Last updated on October 19, 2026
U.S.S. Enterprise-D, Galaxy-Class | Illustration by Pablo Mendoza
Star Trek is already having its debut stream tomorrow, but if you’re looking to preorder a Star Trek Play Booster Box on Amazon, they’ve already knocked the price down by 33% from $210 USD to $140 USD. Reducing the price like this right before a big reveal might be a sign that Wizards of the Coast doesn’t have much confidence in this product, which considering the lack of enthusiasm the community seems to have, it isn’t hard to believe that the hype simply isn’t there.
- THE SHIP IS YOURS, CAPTAIN—Take a seat in the captain’s chair and engage with the unforgettable crews, adversaries, and starships of Star Trek’s many generations, from the bridge down to the lower decks
- ASSEMBLE YOUR OWN FEDERATION—Seek out strange new worlds and face moral quandaries—but when peace is threatened, send all hands to battle stations! Your continuing mission? To boldly go where no one has gone before
- FOIL CARD IN EVERY PACK—Each Play Booster contains at least 1 shiny Traditional Foil card and 1–4 cards of rarity Rare or higher, including the possibility of special alt-art, alt-border cards
- BEST BOOSTERS FOR PLAYING WITH FRIENDS—Play Boosters are the best way to discover what Magic has to offer; they're perfect for building decks, playing Limited games with friends, and are tons of fun to open
- WELCOME TO THE GATHERING—Magic: The Gathering is a collectible card game that weaves deep strategy, gorgeous art, fantastical stories, and a thriving fan community all together into a card game experience like no other
Price Comparison
Captain James T. Kirk | Illustration by Josh Newton
To give you context for this price change, Reality Fracture, the most recent set, is currently selling for $161 USD. If you go back a few sets, Marvel Super Heroes, the last full sized Universes Beyond set, is selling at a 30% discount for $148 USD. Both of these are sets that have been out for a while, and are likely seeing declining demand, and yet they are still being listed for a greater price tag than Star Trek is.
Now, for the average consumer this is a good thing. If you want to buy a play booster box of Star Trek, a 33% discount is a pretty big deal. However, I doubt that this is being done benevolently for the good of the consumer, and is rather an adjustment to meet the demand where it is.
Missing Demand and Universes Beyond
Salt Vampire | Illustration by Simon Dominic
Okay, so the demand is likely lower than expected for Star Trek, so what? If you’re not Wizards of the Coast, then this doesn’t really affect you directly, and it would be fair not to care. But since it does affect Wizards of the Coast, it does affect the moves they make going forward, especially as they pertain to Universes Beyond.
Star Trek is a huge franchise. It’s been around for over sixty years, and it’s had countless spin-offs, reboots, movies, and a ton of merchandise. It’s synonymous with the sci-fi genre, and therefore, you would expect it to be incredibly popular among the Magic: The Gathering player base, after all, there is likely a good amount of overlap. And there likely is, but looking at these prices, it seems like there’s still a disconnect.
I can’t help but feel this is due to the handling of some Universes Beyond sets as of late, specifically how they perform as Magic sets. Because that’s what they are, ultimately they’re more than just extension of an intellectual property, they have to function in this game, and recently that aspect has been falling short. The Hobbit was a disaster, as were all of the small sets (Spider-Man and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), and I can’t help but feel like Marvel Super Heroes, while better than these, also missed the mark as a functioning Magic set.
I believe Wizards of the Coast has noticed this and is making some big changes with Darkhold Destiny, the first Universes Beyond set releasing in 2027, which will include its own original storyline and a high-fantasy setting that meshes much better with Magic. But that hasn’t been released yet, and until it does, I don’t believe there will be the desired level of demand for these Universes Beyond sets like Star Trek, as they simply haven’t had a good track record in this last year or so.
Wrap Up
Resistance Is Futile | Illustration by Matt Stewart
Ultimately, I could be proven wrong. Maybe Star Trek is a hugely successful set for both Limited players and Commander players alike, and the demand really is there. Despite issues with Marvel Super Heroes, it still seemed like that set was relatively successful, and perhaps it’s more of an issue of reputation than anything, but preemptive price cuts are never a sign of high confidence. I suppose we’ll just have to wait and see, and until then, live long and prosper.
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