Magic: The Gathering In The Time Of Pandemic | A Conversation With Mark Rosewater

Today I am joined by Mark Rosewater, Head Designer of Magic: The Gathering to discuss Magic: The Gathering in the time of pandemic. What is Wizards of the Coast doing to help local game stores survive this crisis? How important are local game stores and tabletop (paper) Magic to Wizards of the Coast? How soon and in what form will Magic Fests return? Just HOW is WotC making Magic cards, designing new sets and products, when everyone is stuck at home? These questions and more.
#mtg #magicthegathering #markrosewater
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[@Hundo_Mo]

The look of terror on prof’s face when he asked about “physical magic” going away Shows how much he loves table top

[@nicholash.7656]

Physical Magic will persist long after wizards dies

[@Hundo_Mo]

Nicholas Horvat that would be sad though. Imagine no new physical cards?

[@raonair]

@@Hundo_Mo Sad for our hearts AND our wallets

[@Legodude008]

@@Hundo_Mo I imagine that IF Wizards ever does fold (unlikely) the market for cards will crash and there will be enough players that quit that I wager that the price of most cards will drop significantly and stabilize lower than they are now or have ever been. There will be enough dedicated players that the game will live on, but not enough demand to drive prices the way they have in the past 10-20 years. That being said if Wizards/Hasbro folds there will be an all-out bidding war for the rights to Magic and someone else will pick up where Wizards left off, for better or worse..

[@Earcari82]

Long after natural energy resources will ends

[@michelagustin1485]

So grateful to see Wizards was able to reach out to the public through this channel. Thank you.

[@CrosswaIk]

They sure weren't going to do it though their own, much smaller channel lol

[@Ericnorify]

I am very happy to hear that Mark too believes that tabletop is the core of Mtg. Awesome!

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

It really is!

[@bobby45825]

He HAS to say that. Doesn't mean Hasbro agrees with him.

[@andricaion9036]

@@TolarianCommunityCollege Of course Prof, that s the way Magic was and will be meant to play!! This is a hard period but we'll get over it.

[@billyloper4072]

I'll bet money it's just lip service

[@MrTMaciejewski]

Paper magic will stay as long as they make $$$. With new offerings like secret lair and collector booster they are experimenting with how much they can get.

[@innarrixl6753]

Thank you Mark Rosewater and the Professor for doing this interview. Yes, we (the community) needed someone official to come out to say this in an interview just like this.

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

[@anonypoke7486]

What a fitting shirt Mark is wearing.

[@theodogaronwarrior7738]

I do like that shirt

[@adolphus28]

In Jan 2021?

[@Jonathan-qk5ed]

LMAO

[@LordFawkes]

Anonypoke he always wears plaid shirts

[@prestontingley8914]

When you wanna comment... then look down and see almost the same thing being commented on.. 😂😂

[@metalvisionsongcontest7055]

How can you tell in your EDH playgroup that there's a pandemic going on? It's when the group-hug player turns into the infect player.

[@uwuowo3998]

God damnit Bobby.

[@giacomofasulo3861]

Nice one

[@juleswinter7083]

Underrated comment

[@Kyrbi0]

Can't decide between "Oof", "too soon" or "excellente"

[@jallen3775]

I didn't realize I was playing Group Hug

[@DaijDjan]

As someone who (sadly) just doesn't like playing Magic (or any other card game) digitally (I get bored when not sitting in front of a real person holding real cards), MaRo's rant about them not abandoning paper Magic was really, really good to hear. Greetings from Germany!

[@lexluthor9279]

Have to agree with that, also mostly as commander player, politics and table-talk are big part in real cards-mtg games compared to mtg arena (what also has not commander)

[@bluedog4248]

Lex Luthor in addition to that, mtg online is bad for commander. People scoop way too early and fast, people kind of play dumb and are pettier, and it’s hard to react or do things without the social aspect of it.

[@mightyone3737]

I prefer a relatively casual game as I'm still learning (obviously big mistakes need to stick), and don't think strict play is necessarily the best way to learn. Digital helps too, but it's frustrating and can easily get very expensive (looking at you Arena!). Standard is not a place to play on a budget, especially when people are going to rofl-stomp you constantly for doing it with cards that are hilariously better.

[@TimmytheSorcerer]

Agree 100% Paper Magic is what keeps me in the game 🙌

[@1alexloch]

If you have a webcam setup (can even be your phone taped to a lamp or something), you can join the MTG_VideoChatPlay discord. There is casual play and some tournaments but it is mostly US based people so would be great to get more people in from other timezones for events!!

[@Breakerone92]

I know we rant about a lot of things WOTC does, but it makes me happy Mark & his team are trying to keep the social interaction alive during this

[@Big_Dai]

Of course! Paper makes more money...

[@m.mulder8864]

Thank you Mark for all of your hard work and concern. Thanks for showing up for the interview and sharing with us. And hey, go make some good white cards.

[@nik700]

Headphones in a conversation with MaRo is a test of bravery

[@tues2455]

If he had him on the speaker the neighbors would call the cops.

[@mayelaromero6705]

Underrated comment

[@izzyjin8013]

@@bluenorth3965 Mark Rosewater.

[@leahliddle324]

MaRo has the world's only vocal cords which are susceptible to clipping issues.

[@ScottofOakland]

Hahaha Thats hilarious

[@dandiaz19934]

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it is how INVALUABLE being face to face with a friend is compared to calling them on Zoom. Paper magic = human interaction, and that is priceless.

[@joshrohde5014]

Man, the Professor has really become a juggernaut in the MtG world.

[@adolphus28]

He certainly has been the last 4-5 years. Even though you have people like Rudy that almoat have as many views, he doesn't encapsulate the full gammut, facets and community of Magic like the Prof does.

[@woody1337lol]

He should be! Alot has changed since the hasbro rep told him once: If you dont have enoth money this product is not for you. And now its the prof kicking them in the bollocks (Ref to the secret layer fetch episode).

[@ruizgabrielf]

He's the TotalBiscuit of MTG, a watchdog for consumer-friendliness.

[@trunkulent]

@@ruizgabrielf RIP

[@Frkr.]

adolphus28 because Rudy‘s focus is on vintage cards, vintage booster and MTG economic universe

[@toob1226]

My LGS had been holding FNM over discord, with different voice and text chats for MTGA and MTGO. We will survive!

[@LordFawkes]

That’s great to hear

[@rafaeldavis2615]

Mine as well. It's a great way to keep supporting the store during this crisis.

[@saint_kaii]

Proff:buy these ear buds Also proff:uses head phones

[@theetiologist9539]

kyeron playz half a million subscribers seems to be the number where Wizards starts paying attention.

[@Abyzdecannes]

As long as you aren't looking for agility (moving your help rapidly, running maybe ...) or resting your head on a pillow, headphones are infinitely superior to earbuds

[@jek__]

Wireless earbuds cannot compete with wired headphones in terms of audio quality, low latency, and passive noise cancellation, sometimes this is a really important distinction when on a voice call, when it can already be hard to hear

[@lainproliant]

F A M

[@KingBobXVI]

He's clearly wearing the buds under the phones, fam

[@ozzwich]

I love how Professional The Professor is and his awareness of how important a positive focused discussion is.

[@elpokitolama]

MaRo's personality is just so cheerful and wholesome, I get so pumped up and excited by just listening to him

[@m.a.9517]

Yeah since I first saw an interview with him I knew magic will be here as long as he is in it... It is his baby, he is excited to be a part of it and developing. He is excited, lovefull and totally engaged :D

[@vmcampos]

@Rutger Thyssen you seem fun! 🙄

[@Big_Dai]

He's a salesman first..

[@cravenmagic]

@Rutger Thyssen Ah a man of culture I see. Yeah I am not drinking the cool aid of cheerfulness either, he is the face (salesman) of MTG and has to get people excited. But the game is being choked by its masters for sure. Is MTG a game for whales or for everyone? Reprints when? etc etc

[@endgame]

Okay first question -- Where's all the merfolk?

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

That's for my hard hitting followup interview! ;p

[@Thomas-vn6cr]

They got thrown into the "non-human" bin.

[@antoniobush4560]

@@TolarianCommunityCollege more importantly why are merfolk in blue green, bring back sygg

[@SomeYouTubeTraveler]

@@antoniobush4560 Lorwyn block was purposefully color-bent to accommodate tribal symmetry. The tribal colors were _not_ meant to reflect or provide precedent for those creature types' colors outside that plane (I mean elves in black? Really?). I don't know how many times I've had to explain this.

[@NikachuMTG]

endgame specifically the powerful 1 drop Merfolk!

[@xxenergizedxx6695]

Wow!! You did it Professor!! Can’t believe you have him on the channel! Things are definitely moving in a positive direction. Like always THANK YOU Professor for everything you do for the community. Hope to see you again at GP Portland

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

Yes! Thank you!

[@mediocritysbest6220]

Why are people so mean to mark, he's so fun and animated. I feel that he truly cares about the game

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

He does.

[@otto.castro]

Did he design Teferi? Did he design Narset? Did he design Nissa? Cause I used to love Magic as well.

[@elpokitolama]

@@otto.castro if your "love of the game" is gone because of three standard legal cards, did it even exist in the first place?

[@mediocritysbest6220]

@@otto.castro would you rather have homelands block again? I enjoy the challenge of fighting strong cards. On power creep, I know some of the recent sets are strong but when I look at my commander decks, I have cards from the entirety of mtg. These sets are strong, but they don't make other sets obsolete

[@Abarataphoto]

I have the same feeling, He sounds like a dude that really enjoys what he does, and what he does is MtG! MtG as we love it, wouldn't be nearly the same if Mark didn't come along, along the way, for the good and the bad, but I'm overall very very happy with MtG, playing it since 1997. The only thing I dislike is a drop of quality, novelwise, but that I have to live with.

[@RafaelAAMerlo]

It is impossible not to cry watching this. I did it twice, first on The Professor's thumbs up to "We wannna to each player to continue play the game the way they want it", and second at the end full of love. I cant' wait to see the "Planewide Celebration" that the first big event will be after we reach the end of the pandemic. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart

[@thehumblepundit9790]

I just started playing MTG, and went to my first FNM right before the pandemic closed everything down. Although I play a lot of MTG Arena, it's NOTHING like how much fun I had playing paper magic with real humans in front of me. Can't wait to get back to it!

[@ericlawson3555]

I just missed my first fnm experience :( and now I’m obsessed with the game, and can’t wait to play a draft and join the local community. I got a lot of games with friends in beforehand though. Now I’m just waiting

[@wilsonjonah]

Arena is a blast, but I want so bad to go to a game store and play FNM, I'm a beginner to Magic and I really want to meet other players IRL. Don't get me wrong, playing with my brothers is awesome and sometime hilarious, but I'd just love to get out there sometime and meet new people like me, with a passion for the game

[@luizfigueroa6822]

I find the entusiasm on Mark Rosewater's voice intoxicating. So happy that MTG is in the hands of someone so passionate about the game.

[@spyder2238]

What a 30 out of 10 interview. Fantastic

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

You're too kind!

[@Hinterhofgelaechter]

Does Mark wear a t-shirt with a poison-counter symbol on it, while talking about the pandemic?

[@simoncss1]

1st & foremost, symbol of Phyrexia, then poison counter

[@theetiologist9539]

Brilliance

[@jorgenorberto293]

Phyrexian mana

[@miltonvai5816]

when we can get rid from this? we can now only follow some guidelines to protect us. I found a complete guideline and some lies about the pandemic. it's so sensitive. here it is softdeskbd.com

[@CarronBarboza]

What a fucking champ

[@hiddenleaf414]

Milwaukee’s Commander/EDH scene is massive. We also don’t have any LGS’ in our actual city, they are all 20-30mins outside the city. We have massive bar leagues that I know everyone is still looking forward to coming back too.

[@brianmesser4220]

The Legacy scene in Milwaukee is also huge!

[@DailyPlayedInvestments]

Edh is hugeeeee in milwaukee but ur right all stores are within 15 minutes of milwaukee citadel games is the best for edh on fridays

[@ch4zr]

I really miss the face to face Magic Events in my LGS. Really looking forward to it and I hope all our LGS don't have to close because of this crisis.

[@Bumbum_Inspector]

All problems with Magic and Wizards of the Coast aside, you can certainly feel Mark's passion for the game just by the way he communicates and I love that.

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

He is extremely sincere in his passions. I've had the fortune to just hang out a few times with him casually, and he is as genuine and genuine can be.

[@haroldbates3245]

It is a wonderfully positive sign that you have had WOTC employees on your show. It proves that they do listen to your opinions. Tolarian Community College is precisely the voice I want them listening to! Your insights and criticisms are well thought out and expressed. The fact that MaRo not only agreed to do an interview with you, but actually requested it, fills my heart with joy. What he had to say about the security of paper Magic was also very comforting. I want to say congratulations and thank you for being a calm, rational voice for the Magic community. Job well done and keep up the good -- nae, EXCELLENT -- work!

[@Kuniwuni]

I would love to find a career that I can express my passion for just as much as Mark Rosewater does with Magic. Also, to the Professor, much respect with you as an interviewer. I'm sure you had many questions to ask him (perhaps during Mark Rosewater's podcast) about the game; it was respectful of you to just listen and have Mark voice himself about the game and just hearing him being so passionate makes me love this game even more. This comes from a newbie player in MTG.

[@dandiaz19934]

I love Mark Rosewater. He's constantly reaching out to the community and is so energetic. I really appreciate how he cares for the MTG playerbase

[@Josh_Fredman]

It's a real honor that Mark picked you to provide a platform for him to speak to the community, Prof! Thanks for this, and for creating so much good content in general! Also, it's touching how Mark answered your last question. You can really tell how much he cares about the game, and sees it as much more than just a "game." I think people often undervalue the importance of arts and entertainment in making life fulfilling. Magic isn't as immediately urgent as, say, farming, but "man cannot live on bread alone," as they say. Mark gets that.

[@bastienclarke1810]

I love Mark, he is one of the best parts of Magic.

[@Lucarioguild7]

Prof really said it best there at the end we may disagree with Maro on aspects of the game but damn you can tell he cares and his positivity is always so infectious

[@cuppadirt]

Thanks for all you do Prof!

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

My pleasure!

[@baranpourtahmaseb-sasi1421]

Thanks for being that reliable lifeline between the players and WotC, Professor. We need it now more than ever to be reminded they're human too.

[@qtaltube]

Magic is the greatest game because it is created by such passionate and amazing people like Mark!

[@Hawkstar5088]

It's been a while since I've heard mark talk. I forgot he's in a constant state if being mid yell

[@kiranm8569]

At 25:55 when MaRo totally doesn't get the Prof's Phyrexia reference and he has to just kinda nod like "yeah, I was being serious"... I laughed. And then I started crying. And my tears were black and oily. And now I am COMPLEAT!!!

[@retromtg1834]

I haven't played in a couple months since all of this started going down. I'm itching to get back there and start drafting asap Edit: Tell me Maro isn't wearing that shirt on purpose lol gotta love the dude

[@playernamedjuju8607]

The Prof is a Multiverse Treasure, he should be honored with a Planeswalker card, I can see it being Bant colored!

[@batatac4mil86]

Or jeskai, a smart but sometimes almost impulsive but definitely very passioned justice hero

[@RyeFields]

Or colorless, being immortalized in an artifact

[@muroderepolho69]

I believe he defined himself as very red, I can be wrong but I guess he said that once I guess izzet and jeskai would fit well

[@innarrixl6753]

Wow, I always assumed he would be esper. Maybe, I'm projecting a bit.

[@dragonknite314]

The Professor: Jeskai The Instructor: very very Grixis

[@SpikeyMoth]

I love mark’s personality he is just smiling through the whole video

[@FeedYourGreed]

I’d be smiling too if I could sell 5 pieces of paper in a glorified trunk made in a special economic zone in Shenzhen, by underaged and underpaid laborers then pretend to be woke for $160.00 implicit “MSRP”.

[@adolphus28]

I thought Magic was printed in Belgium/Europe, U.S. and Japan?

[@FeedYourGreed]

adolphus28 Printing the cards and assembly of the crates are vastly different. Especially for a company as large as Hasbro. Thanks for playing.

[@omegablast2002]

Hes an outstanding person...you should check out his gdc talks.. particularly his 20 years 20 lessons talk...wotc hit a home run when they snatched this guy up after his Rosanne tv show ended...

[@tues2455]

@@adolphus28 pretty sure you are right

[@batatac4mil86]

Mark's t-shirt of new phyrexia may be a hint about future standard sets

[@camerinbrummett6511]

Return to New Phyrexia please and thanks

[@The_Supervillain]

I like the tinfoil hat theory that Elspeth brings Phyrexians to Theros via oil from her nightmare. I don’t think it’s going to happen but I thought that was a cool take on their return.

[@adamloomos]

yazanm2 Yawgmoth given new life through the power of Nyx sounds amazing. Yawgmoth, God of Phyrexia as a Therosian god card anyone?

[@johncochrane6039]

Thanks to both of you gentlemen, who obviously care very much about this game, for taking the time to share the state of the game with us, and to comfort us. I very much appreciate it.

[@RedZoneRogue]

Thank you so much - to both Mark and the Prof - for this interview and video. It really means a lot.

[@themoakman]

I think paper Magic will be perfectly fine for this one reason: You can't play Commander on arena.

[@Woody-fv7uu]

I think you, command zone, and quarters commander should do an online set of games. Pilot a few of your favorite decks. Maybe a way to do it online between each other.

[@SomeYouTubeTraveler]

Yeah, if they could model an EDH Zoom match or two that'd be fantastic

[@dionasselman7611]

Thanx prof for this. I had tears in my afterwards. Magic saved my life too after my divorce and Mark is such a positive force in this community. Thanx again Prof and Mark Rosewater!

[@jackpabich763]

Thank you MaRo for all you have done for magic over the years! It always impresses me the passion he has for every aspect of the game.

[@ElDocBruh]

"The pandemic has made us lose the gathering". It's so true :( I miss my EDH Fridays with friends.

[@wilsonjonah]

I've never even gone to FNM before, but I want to go at least once. Arena is a blast to play, but I just want to meet new people and maybe even make new friends who share a passion for the game

[@samus123ful]

I think being cooped up in his house has compressed Mark's energy even more than his stature could.

[@buraddorun3043]

Thank you for this video, and thank you Mark for doing this interview. I, too, am a paper Magic player. I don't have an Arena or MTGO account. I'm glad to hear WotC is supporting both paper and digital Magic.

[@hydrainfernos9081]

Its wonderful seeing Mark's passion for this community

[@gabrielharvey956]

Gratz prof , this channel so cool that even wtoc aknowledge you as medium to talk dirrecly to the player base , long live tolarian community college , long live the prof

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

Rock on!

[@Sarpro72]

I appreciate the free product wizards is handing out to stores to help them out, that’s something I didn’t think of. However, I still would like to see more support in the future in the form of player rewards for in-store play from wizards. It seems to me like all this time wizards has been moving away from LGS’s but when shit hits the fan try and make up for lost time and talk about how great they are. Luckily my LGS is surviving by selling on Facebook and eBay and will probably reopen for business as usual.

[@noahmurtha4036]

This was so uplifting and give me real faith in the game I’ve loved and played for almost a decade now. Magic got me out of a hole in my life that I didn’t think I’d ever come out of, so I just want to say thank you to Mark for being such a force in the community and in this games heritage. As well as how much time he’s spent making the game I love the best it can be. Thank you Prof for doing these interviews and videos too. I’ve been following for a long time and couldn’t be happier watching your videos. ❤️

[@LemorasCards]

I have a lot of issues with Wizards but Mark is such an awesome guy, he absolutely wants Magic to be the best game it can be.

[@RyeFields]

In a time of turmoil and constant unease, it's a nice change of pace to hear that the best TCG is going to stay afloat through more dark events

[@writerblocks9553]

oohhhh "the gathering" refers to the PEOPLE gathering? i always thought it referred to gathering the cards lol

[@czernobog1731]

I thought it meant gathering magic

[@Leo-pr7ly]

now it means gathering all the money out of your wallets.

[@writerblocks9553]

Magic: the gathering of your wallet with overpowered cards that sell sets and then get banned as soon as we make our money 😍 love you Wizards, but we see you

[@Matazuma]

Its both and more

[@Sol_Seraph]

I always thought it meant a gathering of planeswalkers

[@Mtgshenanigans]

This is a great interview. It puts a lot of my fears to rest. I have played table top for 20 years and have gotten through a lot of tough times by playing mtg so losing the gathering aspect would be devastating to me in lots of ways. Thank you professor and Mark Rosewater. Please stay safe both of you and hope to see more in the future. Bolas forever

[@pinballwitch5256]

Mark is one of the greatest resources Magic has, without even considering his design work. That man is an absolute treasure. Thank you both for this wonderful video and helping to assuage the fears many, myself and yourselves too it seems, have been feeling.

[@Baby_boodle]

I'm very glad to see the two of you talking about this.

[@penguinmonk7661]

The man himself? Well for every balance fuck up and the whole secondary market/fetchland problem. It is still an amazing game and I praise him for that.

[@OneOfTheStorms]

I mean, neither of those are his responsibility. Play Design's got the last say for balance, and I assume the corporate suits are to blame for the card prices. He just makes the card designs.

[@adolphus28]

So...if he just makes the card designs...how can he guarantee what the suits control..?

[@_traximundar_3165]

Yeah, he basically gives the feel of the set and the general mechanics in it. He does not have hands in card balance or product quality.

[@timothyvandenberg2905]

Thank you Mark! And thank you, Prof! :)

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

My pleasure!

[@justinperdue9042]

Brian, thanks for asking the question on everyone’s mind! Glad to hear that paper magic is a pillar of the company and nobody should be panic selling their cards.

[@masterloard]

My takeaway from this: Profit margin may be higher for digital, but gross sales are vastly higher for paper

[@EbonyJarret]

Great to see both being okay in this harsh times

[@brockmckelvey7327]

Thank you so much Professor for doing this! I really needed this positivity and optimism

[@markthe5hark8]

The pandemic actually pulled me back into magic because I didn't have a lot of engaging stuff to do other than look through my card collection and work on decks, which is fun even without other people. So now I'm super excited about when I get to go to a game store and play with other people and share things I've made. The pandemic is also what made me find this channel I love now. In every video it's evident how much the professor wants the content to be as good as possible and as helpful and as positively impactful as possible. I can't think of another creator with the same level of intentionality.

[@joelowdon1615]

Thank you for this Professor. Thank you for your ongoing contributions to the game and your honesty and openness. I am enjoying this interview I just find it so difficult to trust what MaRo is saying. I feel like I've lost most of my faith and confidence in the game and WotC. I'm trying, but it's so difficult; and that's really sad. Edit: now I've finished the whole video, I do feel a bit less doom and gloom than I had originally posted. It's just good to know that they see us and they see what we're feeling.

[@adolphus28]

I hope you see the positives you need through your efforts and anything you come across :)

[@joelowdon1615]

@@adolphus28 thank you. It's pretty difficult, but I'm trying. I love Magic; but recently I've felt like I have had to make myself love Magic. I've never experienced that with the game before. I miss the Gathering a lot too.

[@adolphus28]

Thanks for giving us this vid with Mark, Prof. I think there is at least something anyone (who's a fan of Magic) can take away of value. Hopefully this has also reinvigorated you in between your recent health matters. Wish you all the positivity :)

[@mattpk1609]

Not only a great guest but also a topic that's among the biggest for me and my friends right now. We're talking about solutions to play and go to the LGS almost every weekend. Perfect video!

[@Matthew-by2xx]

I'm really glad to see this interview. I've had concerns about the future of paper (as many others have), and it feels good to have MaRo say what he said. It's also nice to see how much he still seems to care about the game.

[@metalvisionsongcontest7055]

"Will Jump Start come out the day we originally announced it?" Sure, this is independent of the pandemic. After all, you can still play jump-start cards from the graveyard... 😂

[@simoncss1]

Really don’t mind if instead, they took this chance to slow down, take stock & consolidate etc etc. Jump Start, Jump-start. Jeska, Jeskai. Mythic rare, Mythic watever. They should realise by now, there’s a very real limit to creativity while producing at top speed & many of us r also pretty drained + desensitised by so many products pumped into the market furiously, while they keep refusing to reprint the stuffs that truly bottleneck availability of staples

[@BagelFrog]

Damn, didn’t see that coming😂

[@alanaparicio5856]

i'm very concerned about the Magic events in other countries like mine, Bolivia. When WoC cancelled national championships it was so sad for us becouse we dont have other ways to participate in a competitive event like that without traveling to other country. "The Gathering" is obviously not a priority for WoC in other countries...

[@wilagaton9627]

Same here in the Philippines. . .

[@LotusbloomGaming]

I'm so glad the value of gathering has been seen, Thank you for this interview. Much love and stay safe xx

[@claryfray2014]

Thank you mark for convincing us that magic the gathering will survive this pandemic and crisis. And that we won’t loose anything that we love and miss during this time frame.

[@SomeYouTubeTraveler]

I wish I could support my LGS more, but on top of the virus we had a huge gutter/fascia catastrophe and were already in debt over fixing it right before things got worse. Ikoria marks the first time I've missed a Prerelease and release day fat pack (sigh... "bundle") since Dragon's Maze. I feel especially terrible because my LGS owner lives above the store with his family, and he had literally just moved there in January and has his own debts racking up. If he can't make ends meet and loses the store, he'll be literally homeless. I'm grabbing a bundle if I have room after my house payment this month, if nothing else than to stave off the inevitable just a little while longer.

[@GreatWhiteElf]

Ikoria was delayed for paper magic, May 15th is the new release date I belive.

[@colinfowler3021]

"We want people to play magic how they want to play magic." -- unless of course, you want to play Brawl and it's not Wednesday.

[@francopiriamahia1900]

unless, of course, you want to play mtg and not companionhearthstone

[@jaytotheareokay]

Why aren't you allowed to take your paper brawl deck and play against your friends if it's not Wednesday?

[@deoxysmaster1]

This comment aged poorly

[@guiyuanful]

Very cool, more positive and better communication by Wizards than previous interviews, good to hear.

[@lightofdeath37]

I have to say thank for all the videos you post I Unfortunately tested positive for covid19 and been locked in my room. So seeing your videos really helps pass the time

[@maidenless_tarnished]

4:54 I feel like he came so close to accidentally saying "it does no good if our customers are dead"

[@420KilgoreTrout]

Great interview. Mark Rosewater is unfortunately shouting the entire time, but it's still good.

[@RyeFields]

I kinda relate, he seems to be loud by nature and easily excited

[@Sarpro72]

He’s always like that

[@420KilgoreTrout]

I love the energy and positivity.

[@MrMcWalrus]

It's who he is, and it's refreshing. Honestly, if MaRo did and interview where he was somber and calm and softspoken, that would make me genuinely scared.

[@seanlawley9408]

Thank you for this video, Prof. Always a pleasure to hear from either of you and this message was direly needed during everything going on.

[@Arghore]

Tnx to the both of you for having this talk :) ... and i personally would love to hear Mark interview the Prof for a change ^^

[@craigfernandez4433]

New Tolarian drinking game: take a shot every time MaRo says “during the pandemic”

[@joshuablack3163]

I wonder if they would consider pushing the standard rotation back. If the products are coming out later, can we get some more time to play with them?

[@fernandobanda5734]

Rotation happens with sets. If the fall set comes out a bit later, rotation will happen a little later, too.

[@groovemedium]

That was a lovely interview. I already knew how much Maro loves magic, but it really reminded me how much I do too. He's really passionate about it and it's beautiful.

[@bradleycox8835]

This was wonderful, thank you both so much. This while video made me happy to be a part of this community! Long live mtg

[@Lascax]

I sure hope that they still care that much about paper Magic, but the gameplay feeling more digital-designed still makes me worry the most.

[@garrett1433]

I'd love for ya to interview Richard Garfield, see what his opinion on the matter is!

[@sack217h]

why? He has not been part of magic in like 15 years. Mark rosewater is the new king.

[@xpeterx]

@@sack217h He was on the design team for Dominaria.

[@streetzmdv7811]

One of my favorite episodes from this channel. Thank you for having this. Cheers!

[@maxwellbrody3260]

Thank you so much for the two of you and everyone else responsible for this video!

[@Yakkosprite]

Prof: "I can't wait to get my hands on them and make videos on them" Mark: ".... :D ....uh oh"

[@hamonscorner8347]

My LGS being closed permanently because of this goddamn virus 😡

[@rocksteadyish]

Thousands of small businesses have been bankrupt by the order to remain closed

[@yeetleslaw8529]

Most LGS are permanently closing because of the virus. Gamestop might even die.

[@elementalhero21]

sorry to hear that bro ;(

[@Ethan-pd7nu]

GameStop was nearly dead before the Pandemic. I'd argue GameStop dying would help LGS.

[@kingofrunescapepking]

@@yeetleslaw8529 not really, most LGS can do online sales to keep the lights on while this is going on, and if they can't or won't do so, they really deserve to shut down

[@nathanwright1102]

It was great hearing from Mark during this time. The last few interviews with Wizards were a little shaky and made me concerned about Magic but hearing Marks passion for the game and what he and others are doing was very uplifting. Made me even more excited to play tabletop with my mates after this is all over.

[@iPivo]

This was a great interview. I might not agree with Maro's approach to card development, and the power creep we have been seeing lately, but I respect and admire his passion when he is speaking about the game and its community...

[@therubyskeleton1002]

Respect for the angry birds in the background Mark ✌🏻

[@rallyvincent6152]

I would love to see code cards in booster packs for arena.

[@mattpotts995]

I know it’s been well over a year since this came out, but it was very interesting to watch this given where We are at the moment. With some areas and stores still not totally open, most of what was discussed still sounds relevant. I wasn’t terribly worried last year about the future of Magic, but I did appreciate hearing the reassurance and enthusiasm, even while knowing how the game has gone on since last April.

[@RL_22]

With everything going on this was an excellent interview, very well done Prof and Maro. After the debacle that the fetchland secret lair interview was, good to see/hear some people at wotc are passionate about the game, care about the community and at least seem genuine with their responses and isn't all corporate speak. We may have our disagreements, but this was great and very much needed.