Nostalgia is The Strongest Keyword in Magic: The Gathering

Last updated on April 17, 2025

Narset, Enlightened Master – illus. Magali Villeneuve

It's an unfortunate fact for many, and a welcome addition for few, but the truth is that Universes Beyond is a mainstay in the current era of Magic. UB sets make up half of the Standard releases in a given year, at least for the foreseeable future.

This begs the question: What role do actual in-universe Magic sets play now? The recent release of Tarkir: Dragonstorm absolutely nailed the feeling of a “traditional Magic set,” but what about the return to Tarkir made it emblematic of Magic: The Gathering as a whole? What is it that players crave about sets/settings like Tarkir that isn't captured by Universes Beyond or many of the sets released throughout 2024? Head Designer Mark Rosewater's answered “Nostalgia,” which threw many players for a loop.

Too Many Hat Sets

Holy Cow | Illustration by Justyna Dura

The conversation started with a question by user mangofisher74 on Blogatog, MaRo's personal blog.

They point out something that's been echoed by many Magic players over the last few years: More Magic sets that feel like Magic, less “hat” sets built around silly gimmicks.

So many of 2024's offerings (plus 2025's Aetherdrift) felt like a departure from the more serious, tonally consistent sets Magic's known for.

• Murders at Karlov Manor (which sold poorly) wasn't about the beloved plane of Ravnica, it was a Clue spinoff murder mystery that just so happened to have Fblthp in a lot of the art.
• Outlaws of Thunder Junction was a silly take on the Wild West setting, complete with a literal ox angel named Holy Cow and a Marauding Sphinx with spurs that rewarded you for committing crime.
• Duskmourn wore its horror references on its sleeve, and featured backflipping cheerleaders, vacuums and television sets, and 18 or so references to the Saw franchise, which died out when John Kramer died in Saw III (oops, spoiler alert!).
• Aetherdrift existed.

Each of these sets had merit, but from a flavor perspective, very few hit with audiences on a universal scale. The take-away isn't that players don't like gimmick sets, it's that those need to be balanced out with Magic sets that evoke that high fantasy feel players love. As MaRo says: “Players want a variety of things.”

Give ‘Em What They Want

Spikeshell Harrier | Illustration by Alfonso Santano

Doubling down, MaRo addressed a similar question by user honor-basquiat:

MaRo's response here reveals a few things about the way Wizards, or at least its Head Designer, is thinking about Magic set design right now, namely that “boundary-pushing” is directly linked to Universes Beyond, and Magic's in-universe sets are freed up to be more referential and familiar.

All the feedback over the last few years seems to point at exactly what MaRo's talking about: If UB sets are going to eat up so much of Magic's set equity, people really want the in-universe sets to stick the landing and feel like traditional Magic sets. With only three in-universe sets for diehard MTG fans to look forward to each year, people want more sets like Tarkir: Dragonstorm: Showcases of great worldbuilding, high-fantasy art, and fine-tuned card design. Less Aetherdrifts, where the shark people are throwing Mario shells at the ghostwagons while racing across the dinosaur-ravaged lands of Muraganda, or whatever.

Obviously, Wizards can still tinker with using familiar settings as a backdrop for a particular gimmick, like a murder mystery or a death race, but players seem to appreciate a serious tone, and more direct, creative worldbuilding over referential, tongue-in-cheek design.

The Nostalgia Snafu

Repel Calamity | Illustration by Ryan Pancoast

Well, MaRo admits “nostalgic” might not be the right term to describe what Magic players seek out of a normal set release. In response to forestimaster on Blogatog, MaRo clarified that he recognizes that players want a traditional feel to their in-universe sets.

He uses Bloomburrow as an example of a Magic IP set that's doing something new, but also fits the feel people are looking for. Tarkir: Dragonstorm proved that this “feel” also works for revisits to beloved planes, proof that Magic doesn't have to reinvent itself to feel fresh and exciting.

All that said, Magic players didn't love the idea of nostalgia being at the forefront of Magic's design philosophies. Many people in the r/magicTCG reddit claim “nostalgia-baiting” leads to lazy design and doesn't give Magic room to express its creative side. Others leaned into MaRo's statement that “normal” Magic sets don't have to push boundaries, which can result in stale and uninteresting sets, or ones that are trying to appeal to player familiarity rather than creating something new to be wowed by.

The whole player sentiment can be summarized by Nivicompleo's reponse on the Reddit thread: “You know how sometimes you just want a beer that tastes like beer? This Tarkir is a Magic set that tastes like Magic, and it hit the spot.”

Looking to the Future (and Beyond)

Kavu Prime | Illustration by Joshua Raphael

Magic's quickly approaching another opportunity to win over its long-time fans. After a colossal pitstop with Final Fantasy in June, Magic's once again “pushing the boundaries” with Edge of Eternities, the game's first real foray into outer space (Unfinity doesn't count, Unfinity can't hurt you anymore). “Magic in Outer Space!” sounds very much like one of those “hat” set groaners, a la Thunder Junction and the Wild West, but the art showcased for the set looks astounding, and original!

You've got Tezzeret blowing up planets, space whales and kavu generals, galactic space pirates and robots… the set looks great, and has that creative Magic feel while still exploring new territory for the 30+ year old game.

There are also confirmed revisits in 2026 to Lorwyn and Arcavios (Strixhaven‘s home-plane). Those will be familiar settings, but will they strike the same chord as TDM? Maybe Strixhaven 2.0 will have everyone wearing graduation caps? Hard to say right now, and players will have to slog through Avatar and Spider-Man before then, but one thing's certain: Magic players want Magic to feel like Magic! How do you know when you've hit the mark? According to MaRo: “It’s a feel thing. With thirty years of experience, it’s pretty internalized.“