Magic: The Gathering Arena originally released in open beta back in November 2017 exclusively for PC, but it appears the developers have plans to expand the game to the Epic Games Store and macOS as MTG Arena officially leaves beta later this week. Developer Wizards of the Coast will be releasing MTG Arena as a full game with the 1.0 update, alongside a brand new expansion called Throne of Eldraine.
To celebrate the full launch of MTG Arena, Game Director Jay Parker and Community Manager Megan O'Malley released their first "State of the Game" update video detailing plans for the games full launch, as well as news for the upcoming expansion and a full roadmap of content that players can expect in the near to distant future.
MTG Arena 1.0 officially releases on Thursday, September 26 alongside the brand new card expansion set, Throne of Eldraine. The new expansion will introduce an all-new set of 269 cards that can be purchased in booster packs, decks, or collections, as well as a number of bug fixes and gameplay updates. Wizards of the Coast also details a content roadmap, giving players an idea of what to expect over the coming months.
Before the end of October, players can expect the release of a Friends List and Constructed Brawl. Beyond October, MTG Arena is currently in full development for release on the Epic Games Store and macOS. Also listed as "In Development" is the ability to send messages to friends, new event types, historic cards, and two new MTG card sets: Theros Beyond Death and Ikoria Land of Behemoths.
A third new card set called, Zendikar Rising, has been announced to be in the conceptual phase, along with a new core set for 2021, and other features such as friend deck sharing, and cube draft. Finally, Wizards of the Coast talked about a free event starting on October 5 that will give players the chance to win every card in Standard. All players that enter will be given access to four sets of every card in Standard and will need to win a total of 12 matches to win a digital copy of every card, a Sealed Event Ticket, and Golden Egg card sleeves.
While the launch of 1.0 can be looked at as just another number for many games, Wizards of the Coast have really gone above and beyond with MTG Arena by releasing a brand new expansion, a fun community event, and a detailed roadmap of outlining what the community has to look forward to. The ability to leave open beta and launch as a full game on such a strong foot is a clear indication of the game's overall success and the developer's relationship with their community.
Magic: The Gathering Arena is available now on PC.