The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Harry Potter Trading Card Game

Harry Potter rules in the world of my 8 year old son. As obsessions go, Harry Potter is far better than most. I may not be reliable on this point, however. My son is the eldest of my 3 children, giving me 6 years (and counting) of Barney the purple dinosaur, so my standards are low.

The two of us went to Gen Con this year, and the WoTC collectible card game Harry Potter was in full force. We sat down for one of the sample games they were running. In the end, I spent $10 on a starter set that included two 41 card decks, a play mat with illustrations and rule reminders, and a few cardboard "damage" tokens. Excellent bang for the buck. Of course, I also bought six 11-card booster packs for $3.29 a pop. WoTC has a fine grasp on the "give away a razor, but sell those blades" school of marketing. I thought that buying different starter decks might be more economical, but those crafty rascals at WoTC were one step ahead of me -- all the starter decks I saw were identical.

Note that this is not the uninspired "Quidditch" Harry Potter card game that's been out a while.

This Harry Potter card game is a "Lite" version of Magic: the Gathering with a few interesting twists thrown in. Like MtG, it has a relatively simple rules set, but many of the cards "break" the rules in some way. Despite the 41 card starter deck size, each "official" deck is supposed to have 60 cards (see, you're already short -- buy boosters!). The first person to run out of cards on his draw pile loses.

Your starting hand is 7 cards. One your turn, you draw 1 card, assess the "damage" that your creatures do to your opponent -- that is, you move cards from his draw pile to his discard pile, and perform two actions. Actions include playing lessons (mana), casting spells, playing creatures, etc.

The first twist on magic is that each player has a persona card -- Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger in the starter set -- that gives a special power. Hermione gets double lessons, and Draco's a kind of card-stealer. One of the joys of this game is that the powers, items, spells, and whatnot capture the flavor of the books. In fact, for a double action cost, you can play a new persona midgame if you've put a few in your deck. Come to think of it, Magic the Gathering had a variant with persona cards like this as well.

Another innovation are the adventure cards. Also costing 2 actions to play, these limit the opponent in some way, such as "you cannot play more creatures" or whatever. The interesting part is that there is a quest given to the victim that, if performed, not only removes the effect, but also gives the victim a bonus of some sort.

There are four mana-- excuse me, lesson types: Creatures, Potions, Transformations, and Charms. One of the starter decks is Transformations and Creatures, the other is Charms and Creatures. I'm not sure if you can construct a viable deck without creatures (need more boosters!), but a WoTC minion told me that multi-lesson type decks were feasible. Until you buy sufficient boosters to acquire enough potion lessons, your potion cards are unusable (need more boosters!). Or maybe WoTC really had different starter decks they were hiding in a back room.... Most persona cards are not tied to any particular lesson type, so you can move them around from deck to deck.

Harry Potter plays quickly, as the game itself is designed around decking your opponent, and there are fewer time wasting activities where your opponent is going through his draw pile, or his discard pile, or placing counters here and there, or even tapping mana. Much less fiddly maintenance, which is why I think a bright 6 year old could play. You do put damage tokens on a creature that's been hurt, but that's about it.

One bet that that WoTC missed was any sort of "random event" deck to occasionally draw from to add some fun. Maybe Voldemort shows up, or the Hogwarts Express rolls by, or one of the ghosts plays a prank, or something. There is some strategy in the game, but it's fairly basic, and a little craziness could have added a lot. To my taste, the designers took themselves a little too seriously with the game, and should have thought a little more about the spirit of Cosmic Encounters or the "cracked" edition of MtG. I suppose Wizards didn't want to upset sober-minded tournament players, though. *Sigh*

The art is first rate, as you would expect. It has the same mix of styles as MtG. The playing mat is designed well and helpful for learning the game.

WoTC has carefully constructed a money machine with this CCG. I would’ve preferred a storytelling card game like Once Upon a Time (Atlas Games). With such a well known franchise as Harry Potter, it’s conceivable that kids could’ve used their imaginations a bit to think up new situations for their beloved characters. But you don’t buy 6 booster packs for a storytelling card game. Or am I cynical?

Scratch that – I’m definitely cynical because I’m thinking of buying WoTC stock. I may not get around to doing so, however, because now I’m thinking of firing up my daughter’s Baby Bop doll on a sacrificial funeral pyre. Mmmm.

Summary: For adults, the Harry Potter CCG is a bit too simplistic and derivative. But I’ve had fun playing it with my 8 year old. Moreover, he’s had fun and likes looking at the pictures.

Style 5 Big company doing professional work. Substance 3 Too much MtG on the mind, but worthwhile for kids

Harry Potter Trading Card Game
Harry Potter Trading Card Game Playtest Review by Somerset Tyne on 15/08/01 Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 3 (Average) Derivative kid pleasing moneymaker of a CCG Product: Harry Potter Trading Card Game Author: Wizards of the Coast Category: Card Game Company/Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Line: Harry Potter Card Game Cost: 9.95 Page count: n/a Year published: 2001 ISBN: SKU: Comp copy?: no Playtest Review by Somerset Tyne on 15/08/01 Genre tags: Fantasy	Harry Potter Trading Card Game Harry Potter rules in the world of my 8 year old son. As obsessions go, Harry Potter is far better than most. I may not be reliable on this point, however. My son is the eldest of my 3 children, giving me 6 years (and counting) of Barney the purple dinosaur, so my standards are low. The two of us went to Gen Con this year, and the WoTC collectible card game Harry Potter was in full force. We sat down for one of the sample games they were running. In the end, I spent $10 on a starter set that included two 41 card decks, a play mat with illustrations and rule reminders, and a few cardboard "damage" tokens. Excellent bang for the buck. Of course, I also bought six 11-card booster packs for $3.29 a pop. WoTC has a fine grasp on the "give away a razor, but sell those blades" school of marketing. I thought that buying different starter decks might be more economical, but those crafty rascals at WoTC were one step ahead of me -- all the starter decks I saw were identical. Note that this is not the uninspired "Quidditch" Harry Potter card game that's been out a while. This Harry Potter card game is a "Lite" version of Magic: the Gathering with a few interesting twists thrown in. Like MtG, it has a relatively simple rules set, but many of the cards "break" the rules in some way. Despite the 41 card starter deck size, each "official" deck is supposed to have 60 cards (see, you're already short -- buy boosters!). The first person to run out of cards on his draw pile loses. Your starting hand is 7 cards. One your turn, you draw 1 card, assess the "damage" that your creatures do to your opponent -- that is, you move cards from his draw pile to his discard pile, and perform two actions. Actions include playing lessons (mana), casting spells, playing creatures, etc. The first twist on magic is that each player has a persona card -- Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger in the starter set -- that gives a special power. Hermione gets double lessons, and Draco's a kind of card-stealer. One of the joys of this game is that the powers, items, spells, and whatnot capture the flavor of the books. In fact, for a double action cost, you can play a new persona midgame if you've put a few in your deck. Come to think of it, Magic the Gathering had a variant with persona cards like this as well. Another innovation are the adventure cards. Also costing 2 actions to play, these limit the opponent in some way, such as "you cannot play more creatures" or whatever. The interesting part is that there is a quest given to the victim that, if performed, not only removes the effect, but also gives the victim a bonus of some sort. There are four mana-- excuse me, lesson types: Creatures, Potions, Transformations, and Charms. One of the starter decks is Transformations and Creatures, the other is Charms and Creatures. I'm not sure if you can construct a viable deck without creatures (need more boosters!), but a WoTC minion told me that multi-lesson type decks were feasible. Until you buy sufficient boosters to acquire enough potion lessons, your potion cards are unusable (need more boosters!). Or maybe WoTC really had different starter decks they were hiding in a back room.... Most persona cards are not tied to any particular lesson type, so you can move them around from deck to deck. Harry Potter plays quickly, as the game itself is designed around decking your opponent, and there are fewer time wasting activities where your opponent is going through his draw pile, or his discard pile, or placing counters here and there, or even tapping mana. Much less fiddly maintenance, which is why I think a bright 6 year old could play. You do put damage tokens on a creature that's been hurt, but that's about it. One bet that that WoTC missed was any sort of "random event" deck to occasionally draw from to add some fun. Maybe Voldemort shows up, or the Hogwarts Express rolls by, or one of the ghosts plays a prank, or something. There is some strategy in the game, but it's fairly basic, and a little craziness could have added a lot. To my taste, the designers took themselves a little too seriously with the game, and should have thought a little more about the spirit of Cosmic Encounters or the "cracked" edition of MtG. I suppose Wizards didn't want to upset sober-minded tournament players, though. Sigh The art is first rate, as you would expect. It has the same mix of styles as MtG. The playing mat is designed well and helpful for learning the game. WoTC has carefully constructed a money machine with this CCG. I would’ve preferred a storytelling card game like Once Upon a Time (Atlas Games). With such a well known franchise as Harry Potter, it’s conceivable that kids could’ve used their imaginations a bit to think up new situations for their beloved characters. But you don’t buy 6 booster packs for a storytelling card game. Or am I cynical? Scratch that – I’m definitely cynical because I’m thinking of buying WoTC stock. I may not get around to doing so, however, because now I’m thinking of firing up my daughter’s Baby Bop doll on a sacrificial funeral pyre. Mmmm. Summary: For adults, the Harry Potter CCG is a bit too simplistic and derivative. But I’ve had fun playing it with my 8 year old. Moreover, he’s had fun and likes looking at the pictures. Style 5 Big company doing professional work. Substance 3 Too much MtG on the mind, but worthwhile for kids