Magic: The Gathering Arena offers many digital goods, ranging from card packs and event tickets to purely cosmetic card sleeves, cutesy animated pets, and in-game player avatars. Some of these are updated every single day, offered in a time-limited exclusive deal for less money… but are they worth it at all?
A brand-new Planeswalker logging in MTGA for the very first time and navigating to the conveniently highlighted Store tab above, or lured in with the big ad on the home screen carousel, might find the game’s store a bit overwhelming at first.
There are many things displayed there – chests full of gems, shiny borderless cards, and avatars of grumpy Ravnica guild leaders. One thing is especially easy to grasp, though – the Daily Deals.
This is a set of a handful of items that, much like their name betrays, switch up every day. They have big glowing labels slapped on them saying things like “50% off!” and are normally purchasable with both gold and gems – MTGA’s free and premium currencies, respectively.
More often than not, these will be the so-called card styles – visual upgrades of cards to feature larger artwork, different color card frame, and an animated effect upon hovering with the mouse. On occasion, a card sleeve or an avatar will find its way to the Daily Deals tab. Now, “50% off” is a label we always like to see attached to things we like but are these really worth the money?
Bide your time for the sweetest deal
The answer will greatly depend on the needs of every individual player, their attachment to the game, and of course, their budget.
Obviously, buying something cheaper is a better thing than getting it at full price. But the Daily Deals offer a very limited selection of items and it’s really a matter of luck. Looking to bling out your new Keruga deck? Well, you may or may not find a Keruga card style one of these days.
When you do, though, the discount is sweet. Discounted card styles usually go for 2000 gold/200 gems, which, depending on the way you buy your gems, is about a buck-a-pop. Is this worth it for your favorite card, especially if it’s a Companion or Commander? Probably. But let’s face it – card styles only appeal to a percentage of players to whom aesthetics really matter. What about card slingers with a more utilitarian mindset?
Luckily, the Daily Deals sometimes give away free stuff. On occasion, there will be an offer to “buy” 500 gems for 400 gems. As funny as this seems, 100 free gems is objectively a really nice offer. The catch? You need to have the 400 gems in the first place, so you might find yourself shilling $5 for some initial “capital” just to take advantage of the deal.
Many online games straight-up offer daily log-in rewards. MTGA instead offers… well, offers, so you don’t necessarily get something for free, but you get a discount on shiny things given that you already have some currency to get them.
For a brand-new player with 200 gold on his or her name, this might look a little annoying, but the feature is clearly aimed at regular players who play daily, and those are the ones who have the gold and gems to spend.
Like all things, look at every particular order and decide what’s worth it, and in the meantime, grab those free gems and coins every time you can.
And speaking of daily activities, keep reading EarlyGame.com for MTGA news, tips and tricks delivered every day without charging you any gems whatsoever!
