First, my apologies for that complete click bait title! I doubt that anyone will call the upcoming Final Fantasy set for Magic: The Gathering a failure (or they will be very few and far between). It has already become the best-selling Magic set of all times and it is still not out for another couple of weeks! I expect that this alone will be enough for Wizards of the Coast to call it a success.

For anyone living under a rock, Final Fantasy is the first Universes Beyond set that will be Standard legal. It comes with an army of fans that have followed the video game dynasty that goes all the way back to 1987! That interest alone has shone a new light on this family’s favourite game and brought waves of new players.

Add in Commander sets, the “Through the Ages” bonus consisting of 64 reprints that have been given a Final Fantasy treatment (including the return of Dark Confidant to Standard) and a number of Secret Lair sets, and this is shaping up to be a massive release for the game. 

So why that title for this post? Simply put, Final Fantasy is not connecting in this family. First, let me set the stage a bit. It starts with the fact that none of us are Final Fantasy fans (please, no hate mail!). I was not a console gamer in my youth and so missed the early games. I remember the hype and noise each time a new installment came out but never played. Similarly, the boys never got into the game despite they growing up with gaming consoles in the house. I’m not sure why but there it is.

Back to why I’m calling it a dud. It starts with my disappointment that Universes Beyond Magic sets are now becoming Standard-legal. I’m just not keen on seeing cards of this set in upcoming Standard games. The boys are equally unimpressed by the set. Like me, they are not familiar with the lore. The art, what initially got Noah into the game so many years ago, is not connecting with him.

The cost is not helping. A Final Fantasy Play Booster box is going for CA$249.99! The Commander decks are selling for CA$549.99 for the set of four and none of them sell for less than CA$120 individually. A single Collector Booster pack is selling for CA$94.99 – That’s over CA$6 a card before taxes! A Collector Booster box is going for CA$1099.99! Note that all prices are from Face to Face as of the day I published this post; 401 Games is slightly cheaper and has a better stock situation at the moment.

Even the pre-release events are more expensive (no surprise given the set prices) than usual. At CA$67.50 per person, this is a more than 30% increase over the recent pre-releases which had cost CA$50 or so. With the tradition that Papa pays for these, this gets to be pretty pricey!

All right, I still have not said why I’m calling the set a dud. Simply because there is no interest in this set in this household. I think I will be the only one going to a pre-release event – I love these events. Noah is emphatically saying no at the moment and Christian is on the fence due to lack of interest and possible work shift conflicts. When was the last time we missed a pre-release out of a lack of interest? Never ever since we started!

Our disinterest is extending to a communal decision not to buy a Play Booster box of the set. This is a long-standing tradition for us and the fact that we are deliberately skipping it is another Has-not-happened-in-a-long-time kind of moment.

And last of all, these Moogles and Chocobos look like they belong in the Pokemon world rather than Magic! And this is from someone who initially thought Bloomburrow might be too cute for Magic!

It is increasingly looking like there will be very little Magic for us this summer (aside from hopefully our regular games). And this is particularly sad because Noah is headed out of province for university at the end of August. It definitely feels like the end of an era! And while I cannot blame Final Fantasy for this, I can certainly blame it for it wiping out one of my favourite family traditions. At least until Edge of Eternities comes out this fall!

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