Ways to Play Magic Online

[Mohan]

by Ron Vitale

No matter if you're new to playing Magic online or are a veteran, here is a guide that will help you decide what software will work best for you. There are several different programs available. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses. You might even choose to use more than one program, firing up one program to play certain type of games that another program won't allow you to play. With that said, here's a breakdown of the some of the better programs available.

Magic Online (MTGO)
Current version: 2.0
Download at: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x.../downloadlinks
Price: Event tickets are $1, packs are retail price (currently $3.69 for a booster pack and $11.29 for a starter deck). You need to buy cards and then trade for them with other players. Playing games with the cards you purchased (unless you’re drafting or entering a tournament) is then free.

I won’t spend a lot of time explaining this product. Wizards of the Coast has enough help files on their site, but I’ll point you in the right direction. Magic Online (MTGO) allows you to play many different types of games online (drafting, sealed, Standard, casual, online extended, prismatic, etc.). An extremely positive sell point is that the playing board environment is extremely clean and well thought out. However, none of the older Magic sets are available for use (or purchase) in the game (Alpha up through Urza's block were not available in the game). With earlier sets unavailable, you’ll not be able to play Vintage games online. But if you’re not concerned about that, then MTGO has a lot to offer:

-A.I. to judge each game (great for beginners)
-You can trade the cards you purchase with other players
-Binder view so that you can view cards you own
-Draft online
-Play Emperor games (six players)
-Meet thousands of other players from around the globe
-Easy to use editor for building decks
-If you collect a full set of cards online, you can trade them in to obtain a full set of real life cards.

Many Magic players love using MTGO, but the game does have its drawbacks:

-Can’t play games with early card sets as mentioned above (Alpha up through Urza's block were never available in the game except for a few promo cards.)
-You do not own the cards but are renting them. If Wizards chooses to shut down the game for good, you won't be able to play. In the past, the MTGO servers would be down often and people could not play. Bugs in the game happened often in the first two years, but most of those problems have been resolved.
-If you’re not a good player or just don’t have time to draft, purchasing cards online can become expensive.
-New sets take a considerable amount of time to be included in the online game (usually several months after release).

Many people swear by MTGO, but the game isn't full proof. However, if you’re looking for a stable way of playing games of Magic online and you don’t mind spending some money, then this is the product for you. Just keep in mind that MTGO will not allow you to play certain types of games online. MTGO is not all inclusive. For an indepth breakdown of MTGO, visit the official Magic Online FAQ.

OCTGN
Current Version: 1.3.529
Download at: http://www.cardfloppers.com
Price: Free

OCTGN is another software program that allows you to play games of Magic: the Gathering online. The OCTGN acronym stands for: Online Card and Tabletop Games Network. Fans of the software pronounce “OCTGN” as OCTAGON. Here’s a full list of what you can do with OCTGN:

- English, Spanish, German, French and Italian language support available
- multiplayer games with up to 6 players
- spectator mode available for watching games
- draft games
- sealed games
- software skin is customizable
- built in chat client
- deck editor as well as the ability to import or export decks
- open source program
- Free: No adware or spyware.
- Once the fan made BitTorrent patch is downloaded and installed, you can play with over 11,000 Magic cards.

Here’s a screenshot that will show you a game with non-licensed cards.

When you download the game, be aware that it does not come with any cards. The intriguing aspect of OCTGN is that it can be used with many other card games. Most people use it for Magic but others do use it for VS. and homemade card sets.

To play Magic online with OCTGN, you will need to download a fan-made patch that consists of all the card images and a text document for all the cards. Remember, OCTGN does not come with any of the cards. You'll need to download and install the Type 1 patch that contains all of the cards. All you need to do is use BitTorrent (www.bittorrent.com) to download nearly every Magic card known to man in one huge 415Mb .zip file. The patch name is 2005_December_Type1_Magic-The_Gathering_OCTGN_Patch_Alpha-Rav.zip and the torrent file can be download here (you must have BitTorrent installed on your computer to get the .torrent file to work).

OCTGN mirrors a real life game because there is no A.I. You can see from the above screenshot an example of what an actual game looks like when playing a Vintage game. The play environment is exactly like playing in real life: Simply move your cards to the board, to your graveyard, or to the removed pile. That’s it. Although OCTGN does not contain an A.I., the software shines in allowing you to play multiplayer games, sealed, and draft. Add in that you can play with all the cards from Alpha up to Betrayers of Kamigawa and that's not a bad deal. There’s even some great rare cards in the Type 1 patch too: Unhinged, APAC, and Euro lands along with a few other gems. And finally, OCTGN comes with a decent deck editor that allows you to build, import, or export decks and a decent chat client that connects you to the irc channel where you can meet other players.

Apprentice
Current Version: 1.46
Download at: http://www.magic-league.com/download/apprentice.php
Price: Free

According to the legal statement in Apprentice: "This product is officially licensed by Wizards of the Coast. Wizards of the Coast is the exclusive sponsor of Apprentice." Back in 1996, Apprentice hit the Internet and online games of Magic started popping up all over IRC and in chat rooms. Apprentice is the grandfather of all online Magic games. Weighing at a light 1.12 MBs to download, Apprentice is a rather simplistic interface for playing games online. Installing it on your computer takes only a few seconds, and before you know it, you can build decks, load premade decks that come with the software, and play with someone online.

From loading the game on my computer and reviewing the cards that come with it, you have access to all cards from Alpha up through Urza's Destiny. Additional files will need to be downloaded to get a fully up-to-date version that contains the remaining Magic card sets.

What are the benefits of Apprentice? You can play some great games with you friend at any time through a TCP/IP connection. You can also play a solitaire game - basically, you can play goldfish. The software is easy to use, with the interface being simplistic and not at all fancy. Here's a list of what you can do with Apprentice:

-Sealed deck games are supported.
-You can play goldfish games to test out your deck
-After you install the game and all patches, you can play with all the cards.
-The game is easy to learn and a snap to install.
-You can load different themes for the background.

Unfortunately, the drawbacks are fairly numerous:

-Games with over two players are not supported.
-No Magic art is used for the cards. To be honest: The graphics leave much to be desired. If you've used Magic Online and then try Apprentice, you're going to click the uninstall button faster than an interrupt.
-Some of the program's functionality rather crude (but efficient).

Legally, the makers of Apprentice had to fight to allow Wizards of the Coast to sanction the game. Thousands of players had cried out for online play and Apprentice filled that need. But if you look at the graphics, it's clear to see that Magic art isn't used. The cards in no way, shape, or form resemble the Magic cards we all know and love. The wording on the cards are all correct (when you right mouse click on a card to view it), but the similarities end there.

Why would you want to use Apprentice? Testing, being on the road, or just for kicks. But Apprentice still has a fairly strong following.

Magic Workstation
Current Version: 0.94e
Download at: http://www.magicworkstation.com/
Price: Free, but $19.95 if you wish to have the ads removed from the game.

Magic Workstation tries really hard to look like MTGO (here's a screenshot). Does it succeed? A good many players out there swear by it becuase it's a good alternative to MTGO.

In Magic Workstation, you have access to a ton of cards, but although they have the artwork of Magic cards, the mana, card outline, and set symbols aren't true to the card. The borders are artificially drawn in and the mana symbols are not true to the cards. I don't know if this was done on purpose to try and avoid legal troubles, but the cards look odd in Magic Workstation. You do have the option of obtaining the real artwork to use for all the cards, but this feature is not part of the basic game. Yet you have to give the designers props for trying really hard to make the game like Magic Online. It's easy to build decks, search for cards, and a “connect to players” feature is built into the game. Another cool feature is that with Magic Workstation you can load up two decks and play in a solitaire mode which is great for play testing.

Here a list of what the company advertises on their site for what MWS can do:

-Go through most cards that have been released.
-Build decks and use numerous tools for card analysis and deck adjustment.
-You can print proxy-cards and test your decks in real life, without having to buy missing cards.
-You can play two player games online.
-Comes with a built-in chat program so you can quickly find an opponent over the Internet.
-Online tournaments are supported.
-MWS allows you to create, edit and even test your very own cards and game sets.

Again, the game environment looks a lot like Magic Online, but without the A.I. However, there does not appear to be a way to play sealed or draft.

Summing It All Up

Take some time to explore each of these ways to play games of Magic online. No matter if you’re new to the game or a veteran, each program has its own strengths and weaknesses. But one thing is certain: For a small amount of time investment, you can start playing games of Magic with people from all over the world. If you love MTGO that’s fine, stick with it. But if you get that urge to play Vintage, then try one of the other three programs out. Whatever you choose to play online, take some time out and have some fun with these games. Each one is worth checking out.

(Thanks go out to Iloveatogs for his excellent work on creating the banner and screenshots.)

[Bizkit Overlord]

It's a well written article, but i think very biased towards OCTGN (as I can also tell from your sig).

Magic Workstation has a built in sealed deck generator, but not a good one at all. You can download full art for the cards, along with cropped pictures if you want to see the oracle text. Also, at www.mwsdata.com, you can get themes for the cards, to have them appear just like regular Magic cards, including mana symbols. There is no way to draft using MWS, but if you join one of the leading MWS online leagues O-Gaming, you can join draft tournaments there. They use a secure online java server for drafts, and also feature sealed deck tournaments, using the site for building them too.

Also, currently, uploading 2 different decks for solitaire mode is only available if you pay. Paying doesn't only remove the ads.

Originally Posted by www.magicworkstation.com

Q: What is the difference between the evaluation and registered versions?
A: Your registration key will get you:
* Shareware reminder and banner windows will be removed;
* You will be able to create your own cardsets without limitation (30 card limit in unregistered version);
* You will be able to test your decks without having to use "mirror-match" mode;
* Limitation for one page Deck/Proxy printing will be removed;
* Reminder labels in any output documents will be eliminated (in export menu);
* You may change your photo or avatar, and the play background, and your opponents will be able to view it when they play;
* You will gain access to the private part of our forum;
* You will gain a personal directory on our server to host your decks and/or misc. info;
* You will gain personal support by e-mail;

I prefer MWS over all the programs, mainly because of it's tournament support on O-Gaming, which features some of the nicest people I've ever met in its IRC chat room, and a great staff.

[nan]

I have to agree wit biz here. Its well written but very biased. The info seems severly stunted on magic worksation and MTGO, but has lots of more info on OCTGN. It would have been a much better article if you had gone into way more into depths of each of the programs.. It doesnt seem you have played them all throurogly... Also, I have heard of this other program as well that worked like a free MTGO, but I cant remember the name :/

[non_the_road]

MTGPlay is another program that allows you to play Magic online. Downloading large and small versions all the card art for every set ever printed is kind of a hefty task (or was before I got broadband :grin2, and it's fairly buggy. Supports multiplayer though, and has a good card search facility. Doesn't contain Oracle texts for cards, only what's printed on them.

[worthawholebean]

I believe MTGPlay=OCTGN.

The other programs of which I know are:
GCCG
LackeyCCG
WebWizard

[bateleur]

New sets take a considerable amount of time to be included in the online game

Yeah, this is a huge problem for Limited play. By the time the set comes out online, the offline players have figured out the new format in some depth and I usually find I lose 30+ points of my rating while I play catch up.

The question is: can Wizards do anything about this ?

[Zark the Damned]

Originally Posted by non_the_road

MTGPlay is another program that allows you to play Magic online. Downloading large and small versions all the card art for every set ever printed is kind of a hefty task (or was before I got broadband :grin2, and it's fairly buggy. Supports multiplayer though, and has a good card search facility. Doesn't contain Oracle texts for cards, only what's printed on them.

Wizards shut down MTGPlay

OCTGN is made by the same dev team, but designed to work with any card game via fan-made plug ins.

BTW Mohan, one minor inaccuracy on the OCTGN info: It supports up to 10 players, not 6.

Can't speak for the other programs though, I have never used them... (apart from Apprentice Briefly before the lack of graphics put me off).

Yes, I can see the article as a tad biased towards OCTGN, but if people have a problem with this they can write a counter arguement in their own article.

As for Magic Online and slowness of sets, the reason it takes so long to develop each set is because the game enforces rules (therefore each card must be coded into the game). Other programs get updated a lot faster because they do not enforce rules (i.e. players have to learn the rules to play) and therefore just need the graphics and to type up the texts.

Also, I believe MODO uses actual print runs for playing sealed decks and buying boosters, which most other programs do not (IIRC there is a patch for Netdraft which does print runs). That probably adds a bit of time (and is probably a feature which should be noted in the original article).

[Dr. Tom]

Originally Posted by bateleur

Yeah, this is a huge problem for Limited play. By the time the set comes out online, the offline players have figured out the new format in some depth and I usually find I lose 30+ points of my rating while I play catch up.

The question is: can Wizards do anything about this ?

Their goal is to release the set in MTGO one month after its physical release. This is faster than it was for earlier sets. I doubt there's anyway to trim the time off this with the current software architecture. WOTC's programmers are also working on MTGO v3.0, which they want to release next year. They're basically rebuilding the program from the ground up, getting rid of all the old Leaping Lizards code and fixing the problems from earlier versions. With 3.0 in place, the turnaround might be faster, but let's keep in mind that the programmers have to figure out how to code these spiffy new abilities the designers keep making. I think Mindslaver was the reason Mirrodin took abnormally long to appear on MTGO, since controlling the opponent's turn was a nightmare to code.

[makkert]

Originally Posted by nan

Also, I have heard of this other program as well that worked like a free MTGO, but I cant remember the name :/

you are probably referring to Magic Machine, also known as MagMa. The program is no longer under development, as the author quit. The code is used to be up for grabs on www.magicmachine.net. however, the site seems to be taken down now.
Another possible contender meant here is a project by some French. http://sourceforge.net/projects/magic-project/. However, this program is as far as i know still in beta, and has a french only homesite last time i checked.

Originally Posted by bateleur

The question is: can Wizards do anything about this ?

good question. Not sure. Maybe if they develop a month more ahead, then the developers of the software have the month they need.

Some notes to the article:
- Apprentice is loved because of its simplicity. its easy to use.
- MTGO has the benefit that it prevents rulesarguments. Well, except the louzy looser that claims 'its a bug in MTGO'.

Originally Posted by Bizkit Overlord

I prefer MWS over all the programs, mainly because of it's tournament support on O-Gaming, which features some of the nicest people I've ever met in its IRC chat room, and a great staff.

MWS is not alone in holding tournaments. Apprentice and MTGO have them too.

LackeyCCG i have seen, but besides its pretty spiffy playingfield control, i found it poor.

[Bizkit Overlord]

Originally Posted by makkert

MWS is not alone in holding tournaments. Apprentice and MTGO have them too.

Well, obviously MTGO has them, but for free tournaments, Magic Workstation has to be the best. Apprentice is old, out-dated, and may be easy, but the graphics are horrid. Also, Apprentice is very much less secure than MWS. MWS is just as easy to use as Apprentice, imo. It may look scarier, but it's not that hard at all.

[makkert]

Well, that's a matter of opinion. Obviously every program can be learned how to use with a little time in it. But in time of getting around, aprrentice is faster then MWS. I know, I tried both.
As for the security thing: that is probably correct. Just recently, they announced that they got a little program that should stop Backwash. While this is a major step forward, a real cracker probably would find a solution again.

[LTG]

I like this article...
I've never played with MWS b4, but I started playing with apprentice a bit, but stopped shortly after 'cause the quality was so bad. I was thinking about getting on the Magic online bandwagon, but since I'm only a college student who perfers spending my $$ on real cards, I'm glad that I found OCTGN
If you're wondering why there are no printed downsides to OCTGN, it's because they've worked hard to make it that way. I haven't been using the program very long, but there are only a few minor buggy things- limited types of tokens, some connection concerns, and finding a game prismatic, RS, Tribal, Vanguard or emperor is really hard... but I probably won't switch...
One of the cooler things that I've loved is the flexability of OCTGN...the Betrayers patch for OCTGN was released the day after the spoiler list was availible on magicthegathering.com... that seemed absurd.
It's also really cool that the MTGeditor from http://mtglair.de/editor.shtml works well to create more cards that can be incorporated into the game... unless they are tokens kinda ghetto, but it works. hopefully they'll fix that next...

there's my 2 cents...

[Bizkit Overlord]

O-Gaming released the Betrayers patch for MWS the day MTGSalvation completed the spoiler. It was an unofficial patch, but had very few errors.

[makkert]

Both are fine programs, let's not start bidding the programs up to each other. That would make this thread ugly. keep it cool.
Personally, the thing i don't like about MWS is the lack of support for multiplay. I love those games. On the plus side, MWS has some pretty nifty deckstatistics.
All programs have their down and upsides, its just a matter of playertaste which program matches his preferences.

kind regards,
Makkert

[Jobie]

Nice Article, I think it got most basic facts down for someone looking to play MTG online. I myself don't want to be limited by MTGO's pay for packs, or MWS pay to get all our better features...i tried apprentice...got rid of it...leaves me with octgn...which has great veteran userbase to direct newbs into starting...plus its not stuck down to the "Only MTG cards" you can play any game...you just have to make the cards.