Magic: Legends is looking to shake up the action RPG genre. The more that's shown of the Magic: Legends, the clearer it is that it's deviating heavily from the Diablo 2 formula that most modern ARPGs take inspiration from. Players will still be hacking and slashing with dozens of clicks, but the progression system is rooted in Magic-inspired deckbuilding. In a new trailer, interested gamers can see exactly what that means, as well as take note of Magic: Legends upcoming open beta.
In Magic: Legends, players will pick from five different classes, each based on card colors from the Magic TCG. However, players aren't limited by their class. They'll be able to build a deck of cards from other mana colors. This deck will make up the 12 different spells players have on-hand, which are shuffled so that they have 4 different spells available to use at a time. Players will start with a deck of their class' mana color, but can change their deck's color as they go on.
Spell cards will be earned through gameplay, but will also grow in power similarly. Players will earn spell pages, as well as aether by playing through Magic: Legends' missions. These currencies can then be used to upgrade individual spells up to a level of 10. This is how players will grow in strength. Spells also have four tiers of rarity, though players will want to balance their deck with a mix of both high and low rarity spells.
As for when players will be able to check out Magic: Legends for themselves, it's now confirmed that the open beta will begin on March 23. The open beta will be limited to just PC at first, but Magic: Legends will ultimately launch on PC and consoles later this year. When it launches, Magic: Legends will be a free-to-play game.
Magic: Legends is in development for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.