allowed to criticize major decisions of WOTC without fearof losing their position. These changes are a fantastic way for WOTC to quickly respond to future issues, letting creators take in feedback from the community and relay it to those in charge of major decision-making forMagic: The Gathering’s Commander format.
What This Means For The Future Of Magic: The Gathering
A Revolving Door Of Fresh Opinions From Content Leaders
While 17 members may seem like a challenge to come to a decisive decision, the panel is more intended for open discussion of ideas with a focus on majority agreement, rather than unanimous decisions. While each member has a voice in the panel and community,WOTC ultimately has the final say in decisions, preventing concerns over mob mentalitythat would shake up the format dramatically. Current panel members will also be replaced or changed yearly, creating a rotating team that will continue to provide fresh and up-to-date perspectives from players as time goes on.
Rather than relying on volunteers, each member of the panel is being paid for their contribution, further stressing WOTC’s investment in fostering a healthier relationship withMTG’scommunity.
Fans ofMagic: The Gathering’s Commander format won’t need to be worried about major changes anytime soon, as the leaders of the panel are dedicating time to getting it running smoothly before making waves in the community.The first major area the panel members plan to discuss is the slow speed at which Commander games play out, stressed by conversations with higher-ups and feedback from fans. While this is certainly a change that could have a large-scale effect on the Commander community, it’s going to be a slow transition as more players become involved to collect as much feedback as possible.
