MTG - Is it worth it to buy a Magic: The Gathering Gift Pack?

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Is it worth it to buy a Magic: The Gathering gift box. Sporting a fresh new design...for Magic anyway...Gift boxes appear to be replacing the holiday gift box, and the redesign couldn’t be more dramatic. So is this product the perfect present or just another disappointing lump of coal. Let’s take a look.
Final conclusion: This gift box is cynicism incarnate. It is as close as wizards of the coast can get to selling an empty box.
It is unclear who this product is for and what category it really fits in. if this a gift...it is not a very good one. The only thing that might appeal to anyone are the mark poole foil basic lands, but considering all that gift boxes once offered and how little this gift box now contains, I feel there is nothing of value here.

[@riftacademy2699]

This feels like the kind of thing a dollar store or Wal-Mart would throw together, not something Wizards made.

[@rawpower2025]

1 year later they make the Eldraine Deluxe Collection for online selling only and it's still sad. Lol

[@CrimsonHiroX07]

this product is aimed at the non-magic playing relatives of magic players who need a last minute gift idea...

[@ryur2521]

Worse than at least getting a box for card storage.

[@joewhite4730]

Or your brother law that plays magic but think you need to rock the stupid giant card in a deck lmao it was still cool though

[@benjaminzaugg1127]

"its the closest thing to selling an empty box" burn

[@blazenjestergames4025]

This is so true !

[@blazenjestergames4025]

I can get 3 boosters for 10.00 cash at my lgs or 3.00 Store credit each... I would rather get 6 packs with my 20.00 bucks and cut my losses at that

[@djbabyjwrfl]

LMAO!!!

[@betatrontentetk6615]

Very good!

[@scottmwyman]

it's a garbage fire waiting to happen

[@MisterMorn]

What kills me isn't even what we get. It's the complete lack of a theme behind it. Imagine if this gift pack contained the following: -3 Ixalan Booster Packs -2 foil rares/mythics from Ixalan. Don't even have to be good ones or alternate art for that matter, but a couple legendary creatures would throw a bone to the Commander players who this set seems to be aimed at with all its "tribal matters" nonsense. -5 foil basic lands, one of each type, from Ixalan. -A fakey-fake BS poster featuring, I dunno, Jace waking up on the island he found himself on at the start of Ixalan -fine, a spindown too. But make it an Ixalan spindown, with that expansion symbol for the 20. See how this is the exact same product, but with a stronger theme? It would still not be great, but it would feel like it was made with a consistent theme in mind! I mean, it's not like I go to the "seasonal aisle" at Walmart and find a coffee/hot cocoa mug with paper clips in it. Gift packages and boxes should have a unifying theme to them, something to tie everything together. And no, being all products from the same game is not good enough.

[@Svstrauser]

So, I worked in a law firm in Brazil, fighting piracy, for five years. As such, I can say this looks exactly like the kind of counterfeit toys I used to seize. XD

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

Ricardo Alves Junqueira Penteado I worked at pound land for 2 years. This is exactly the kind of thing we used to stock.

[@emdub9679]

Wow, that is embarrassing for wotc

[@Lokeso]

O pior é que parece um pack de camelô mesmo kskskaks

[@jeffpickle2634]

So.. there you go.

[@GreenLightningHood]

If I could pronounce your name, I'd say it with respect.

[@vintagemagic]

Great video prof. Reality is Wizards is throwing darts at the board and scraping to find profits and sales. Why not give some junky leftovers and the consumers lose. It's not special, this product that is. What a shame.

[@bluejay9361]

Vintage MTG & I4$

[@sjdhrjrjejdhdhsh]

Reality is WotCs thought process is this. 1.) You buy this pile of garbage and they make a profit. 2.) You don't buy this pile of garbage and buy packs instead and they make a profit. 3.) You buy singles with exorbitant prices and the company they are in bed with makes a profit.

[@andrewsparkes6115]

Mitch no So essentially they offer a lot of products - enough that everyone is happy buying at least one type of product, even singles at high prices? Sounds like an awesome business to me; giving everyone what they want, whatever they want. It's a better situation than the coin collecting industry which literally never sees reprints, ever, not even on fairly common old coins that everyone has at least one in a cupboard. WotC at least just reprinted Opt. What's the problem with giving customers what they want? TCGs are pretty much the only collectible hobby that actually do give customers what they want far more than any other collectible hobby.

[@sjdhrjrjejdhdhsh]

Simply put, they drive the prices in the market. Instead of making the game affordable they nickle and dime you and pretend like they have a variety to choose from. Ultimately what I'm implying is that they intentionally put bad cards into these boxed products to keep prices high.

[@andrewsparkes6115]

Mitch no So?...I've never been to a collectors fair and seen a rare sought-after coin shoved into boxes also containing common pennies that have just gone out of circulation. I've never seen an ornate rare stamp be given out in boxes full of holiday-time joke stamps. I've also never expected to pick up premium regular playing cards in basic decks at an airport, based on the knowledge I'm at an airport not a casino.. If your answer is "WotC has the opportunity to actually print more", well yes, they just reprinted Opt. They already just did more than the stamp and coin collecting companies have done for their fans in centuries. And you want them to reprint more cards within a month?! Actually, they already do pretty much reprint old cards monthly...so I'm sorry they did not choose the ones you want and then offered them to a subset of the market that doesn't contain you? Why should this be any different? If you are already into the hobby, don't expect starter kits to be anything special, simple. Same already applies for other collectible hobbies.

[@MagicYio]

Small figurines or pins would be very popular if they added it in Magic products. I would love to see that!

[@ValariaxSword]

MagicYio, great idea. I would love a Chandra pin!

[@yelljayjay]

I thought they got rid of pins because some kid stabbed themselves with it, now Pre-releases all of a sudden no pins.

[@ZeroBankaiKing]

MagicYio I would love magic pins so much!!!

[@violetlazuli3998]

I dont even play pokemon and i bought one of the packs just for a pin, they would be so cool. Rather than throwing them at places like pax

[@aizo111]

Back during Khans of Tarkir they had pins for each clan in the pre-release kits, as well as stickers. They where awesome.

[@quinzellwilliams6806]

Love it this phrase the professor said "This gift box is cynicism incarnate."

[@Colinmchapman]

“But hey, what do I know” I would like this line in every video: “Hey, what do I know...I’m just the Professor” - *cut to camera two. Looks at camera.*

[@hudaphux]

Wizards use to sell empty boxes, they were nice deck storage boxes with set art on them, and were awesome.

[@Nate-tq8wu]

Had the same reaction at the MSRP at 1:50 ...

[@fgregerfeaxcwfeffece]

I only had that reaction up to the MSRP. At the MSRP i had a good laugh.

[@triple_gem_shining]

Ya I thought it would be 9.99

[@mrtalos]

I thought it was 9.99 and I thought it still was overpriced

[@triple_gem_shining]

mrtalos haha oh boy

[@rstueckle]

You're already an awesome channel but the fact that you plug people's LGS before your own Card Kingdom affiliate link makes you an even better one. That's an awesome thing to do and I thank you for it. Man the mtg community has some awesome content creators.

[@MrLuBuFu]

Legit spit out my coffee at the 'purple background' joke

[@ModelOmegaForReal]

Is anyone noticing a trend here? Wizards makes a good Clash Pack after several disappoints and it gets immediately discontinued, they make a good Event Deck after many mediocre offerings and they get discontinued, now they made a good Holiday Box after many flimsy ones and it looks like that might be discontinued now?

[@billable1861]

ModelOmega yes I have noticed you are not alone

[@Arghore]

There may be a fault in your reasoning, as far as i know the 'intro packs' have always been crap, and they got replaced by something even worse still ...

[@garlicwitch6977]

I can't even like your comment I'm so depressed... :(

[@Chickenman161]

Overly sensitive to criticism?

[@Lucifer0the0morning]

That isn't true. At least there's some collectible value with planeswalker decks. Intro packs started with 40 packs, improved to 60, now they've evolved to having a semi-collectible card in front. Also, OP was talking about clash packs, and product that's not on the generic printing calendar.

[@torch-bearer9129]

Fun idea for these sets what if they were plane/story based So each set would include -full set of foil story spotlight cards -premium spindown (I’m talking Dragons of Tarkir style) -3 booster packs -Oversized foil planechase style card for represented plane (definitely look better then a boring “poster”) I think that would make for a fun gift box both collectors and casual players could enjoy getting as a gift.

[@br_a1n161]

I really like your idea for the foil spotlight cards, would purchase...

[@stephenbriley6250]

Great idea on a planechase card as I think we need more than what you get in this lazy attempt of a product

[@not-a-theist8251]

Thats a cool idea

[@ronnyay]

I really like the Plane Box idea

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

Torch-Bearer91 maybe instead of a planechase card, some art from the story.

[@eridevonta1384]

I rewind to the start of the video at 0:25 just to hear your Pokemon intro a few more times. Good job Prof!

[@szymonkoziarski2168]

In short - it's a terrible version of the Pokemon's boxes.

[@mtgUK2015]

More like making fun of it

[@szymonkoziarski2168]

Remember, that Reddit actually defended this product. I suggested exactly the same changes that Professor did and to rename them to "Commander Boxes" and they said that's confusing. Wizards are banking on their psycho-fans, downright to the argument I've heard recently - "the beauty of Magic is that it's expensive".

[@Entropic_Alloy]

A lot of the Pokemon boxes themselves are terrible values, even with a good promo.

[@patrickbuerke1390]

Szymon Koziarski So, it's like the Pokemon box. The terrible part is covered by the mention of Pokemon.

[@philipgwyn8091]

Wizards are banking on aunts or grandmothers seeing this in Walmart and thinking it would make a nice gift for that niece or grandson who is really into that Magic card game.

[@DrudgeNYC]

New to your channel- quickly becoming a favorite dude! Played MTG on and off since high school. I'm 38 now and haven't played MTG now since Innistraad. Looking to get back in though eventually. Thanks for your vids!

[@EightMasterRobots]

This would be an acceptable product, but only if it's MSRP was $10.

[@Blythus]

$10 for THREE packs + promos/etc.? Maybe in magical christmas land, but there's no way Wizards would sell packs for less than MSRP...

[@DrWurstpeter]

$10 is not acceptable for an empty box.

[@richardwallace6643]

Thats what 2/3 of the card shops in my area charge for three packs, so its not unreasonable. Plus the poster alone is enough of an insult to knock a few dollars off the price :P

[@simple-sheeps]

I agree. Personally I might even pay 12.

[@ericmcclelland7151]

So glad you brought back the outro mentioning to buy at your LGS Always love you work Prof!

[@AaronTsuii]

The facepalm on the thumbnail is the entire video in a picture

[@aidennoir597]

I love how the entirety of the review is summed up by the thumbnail. Not often you can do that. Well done.

[@scottmwyman]

the box from my shadows gift box is still one of my favorite and most used magic possession....cant image storing my collection in this new box.

[@Arghore]

What box? :( ... and yes i concur

[@dangeroussecondaccount893]

Me tooo

[@CathrineMacNiel]

i was so confused in the intro, i mean we saw magic on the thumbnail, magic in the title, but Pokemon trainer asked the question. Nicely done Professor.

[@powermetalhistorian]

I love the way pokemon does it! With everything WOTC does, I get the impression they are extremely scared of the secondary market. I don't know why, it's as if they have "collectors" or some kind of sharks sitting in their offices, breathing down their necks, watching their every move. "Nooooo, you're not gonna put an actually valuable card in this gift pack!" "No, you can't reprint that in Modern Masters." "Yes, you can reprint this, but then every other reprint in this set has to be terrible!" It's really weird. Pokemon seems to have a huuuuge player base, and it doesn't seem like many people are jumping off when they reprint valuable cards like this - I assume - standard valuable, maybe comparable to a Chandra, Torch of Defiance, Snorlax. Wizards should embrace the GAME more and the gameplay, and less try to please some sort of 1% of collectors who wish that nothing ever gets reprinted. Seriously, what's the difference for WOTC if there's a Metalwork Colossus or a Chandra, ToD in this set? They can get the same MSRP, pay the same printing costs, only that players will be more enthusiastic about this gift pack. This way new players, who get impressed by the pretty looks of this gift pack, will buy it, but also seasoned players, who are extremely HAPPY that those "reprints" would drive down the standard costs. Honestly, Wizard is making the same money, be it a Metalwork Colossus or a Chandra in this gift pack.

[@PeteOnTheBeat]

I agree. There´s something fishy with the way WotC deals with the secondary market. I have a theory that they hand out the end of the year bónus to their employees in reserved list cards or something. Í´m assuming that , instead of a check, they handle envelopes of Snapcasters or Lilianas.

[@Entropic_Alloy]

Momo Mikoshiba I have to correct The Professor here, TPCi has never reprinted the chase competitive standard cards of a set in one of their tins or boxes, ie Shaymin or Tapu Lele. Only recently have they announced that Zoroark will be obtainable in a $30 box. Most of the tins are just haphazardly slapped together pokemon with some theme binding them together (Mewtwo, Machamp, and Gyarados was a really bad trio, but they do have good sets more often than not).

[@Entropic_Alloy]

Also, Snorlax is not even close to standardly viable compared to Chandra. It is used in a fun rogue deck, but it is not like Chandra. At all.

[@powermetalhistorian]

Well, sorry for not knowing about Snorlax. But the Professor said that Pokemon does release reprints of such chase rares, so that was the point, Snorlax just an example. But thank you for your wisdom.

[@Entropic_Alloy]

Momo Mikoshiba To be fair to you and The Professor, they have reprinted cards that are used in standard decks a lot. Cards like Volcanion EX, Golisopod GX, Ho-Oh GX, and others have been reprinted (in alternate arts) and brought the prices of those cards down. However, pokemon is generally a much cheaper game than MTG in the first place and it isn't super common when the regular art card goes above $20. The super big chase cards ($50 cards) that are staples in every deck like Shaymin EX, Jirachi EX, and Tapu Lele GX almost never get reprints. In fact Shaymin only now got a reprint recently, but it was rotated out of standard earlier this year. I just felt the need to correct myself and say that The Professor isn't wrong, but the biggest, most expensive, chases almost never see reprints.

[@Redman-qt9ru]

Professor doing Lords work in this video. Saw you at Hascon - downstairs with some kids in the teaching area. Was truly wonderful seeing how happy those kids were to be talking and learning with you, keep up the amazing work the community really appreciates it.

[@T4silly]

The thumbnail says "An uplifting maybe." to me.

[@Pezmage1]

That was my impression of the thumbnail as well, seeing it on the feed I thought "Oh boy, this should be good."

[@joewallace5326]

When I first saw this advertised I dubbed it the “Grandma Tricker” the only people that are going to buy these are grandparents or other family flying in from out of town for the holidays that know that one person in the family “plays that magic card game” I feel like this box is a test to see what WotC can actually get us to buy

[@AnnoyingLion]

Professor: Many Pokèmon Trainers Ask The Question-- Me: Wait, did I click on the right video? *Checks Title* Oh, I did. Maybe I was just hearing things. Professor: Many Pokèmon Traine-- Me: *Can't stop laughing!!!*

[@AnnoyingLion]

xD You're lucky to have walmart, here in England we don't have it and the only place to buy MTG stuff is at places full of Yu-gi-oh and Pokemon and board game shops and I have hardly any of them shops near me! :P

[@peterklein3354]

I was speaking along with the intro and got confused too ;)

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

EddieTheLion there are none at my lgs in england

[@miguelroca546]

Lmao didn´t realize he did say "pokémon trainers"

[@totygamer2548]

You're cringey as fuck

[@icebarrierangel6610]

i watch every single video since i start to play magic on kaladesh, i ever see you in my xbox but today i decide to took my computer and leave a message. Thanks to you i like magic, thanks to you i have new friends, thanks to you i am a little bit happier with my life. thank you professor (sorry about my english, im froom mexico)

[@AaronTsuii]

Now I want Gordon Ramsey to make a dish with broccoli, cheese rinds, and cranberries

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

Aaron IT'S RAW! IT'S FUCKING RAW!

[@Ottawa3453]

When you see the Professor face-palming in the thumb-nail, then you know it's gonna be good :D

[@JoeGrzzly]

Does Wizards even do focus groups? Have they never considered testing how a product will be received rather than just throwing wild darts at the market and seeing what sticks?

[@rawpower2025]

Considering the new Eldraine Deluxe Collection I'm gonna say no. They do not have a focus group

[@PostcastFromFiretopMountain]

I've only just started out playing Magic, and didn't understand half of the words that you said in this video, but I could kinda tell just by looking at it that the gift box didn't look to be a good purchase so I didn't think of picking one up. It's good to see that I was right on that. Thanks for the info :)

[@RomanNumerDos]

"Many Magic: The Gathering players ask the question..." I'm always suprised that you can keep saying those words in the same tone over and over again. Yet when you say it with you on cam, I'm just jeolous of the consistency.

[@RomanNumerDos]

Also that lucky pull in the Hostage Taker doesn't justify the price.

[@Pezmage1]

Honestly I thought he was just replaying it over future videos to save a bit of time with the 3-5 second intro bit. But yeah, seeing him do it on camera, that consistency heh.

[@titto1990]

hi prof, subscribed to your channel after seeing you in the command zone. .Saw yesterday the "entering the battlefield" about your life as a content creator. I hope youre doing well and keep up the good work. :)

[@kulrigalestout]

"Many mothers of Magic: the Gathering players ask the question. . ."

[@DrJack144]

Appreciate the honesty - this product is terrible!

[@jamiehurricane]

Keep em honest prof.

[@BigislandEJ]

I'm a beginner magic player, still trying to figure it out with the help of some very patient friends. When other kids were playing d&d, I was training to box. When other guys started playing magic I was still working through stress from months in enemy mine fields, real ones. So the whole"fantasy war" thing has less appeal, but the strategy of the game does peak my interest. As I begin investing cash to this game I find that the real strategy is at the store. So many different products and one goal in mind, building a rookie deck that can win once in awhile. I picked a dueling deck over this gift pack for obvious reasons,with no formal training, the gift box was immediately clear to the laymen as not a good buy. The dueling deck had two one color decks,red and blue. So far, when I've run the blue deck against friends custom decks, my island deck kicks but. Thanks for this video, it reinforces my suspicion of that gift box I passed up.

[@Ormstunga]

The "Many Pokemon trainers..." intro simply cracked me up! Other than that...Wizards makes some pretty bad decisions lately...

[@mbarker_lng]

Great review, thanks for this. I've been seeing this box lately at the local wally-world and Game stop and wondering what it actually includes or what it's purpose is. You can't really 'do' anything with this setup. I'd think a much, much better gift for a MTG player would be a complete deck like the intro decks. Even though they are "intro", you get a complete deck you can then build off with the included boosters or your collection. This is just a bunch of stuff thrown together.

[@shovelright4166]

The perfect starting product for magic... A 60 card, standard legal deck that does not only have 2 or 1 of each card and is actually playable at FNM. The packaging is a good deck box for a starting player. One 20-sided spindown die. Finally, it comes with.... 100 ultra pro sleeves. MSRP: $30.00 Gift box: Bundle

[@awrenfaussa8887]

Shovel_ Right they did that with an event deck (?) and lets just say wizards didnt like the outcome of being bought out for its peices. Though, it was their fault for printing sword, pte, and inqui in the same product.

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

Neyo Fernandez for printing what?

[@awrenfaussa8887]

Louise Drake magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/decklist-modern-event-deck-2014-05-13 Granted, it was a modern event deck. Prices are still pretty high for such a product till now.

[@bladeflesh]

it would never work. Say they made a Temur Energy deck and sell it. The price would be too high. The price also could be lower but that would piss off people who bought the deck through a tcg/lgs and payed more. Its not as easy thing to balance.

[@awrenfaussa8887]

cody h Maybe a standard deck thats not in the meta. Something you could bring at an fnm thats full of uncommons and commons (and maybe a few rares). Something like what sbmtg would make on his budget magic videos. Would be perfect for ixalan too with tribal themes.

[@DonovanPresents]

Shots fired! I do agree with your points there, professor. The first gift box I got was the Theros gift box

[@ashburn6139]

Calling WoTC out on sh|t tier products like these, good job Prof.

[@mattdolan6249]

Another great review! They change these products it seems so randomly. Ixalan's Bundle Box dropped the token bundle. I know it was not a critical a component of the set as with Amonkhet. It was still a welcome addition. I'd love a plane or land themed dividers. Anyway as for this gift box ditch the poster. Focus on one of the game's Formats as you suggested. Theme the pack around that and include a current standout card of the format and an alternate art variant. Include boosters from within the format both old and new. Have some foil basic lands. Make artist variants. Try foils, fulls, and even double sided. These could become a desirable collectible. A life counter of some type or maybe a play mat via mail in rebate. (thinking packaging limitations) Put it back in storage box form. If they are trying to mimic Pokemon. Have the box fold down similar to deck boxes included in some bundle/fat packs.

[@TheOlsonOutfit]

it needs something extra to be a gift. at least the box, dividers and labels were useful for some people.

[@kinosmead]

The Mark Poole lands do look very pretty in that foil. I never was a fan of the shiny guay lands, but I`m in on finding some of these on ebay.

[@MillenniumDiceTV]

Just letting you know Professor, you repeated the line "The only thing that might appeal to anyone are the Mark Poole foil basic lands" twice in your 'Final Conclusion' segment.

[@Welverin]

You think that wasn't intentional?

[@JonnDuune]

Probably to emphasize the point. Probably to emphasize the point.

[@joppeszus]

He messed up the grammar the first time around, then said the line again. I think he forgot to cut his first try out of the video.

[@andrewzheng52]

It's the only reason anyone would want it

[@mmlgamer]

Lumpyrox Just so you know, the only thing in this product that might appeal to anyone are the Mark Poole basic lands.

[@BoBnfishy]

one of the main things that attracted me to collecting pokemon cards was the pins. i've been collecting pokemon pins for a while now, and they're awesome.

[@HerrKeuner]

why they changed the product, i wanted to buy ixalan holiday gift box but nope, make my wish without thinking about that Wotc could change the product, RIP

[@rathalossoul1520]

That ending message actually reminded me of when you could play at Toys R Us but..oh, hey, it's another Pokemon reference. I'm actually kind of disappointed to hear that they might have discontinued the gift box product because, after having used my Ravnica one to house EDH decks and finding myself needing another, but my LGC not having any regular multi count boxes...I'm in need of another holiday box.

[@MTGOTradersInc]

That "Many Pokemon Trainers" bit had me rolling. Can't wait for the confusing Christmas gifts for Pokemon Trainers by parents. "But it looks like the other ones I've bought for you?" On a more serious note. This "tone deaf" approach to this "Gift Box" as well as their recent Facebook posts promoting large chain stores rather than offering these deals "At your local game store" is baffling. It's like the recent actions of Wizards, the weak card stock in printing, the rampant printing errors we see, and now inferior product bundles like this as well as more generalized marketing to "Your local capitalist shrine", makes me think that WoTC, or stock holders of WoTC, are more concerned about revenue increases over consumer confidence. Everything here seems like a red flag to me. Who complained about the old gift boxes? Why are the contents OBVIOUSLY of lessor value? Just, so many questions. *sigh "It's the closest thing to selling an empty box" Truer words never spoken. Wizards has once again surprised me with baffling disappointment. They couldn't even be bothered to put a Monkey Token in the box. Just. Unending confusion. -Terran

[@scaredycat1108]

I am new to Magic and was so close to buying one of these yesterday. Thanks for the review! Now I know to spend my money on something better.

[@Trump-hi1kp]

Im going to take a guess here before I watch: no it is not worth it.

[@madhatten00]

FifthMoon432 You get 30 dollars worth of artwork/foils actually due to lands being foil. It's worth it if you're an avid collector, reseller or want to make a rainbow deck full of foils. If you're trying to compete or play the game as efficiently as possible actually (ie. Cheapest possible competitive deck), don't buy this at all.

[@thatguywhocorrectsyourgram2454]

Ding ding ding! You win the grand prize of... A gift pack!

[@FrozenLavaDragonProd]

Betteridge's law of headlines: "Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no."

[@samsgaming1503]

Yeah i also think this is useless besides all the other mtg stuff

[@solidkingcobra]

4:36 holy crap professor. you made me choke on the water I was drinking.

[@Vandalizer1231]

If WOTC included the full art Legendary creature, they might score some points with the commander players who enjoy using the over size foil commander. But yeah, total fail lol. Nice video prof, you rock!

[@mrsplays9817]

For each set make a product of all of the legendaries in it, just in alternate full-art foil version. That could sell for $20. Maybe a "Commander Masters" with the rare/mythic slots taken up by various different old legendary creatures in full art. Or make it like the masterpiece series (hopefully a bit more common) with the full-art foil versions. A lot of people would pay $50 for a special version of their commander (Heck, some commanders already go for that much). They might even be able to reprint some nice commander stuff as well in there~

[@crystalgriffith5863]

I think a nice gift box would be a very good storage box, with 5 or so booster packs and a foil mythic promo with altered art would be a very awesome touch. Maybe even a magic the gathering themed button as well.

[@qinop]

yo the ad played when prof whipped around in shock at his purple bg and I lost it

[@shawnmcallister1842]

I think this box is designed to target those who would by Magic for someone who plays it but the gift giver knows nothing about the game.

[@largemidget4550]

Shawn McAllister came to say this, you nailed it

[@jackbonde695]

I went to buy my first ever MTG product semi-recently. I looked at the Gift Pack, picked it up, and my immediate reaction was “this is way too light.” Upon further inspection, there was little to no substance in the box, so I went with something else. I hadn’t yet found this channel, so thank god I trusted my instincts

[@wazzup764]

Saw these at Walmart. Seemed really bad. Glad I didnt touch them.

[@seanmontgomery3997]

same

[@little3085]

Same, couldn't believe it was priced at $20.95 after I read the content list on the back. Decided very quickly to pass on this disaster of a product.

[@TheWhmaxwell]

Agreed, I do like the lands... the weird thing is that our local WalMart dropped the price on individual boosters to 3.33 but the gift box is 10 bucks and the "not fat packs" with 10 boosters are 45...

[@BrassBallsofSteel]

WOTC is on a serious quality decline. Please do better Wizards, this is pathetic!

[@hyperfinehannah6352]

I don't know how to even get started playing Magic... Thanks for letting me learn from the outside looking in.

[@sardar7]

They did try to copy Pokemon products, but indeed this is a worse and inadequately thought-out deal. The Professor is completely right about the monkey token, it's stupid not to put it in there when there's a card tied to it. Need to learn some basics, wizards.

[@FUNANIME100]

I was really hoping for a gift box this year but i was shook to see this, im happy im not the only mad here with this decision.

[@DiegoDeschain]

Let's just face it, gang. It all went to shit after Hasbro took over with their fucking executives up in their ivory towers. And it's not looking like it's going to get better anytime soon.

[@DiegoDeschain]

In 99.

[@RGS86]

So Magic has been on a downward spiral since 1999?

[@DiegoDeschain]

Richard, my bad, I expressed myself poorly. Indeed it didn't went immediately to shit, I guess problems started when they started pushing more and more towards a sterile "cost reduction no matter what" type of corporate mentality and that started to hurt the quality of the product. MtG sure had some great blocks even after the acquisition, and personally I think it got really bad since BFZ, although the inclusion of the mythic rarity alone was a bad sign of things to come.

I hated when they created a new rarity saying to us that we only will need 1 or 2 mythicals by deck just to print all the good cards as mythical

[@Stroggoii]

I won't blame Hasbro because some of the best sets ever came after the aquisition. From Glassdoor reviews WotC itself is right now filled with experienced people who are too old and "inbred", and young people who are too inexperienced and idealistic with little middle ground between the two. Half the company wants too keep making Lorwyn/Alara style sets, half the company is too dumb at Magic to understand the design complexities of those sets and think shoving "diversity" into the IP matters more than making a good GAME.

[@Hynotama]

Wow! Cool "poster"! I really like Nicol Bolas' design.

[@powermetalhistorian]

The gift boxes were so good! Just when they made them real sturdy and useful, they replace them with this piece of garbage for easily impressed 12 year olds? I mean yeah, it looks cool, but the content is just terrible. I really hope they still make gift boxes.

[@baconcube6109]

Momo Mikoshiba the problem is it doesnt even look cool.

[@powermetalhistorian]

I know, at least not to seasoned players. I can imagine someone very new to the game, or parents of players who are looking for a good present, being impressed by this. That's what makes it suck even more. Deceiving people who don't know better.

[@chucklapd07]

Lmfao I love the Professor when he said it's close to selling a empty box. 😂😂😂

[@Mrdrowning245]

You missed the spindown!

[@RoboticNomadd]

im new to the magic scene and i almost brought this gift pack today but i decided to watch a video on it and im soooo glad i did thank you so much my kind sir! ^^

[@TolarianCommunityCollege]

So glad that you found it helpful!

[@Juhheli]

2 cards, wich are not elite mythics or crazy bomb rares, some foil lands, 3 boosters. Not impressed

[@dandan3147]

I'd like to see more event decks. I never got one that I couldn't play with right off the bat. They might not be chock full of goodies but, you can at least get rolling right from the start.

[@ElHombreSandia]

This is event decks all over again. They made a really good event deck and then discontinue it for no reason. I really can't understand why.

[@mysterioso2006]

This legitimately seems like a prototype that a Bob at Wizards came up with while bored on a lunch break. Just something he thought of while pondering the EX/GX boxes. Totally harmless, really. But, to his utter horror, one of the bosses saw it and for some reason decided to produce it en masse and ship it.

[@daracaex]

These are instead of the holiday box set? The storage box was half the reason I ever got these...

[@Avant_Gardevoir]

I thought the same thing when i saw this at work today, were at the store i work at you could get about 6 packs of Hour of Destruction, or 5 packs of Ixalan for the same price, and with at least more consistency then 3 packs of differing sets

[@vendettarules1]

That poster would have made a neat playmat, but still would'nt be worth the price

[@willemboele2079]

an average playmate from ultrapro is 15 dollars so that would pump up the price and make it worth buying....

[@williamwang3729]

Vendetta Wylde it is made into playmate for Chinese national I believe

[@Arghore]

Guess you could laminate the poster and give it at least some longevity.

[@Chickenman161]

Honestly if it was a play mat it'd be pretty worth

[@VeggehGaming]

I'd say they should perhaps do two of these per launch cycle with each one representing an archetype or theme present in the most recent set. Each contains 4 boosters for that set (or maybe 3 from that set and one from the previous set), 3 foil promo cards that fit the theme of the box (for example: Captain Lannery Storm, Hostage Taker, and Vance's Blasting Cannons for Ixalan Pirates, or Gishath, Rampaging Ferocidon, and maybe Carnage Tyrant for Ixalan Dinos) each with alternate art, or at least give the headline promo alternate art, the spin-down, the collectible foil lands, and maybe a foil token or two, all themed. Same with the box, more appropriate theming for better marketing.

[@nickrundle]

is this the worst product ever? how the hell do they make the decisions that lead to this output? oh to be a fly on the wall in their meetings

[@Arghore]

I would love to be an Ogre at their meetings, cuz it looks like some people could use a good slap with a whack stick

[@krim7]

I am sure they thought the real draw would be the lands.

[@quantumstuntmonkey7293]

The real gift is this channel. Thanks prof!

[@Leo-pr7ly]

basicly wizards saving money by printing in a cheap factory, with bad quality control, stopping valueable FNM Promos, stopping awesome Gift Boxes, and giving us basicly 3 Boosters for 19.99$ ...uhhmm...get the *uck off, wizards? Remember to also give back, not only take. Cause at the moment all wizards does is taking..

[@00Clank]

This sure makes us appreciate the gift box, which could still be a decent gift for new or returning players wanting decent card storage and basic lands of their own.

[@raypittman1063]

Worthless local wallmart saling booster packs for $3.33 a pack

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

Ray Pittman when there's a new product our store sells the first one at an auction type event. This sold at £10 to a 10 year old.

[@ethanmarkel5581]

Dude congrats on the new camera. The video is looking nice.

[@raypittman1063]

Kari is gonna be worth nothing now

[@drakeconsumerofsoulsandche5761]

Ray Pittman she already was. Too many people opened packs looking for chandra TOD, which would have made a much better card for the front. Or how about a random blind invocation?

[@Lucifer0the0morning]

Not even in the same set lol. However, Aether Revolt is pretty crappy as a whole with no real value aside from opening high value masterpiece. It's so bad that if you bought it at 80% MSRP, opened up their best value cards (assuming no doubles), and opened an ornithopter masterpiece, you would still lose value.

[@triznorbob]

I picked one up last night for $20 while waiting for a new tire. I figured $20 for 3 packs, a couple meh foils, sling shot ammo, and 5 pretty cool foil lands that had to be $2/each, I'd at least brake even. Amkt rare was "Glorious End". HoD rare was some split card. Then I pulled a "Carnage Tyrant". Maybe the Ixalan packs are skewed better? In the end, I just got a common 0/1 B tire and trade fodder. I'm ok with it.

[@kossetsu_7192]

Wizards is dying LMAO

[@marius_burger]

I like the old Holiday boxes, sweet box to store all your other cardboard crack in.

[@tonyo_zhelev]

I was so looking forward to this year's holiday box of mtg. I wanted to have this cool mtg themed container for my bulk cards. Basically what I'm saying is that an empty gift box (like the old ones) would have been a much better product...

[@MagrokAlpha]

Knowing nothing about this product going in, and based on the outward design, I would have expected: -another 3 boosters behind those three (total of 6) -a land pack of regular basics so you can at least put together a working deck out of the contents -and at *least* a rules insert, probably better a full pamphlet to introduce players into the game and get them excited advertising about the newer sets. I will grant that this first impression was before seeing the MSRP, and that it'd probably be higher. Also that it'd have a confused target audience since the potpourri is ostensibly for newer players and the promo basics for enfranchised ones. But, given the products they've released in the past, those would be my expectations from looking at this. As another data point, since you asked for our thoughts. I don't need everything to have dividers and alternate art but wow is that abysmal. Now though I'm jealous of the "just imagine" box you describe if they had comparable contents to the Pokemon box. The only thing that'd make it better would be a mini of a gremlin or of Ragavan; see how fast they'd sell then!

[@lunao17]

Thank you. I was waiting for your review on the Gift Pack for I was on the fence about should I get it or not. The only thing that interested me in it were the basic lands. The choice of rares didn't make sense to me and they weren't even promo versions. Wizards definitely missed it this time. it's just not exciting.

[@durian1600]

That intro tripped me up so much

[@nicolasgodines2338]

I saw this when I was at Target the other day. I was like, "That's weird. I guess it must not be that expensive." Then I saw you video and was like, "That cost 20 dollars. What the hell Wizards"? I would not buy that for myself, let alone other people. Thank you for the reviews that you do. It really helps.

[@carlgustke1475]

I was genuinely excited to see an ixalan holiday gift box with the new art check land dividers maybe even adding in a the new destroy non basic land card land as a divider and the new art for the unknown shores i thought theyd look so cool to see amplified and enlarged and i was wondering what card would be the alternate art maybe itd be as spicy as an alternate art unclaimed territory...but if this is the replacement? I dont want any part of this...partially because ive always hated how big and bulky the pokemon boxes are they just look so unnecessarily big and this is no different

Lol, the thumbnail summed it all up for me =D

[@thehermitdruid]

As a chef and a fan, I take that cheese rind, broccoli and cranberries comment almost as a challenge Proff 🤣

[@carlosfigueroa7450]

I think you’re undervaluing the foil lands a bit, as they’re stunning. But I’d agree with most other points. Lack of direction regarding art and card choices. Could use more packs or more exciting rares. And not including a Ragavan token is just a straight up punt. Thanks for the video!