I think a major issue is that WOTC has been haemorrhaging products on a near monthly schedule which make the game easily forgettable and stale. These products shouldn't ruffle as many feathers as they are but I can see the frustration.
Could we at least first get Commander Legends turned into a proper series so that more MTG Characters can get into the game? I know we still have the normal Commander decks but its not really bringing alot alone.
Could we at least first get Commander Legends turned into a proper series so that more MTG Characters can get into the game? I know we still have the normal Commander decks but its not really bringing alot alone.
The Commnader precons went down hill around C2020 when they started having cards from Ikoria in the deck, and then subsequently when they only added 1-3 new cards to the commander pool. I understand wotc's reasoning, trying to hook new standard players to commander with similar set mechanics, but it really waters down the already watered down product, it's really a shame.
Some of you need to analyze your thoughts about 'HATE'
'Hate' is a strong feeling and word.
MLK said 'Let no man pull you low enough to hate him'
Hate is what brings evil and breeds *****ty people.
Its a freaking card game. People been making 'Fake Cards' of like Superman and Wolverine and Batman for like ..years..HELL , INQUEST MAGAZINE did it themselves back in the day ..they had fake cards printed up in the back of the Magazine for years!! You can search them up and everything.
OH no ..they are making cards with other things on them. Oh well. Be the consumers you know you are if you don't like them ..and not buy them. And if you're playing against them in Commander? Freaking make better decks! Make decks that they don't wanna play against either! Or HECK have some common sense and communicate!
Some people here are gonna start tweeting Maro and all the people in Magic they can ...and then they'll get blocked and think that because they got blocked or some ***** that its a 'Win'
Sometimes ...when I was younger I always wondered why us nerds got picked on and beaten up ...the freaking way that some of you have been acting? I can see why there's a bit of that still today.
Some of you need to analyze your thoughts about 'HATE'
'Hate' is a strong feeling and word.
MLK said 'Let no man pull you low enough to hate him'
Hate is what brings evil and breeds *****ty people.
Its a freaking card game. People been making 'Fake Cards' of like Superman and Wolverine and Batman for like ..years..HELL , INQUEST MAGAZINE did it themselves back in the day ..they had fake cards printed up in the back of the Magazine for years!! You can search them up and everything.
OH no ..they are making cards with other things on them. Oh well. Be the consumers you know you are if you don't like them ..and not buy them. And if you're playing against them in Commander? Freaking make better decks! Make decks that they don't wanna play against either! Or HECK have some common sense and communicate!
Some people here are gonna start tweeting Maro and all the people in Magic they can ...and then they'll get blocked and think that because they got blocked or some ***** that its a 'Win'
Sometimes ...when I was younger I always wondered why us nerds got picked on and beaten up ...the freaking way that some of you have been acting? I can see why there's a bit of that still today.
You know members of WotC staff received death threats over TWD? I expect they've already gotten a few more over UB, and that says a lot about the mentality of people who are upset about it. The amount of energy folks are putting into trying (and failing) to explain why this is a bad thing is mind-boggling.
Makes me afraid for how nasty and childish games are going to get in public spaces after lockdowns are lifted.
As an investor, Hasbro has shifted heavily into the Magic and other former TSR properities as a focus of money production as they are tremendously profitable. As companies are regularly expected to beat estimates and grow their business, this is only to be expected, especially when you have the market dominant position that will allow you to pursue these strategies. So I don't like it, but I know what it is happening. I don't like it, to be clear, because its screwing with vintage and other formats. Yes, they won't be standard-legal, but they will be legal in other formats, so for those players, they are going to be just as need-to-buy.
Well that's not really the same because people could simply choose not to play the game. It's more like GameFreak releasing a DLC with sonic and mario and even people who didn't like it had to fight them in PvP.
Yeah, that's what I meant (not the story mode but the PvP online battle part of mainline Pokemon).
As an investor, Hasbro has shifted heavily into the Magic and other former TSR properities as a focus of money production as they are tremendously profitable. As companies are regularly expected to beat estimates and grow their business, this is only to be expected, especially when you have the market dominant position that will allow you to pursue these strategies. So I don't like it, but I know what it is happening.
From a pure business standpoint I can see it as well. As someone else already said, I doubt that these products are going to draw in many new long-term players. Most are going to buy one time, maybe play a few games (if it's a precon), and then go on with their lives. But if they release enough crossover products, these "waves" of one-time purchases and short-term attention are probably going to be profitable enough. The other audience are invested Magic players that also like the respective franchises; and those are the kind of players that basically buy anything as long as it comes in Magic card form. Stores, investors and scalpers are obviously going to buy UB because of the exclusivity, so it's going to go well on this front as well.
You know members of WotC staff received death threats over TWD? I expect they've already gotten a few more over UB, and that says a lot about the mentality of people who are upset about it.
Lumping together all sorts of people now, huh? I for one have never sent anyone a death threat, and I doubt anyone else posting in this thread did. But I think it's time to let this go. You're clearly set on baiting for answers, Wizards will clearly print (and continue printing) UB, and apparently the "non-crossover crowd" isn't significant enough to not be thrown under the bus. Brands evolve and stuff, yadda yadda but if being nothing more than a game system is what Magic is evolving into I'm fine with not being invested in it anymore.
Brands evolve and stuff, yadda yadda but if being nothing more than a game system is what Magic is evolving into I'm fine with not being invested in it anymore.
Why are so many people jumping on this slippery slope? Are such slopes really that fun? Because the only two arguments I see against UB are "It ruins my emersion"(which I can understand and support) and "Well, I guess they won't make any more real magic now" which is mindboggling. How can people look at a statement of "We are doing X but will not do Y" and respond with "Well since they're doing Y I'm officially done with this"
Even the stance of "They did X and I'm afraid they will do Y" is asinine. In a few years after we see how these pan out vs normal magic then if the thought is supported fear that Y will occur is reasonable. But its sheer madness to fear something that they said they aren't going to do when there is no evidence to support the thought that they will do it despite their statement.
Could we at least first get Commander Legends turned into a proper series so that more MTG Characters can get into the game? I know we still have the normal Commander decks but its not really bringing alot alone.
The Commnader precons went down hill around C2020 when they started having cards from Ikoria in the deck, and then subsequently when they only added 1-3 new cards to the commander pool. I understand wotc's reasoning, trying to hook new standard players to commander with similar set mechanics, but it really waters down the already watered down product, it's really a shame.
They did say "... and then subsequently when they only added 1-3 new cards to the commander pool..."
It's still somewhat incorrect, as the Kaldheim decks introduced 8 new cards per deck, but the four decks in between C2020 (Ikoria) and Kaldheim did only have 3 new cards a piece.
Could we at least first get Commander Legends turned into a proper series so that more MTG Characters can get into the game? I know we still have the normal Commander decks but its not really bringing alot alone.
The Commnader precons went down hill around C2020 when they started having cards from Ikoria in the deck, and then subsequently when they only added 1-3 new cards to the commander pool. I understand wotc's reasoning, trying to hook new standard players to commander with similar set mechanics, but it really waters down the already watered down product, it's really a shame.
Each Ikoria deck had 17 new cards.
I know, I should have been clearer. I was referring to the subsequent Zenidkar Rising, CMDR Legends and Kaldheim Precons. Although the Kaldheim decks had more newer cards overall than the Zendikar and CMDR ones which only had the Commander/Face card and then 3 newer cards respectively.
Super Smash Bros. was literally made from the start to be a crossover though.
MTG was literally designed off of D&D campaigns and has heavy D&D influence especially in early sets, particularly Legends. Do you not think that perhaps MTG was meant to be a crossover-enabler for fantasy-esque settings?
'buster
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
'buster
HR Analyst. Gamer. Activist | Fearless, and forthright | Aggro-control is a mindset. Elspeth and Jhoira rock my world.
I know, I should have been clearer. I was referring to the subsequent Zenidkar Rising, CMDR Legends and Kaldheim Precons. Although the Kaldheim decks had more newer cards overall than the Zendikar and CMDR ones which only had the Commander/Face card and then 3 newer cards respectively.
You're referring to the $25 decks that aren't meant to replace the yearly slate of commander offerings? Much like the original decks released nigh on a decade ago (which started at $30 each), these are very obviously designed for new rather than entrenched players - and if you look at the deck lists, they are actually very competent, if not supremely valuable. I can already own every card in those decks and still recognize that they're worth every penny for the players they are designed for. Let's not lose perspective: there are still plenty of places to get unique cards for EDH (we just had an entire set just drop for that express purpose).
I know people whose entry point into Magic has actually been EDH, being one of the more popular formats at present. These decks are a blessing for me, as I get to reap the benefit of having more people to play with, and at minimal risk of turning them away due to the burden of up front investment.
Super Smash Bros. was literally made from the start to be a crossover though.
MTG was literally designed off of D&D campaigns and has heavy D&D influence especially in early sets, particularly Legends. Do you not think that perhaps MTG was meant to be a crossover-enabler for fantasy-esque settings?
'buster
No, and this is still a disingenuous take. The fumbling for a cohesive identity of a game in its infancy is not indicative of its identity as it coalesced over decades, which is why a lot of those early sets have direct references that feel out of place in hindsight (though how much that bothers a player is subjective). And this take also conflates influence and homage with expanding the game to include external IPs.
Universe Beyond represents a change for the game, if the TWD Secret Lair was dipping the toe in this is a belly flop. We can all have different responses to it, but let's not pretend this is an organic change in the game or that the game was always meant for it. People can embrace the UB concept without all that.
Super Smash Bros. was literally made from the start to be a crossover though.
MTG was literally designed off of D&D campaigns and has heavy D&D influence especially in early sets, particularly Legends. Do you not think that perhaps MTG was meant to be a crossover-enabler for fantasy-esque settings?
'buster
No, and this is still a disingenuous take. The fumbling for a cohesive identity of a game in its infancy is not indicative of its identity as it coalesced over decades, which is why a lot of those early sets have direct references that feel out of place in hindsight (though how much that bothers a player is subjective). And this take also conflates influence and homage with expanding the game to include external IPs.
Universe Beyond represents a change for the game, if the TWD Secret Lair was dipping the toe in this is a belly flop. We can all have different responses to it, but let's not pretend this is an organic change in the game or that the game was always meant for it. People can embrace the UB concept without all that.
Your points don't make sense. First you're saying it's bad for the game to expand and evolve, particularly with IPs, yet say it's not right to assume the identity of a game from its infancy. Isn't that what you're doing? "The game shouldn't expand because that's not what it's about yet its original intent shouldn't be the basis for which the game develops and evolves."
Make up your mind man.
'buster
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
'buster
HR Analyst. Gamer. Activist | Fearless, and forthright | Aggro-control is a mindset. Elspeth and Jhoira rock my world.
"Well, I guess they won't make any more real magic now" which is mindboggling.
No one is saying this.
Do you have an alternative interpretation for the quote "nothing more than a game system" then I welcome your interpretation. However, to me, this sounds like exactly what they are saying.
Your points don't make sense. First you're saying it's bad for the game to expand and evolve, particularly with IPs, yet say it's not right to assume the identity of a game from its infancy. Isn't that what you're doing? "The game shouldn't expand because that's not what it's about yet its original intent shouldn't be the basis for which the game develops and evolves."
I know, I should have been clearer. I was referring to the subsequent Zenidkar Rising, CMDR Legends and Kaldheim Precons. Although the Kaldheim decks had more newer cards overall than the Zendikar and CMDR ones which only had the Commander/Face card and then 3 newer cards respectively.
You're referring to the $25 decks that aren't meant to replace the yearly slate of commander offerings? Much like the original decks released nigh on a decade ago (which started at $30 each), these are very obviously designed for new rather than entrenched players - and if you look at the deck lists, they are actually very competent, if not supremely valuable. I can already own every card in those decks and still recognize that they're worth every penny for the players they are designed for. Let's not lose perspective: there are still plenty of places to get unique cards for EDH (we just had an entire set just drop for that express purpose).
I know people whose entry point into Magic has actually been EDH, being one of the more popular formats at present. These decks are a blessing for me, as I get to reap the benefit of having more people to play with, and at minimal risk of turning them away due to the burden of up front investment.
I have to admit that you have a good point. The original commander cycle was awful and barely passable and got progressively more cohesive. Having said that, Commander products were always a sort of reprint destination for cards that were in the scarcity range of being expensive paired with new cards and mechanics to the format. I guess my major gripe was with C20 having a lot of cheap include instead of notable reprints, and that seems to be a trend with the commander based products going forward, which I find less exciting than when I started in the format.
Could we at least first get Commander Legends turned into a proper series so that more MTG Characters can get into the game? I know we still have the normal Commander decks but its not really bringing alot alone.
The Commnader precons went down hill around C2020 when they started having cards from Ikoria in the deck, and then subsequently when they only added 1-3 new cards to the commander pool. I understand wotc's reasoning, trying to hook new standard players to commander with similar set mechanics, but it really waters down the already watered down product, it's really a shame.
Each Ikoria deck had 17 new cards.
I know, I should have been clearer. I was referring to the subsequent Zenidkar Rising, CMDR Legends and Kaldheim Precons. Although the Kaldheim decks had more newer cards overall than the Zendikar and CMDR ones which only had the Commander/Face card and then 3 newer cards respectively.
Those are starter decks that replaced the planeswalker decks for non-core sets, which is why we only get 2 a set.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“There are no weak Jews. I am descended from those who wrestle angels and kill giants. We were chosen by God. You were chosen by a pathetic little man who can't seem to grow a full mustache"
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
Super Smash Bros. was literally made from the start to be a crossover though.
MTG was literally designed off of D&D campaigns and has heavy D&D influence especially in early sets, particularly Legends. Do you not think that perhaps MTG was meant to be a crossover-enabler for fantasy-esque settings?
'buster
If it was a crossover enabler why haven't we had a single crossover set/product since legends? 'Inspired by' is very very different to direct-lifting a character without a name or design change.
Super Smash Bros. was literally made from the start to be a crossover though.
MTG was literally designed off of D&D campaigns and has heavy D&D influence especially in early sets, particularly Legends. Do you not think that perhaps MTG was meant to be a crossover-enabler for fantasy-esque settings?
'buster
No, and this is still a disingenuous take. The fumbling for a cohesive identity of a game in its infancy is not indicative of its identity as it coalesced over decades, which is why a lot of those early sets have direct references that feel out of place in hindsight (though how much that bothers a player is subjective). And this take also conflates influence and homage with expanding the game to include external IPs.
Universe Beyond represents a change for the game, if the TWD Secret Lair was dipping the toe in this is a belly flop. We can all have different responses to it, but let's not pretend this is an organic change in the game or that the game was always meant for it. People can embrace the UB concept without all that.
Your points don't make sense. First you're saying it's bad for the game to expand and evolve, particularly with IPs, yet say it's not right to assume the identity of a game from its infancy. Isn't that what you're doing? "The game shouldn't expand because that's not what it's about yet its original intent shouldn't be the basis for which the game develops and evolves."
Make up your mind man.
'buster
That's not at all what I said. What I said was that the game took a few sets to really find its footing/identity but that for decades after it had established its identity and set expectations for players. And that identity was independent from IP crossovers (though MtG obviously has pulled considerable inspiration from other IPs/mythologies/pop culture/etc over the years), until recently.
The reason I made that point was to disagree with the assertion that those early days of trial and error when it came to how the game interacts with other IPs/real world concepts can be used to justify Universe Beyond because I feel that is a weak argument. UB isn't less of a big shift for the game because Frankenstein's Monster was a card in 1995. Despite the growing pains of the early days, MtG developed an identity over decades distinctly independent of direct crossover, to the point where the obvious lifts from other IPs don't really feel like they fit in hindsight. That's the basis of my disagreement that early sets like Legends show that MtG was meant for IP crossover like UB, it's a weak and disingenuous line of reasoning. If that's not feeling clear for you, by all means let me know which aspects you need more clarity on.
I'm not against the game expanding, far from it, I just tend to dislike expansions that feel dissonant with the core of the game. And I don't feel IP crossovers fit with that core, certainly others may.
(W/U)(B/R)GForm of Progenitus, Shape of a Scrubland
BRGJund Tokens with Prossh, the Magic Dragon Foil
URGAnimar, the RUG CleanerFoil
RRRFeldon of the Third Path 2.0 Foil
BG(B/G)Not Another Meren DeckFoil
UR(U/R)Mizzix, Y Control and X Burn Spells
(W/U)(B/R)GHarold Ramos - The 35 Foot Long Twinkie (In +1/+1 counters)
UB(U/B)Dragonlord Silumgar
Current EDH Decks:
Dakkon Blackblade 2WUUB
(W/U)(B/R)GForm of Progenitus, Shape of a Scrubland
BRGJund Tokens with Prossh, the Magic Dragon Foil
URGAnimar, the RUG CleanerFoil
RRRFeldon of the Third Path 2.0 Foil
BG(B/G)Not Another Meren DeckFoil
UR(U/R)Mizzix, Y Control and X Burn Spells
(W/U)(B/R)GHarold Ramos - The 35 Foot Long Twinkie (In +1/+1 counters)
UB(U/B)Dragonlord Silumgar
'Hate' is a strong feeling and word.
MLK said 'Let no man pull you low enough to hate him'
Hate is what brings evil and breeds *****ty people.
Its a freaking card game. People been making 'Fake Cards' of like Superman and Wolverine and Batman for like ..years..HELL , INQUEST MAGAZINE did it themselves back in the day ..they had fake cards printed up in the back of the Magazine for years!! You can search them up and everything.
OH no ..they are making cards with other things on them. Oh well. Be the consumers you know you are if you don't like them ..and not buy them. And if you're playing against them in Commander? Freaking make better decks! Make decks that they don't wanna play against either! Or HECK have some common sense and communicate!
Some people here are gonna start tweeting Maro and all the people in Magic they can ...and then they'll get blocked and think that because they got blocked or some ***** that its a 'Win'
Sometimes ...when I was younger I always wondered why us nerds got picked on and beaten up ...the freaking way that some of you have been acting? I can see why there's a bit of that still today.
You know members of WotC staff received death threats over TWD? I expect they've already gotten a few more over UB, and that says a lot about the mentality of people who are upset about it. The amount of energy folks are putting into trying (and failing) to explain why this is a bad thing is mind-boggling.
Makes me afraid for how nasty and childish games are going to get in public spaces after lockdowns are lifted.
From a pure business standpoint I can see it as well. As someone else already said, I doubt that these products are going to draw in many new long-term players. Most are going to buy one time, maybe play a few games (if it's a precon), and then go on with their lives. But if they release enough crossover products, these "waves" of one-time purchases and short-term attention are probably going to be profitable enough. The other audience are invested Magic players that also like the respective franchises; and those are the kind of players that basically buy anything as long as it comes in Magic card form. Stores, investors and scalpers are obviously going to buy UB because of the exclusivity, so it's going to go well on this front as well.
Lumping together all sorts of people now, huh? I for one have never sent anyone a death threat, and I doubt anyone else posting in this thread did. But I think it's time to let this go. You're clearly set on baiting for answers, Wizards will clearly print (and continue printing) UB, and apparently the "non-crossover crowd" isn't significant enough to not be thrown under the bus. Brands evolve and stuff, yadda yadda but if being nothing more than a game system is what Magic is evolving into I'm fine with not being invested in it anymore.
Even the stance of "They did X and I'm afraid they will do Y" is asinine. In a few years after we see how these pan out vs normal magic then if the thought is supported fear that Y will occur is reasonable. But its sheer madness to fear something that they said they aren't going to do when there is no evidence to support the thought that they will do it despite their statement.
Each Ikoria deck had 17 new cards.
---
#BLM
#DefundThePolice
No one is saying this.
375 unpowered cube - https://cubecobra.com/cube/list/601ac624832cdf1039947588
They did say "... and then subsequently when they only added 1-3 new cards to the commander pool..."
It's still somewhat incorrect, as the Kaldheim decks introduced 8 new cards per deck, but the four decks in between C2020 (Ikoria) and Kaldheim did only have 3 new cards a piece.
(W/U)(B/R)GForm of Progenitus, Shape of a Scrubland
BRGJund Tokens with Prossh, the Magic Dragon Foil
URGAnimar, the RUG CleanerFoil
RRRFeldon of the Third Path 2.0 Foil
BG(B/G)Not Another Meren DeckFoil
UR(U/R)Mizzix, Y Control and X Burn Spells
(W/U)(B/R)GHarold Ramos - The 35 Foot Long Twinkie (In +1/+1 counters)
UB(U/B)Dragonlord Silumgar
MTG was literally designed off of D&D campaigns and has heavy D&D influence especially in early sets, particularly Legends. Do you not think that perhaps MTG was meant to be a crossover-enabler for fantasy-esque settings?
'buster
HR Analyst. Gamer. Activist | Fearless, and forthright | Aggro-control is a mindset.
Elspeth and Jhoira rock my world.
You're referring to the $25 decks that aren't meant to replace the yearly slate of commander offerings? Much like the original decks released nigh on a decade ago (which started at $30 each), these are very obviously designed for new rather than entrenched players - and if you look at the deck lists, they are actually very competent, if not supremely valuable. I can already own every card in those decks and still recognize that they're worth every penny for the players they are designed for. Let's not lose perspective: there are still plenty of places to get unique cards for EDH (we just had an entire set just drop for that express purpose).
I know people whose entry point into Magic has actually been EDH, being one of the more popular formats at present. These decks are a blessing for me, as I get to reap the benefit of having more people to play with, and at minimal risk of turning them away due to the burden of up front investment.
---
#BLM
#DefundThePolice
No, and this is still a disingenuous take. The fumbling for a cohesive identity of a game in its infancy is not indicative of its identity as it coalesced over decades, which is why a lot of those early sets have direct references that feel out of place in hindsight (though how much that bothers a player is subjective). And this take also conflates influence and homage with expanding the game to include external IPs.
Universe Beyond represents a change for the game, if the TWD Secret Lair was dipping the toe in this is a belly flop. We can all have different responses to it, but let's not pretend this is an organic change in the game or that the game was always meant for it. People can embrace the UB concept without all that.
Archatmos
Excellion
Fracture: Israfiel (WBR), Wujal (URG), Valedon (GUB), Amduat (BGW), Paladris (RWU)
Collision (Set Two of the Fracture Block)
Quest for the Forsaken (Set Two of the Excellion Block)
Katingal: Plane of Chains
Your points don't make sense. First you're saying it's bad for the game to expand and evolve, particularly with IPs, yet say it's not right to assume the identity of a game from its infancy. Isn't that what you're doing? "The game shouldn't expand because that's not what it's about yet its original intent shouldn't be the basis for which the game develops and evolves."
Make up your mind man.
'buster
HR Analyst. Gamer. Activist | Fearless, and forthright | Aggro-control is a mindset.
Elspeth and Jhoira rock my world.
That's not how I read what he's saying.
---
#BLM
#DefundThePolice
(W/U)(B/R)GForm of Progenitus, Shape of a Scrubland
BRGJund Tokens with Prossh, the Magic Dragon Foil
URGAnimar, the RUG CleanerFoil
RRRFeldon of the Third Path 2.0 Foil
BG(B/G)Not Another Meren DeckFoil
UR(U/R)Mizzix, Y Control and X Burn Spells
(W/U)(B/R)GHarold Ramos - The 35 Foot Long Twinkie (In +1/+1 counters)
UB(U/B)Dragonlord Silumgar
Those are starter decks that replaced the planeswalker decks for non-core sets, which is why we only get 2 a set.
"You can tell how dumb someone is by how they use Mary Sue"
(W/U)(B/R)GForm of Progenitus, Shape of a Scrubland
BRGJund Tokens with Prossh, the Magic Dragon Foil
URGAnimar, the RUG CleanerFoil
RRRFeldon of the Third Path 2.0 Foil
BG(B/G)Not Another Meren DeckFoil
UR(U/R)Mizzix, Y Control and X Burn Spells
(W/U)(B/R)GHarold Ramos - The 35 Foot Long Twinkie (In +1/+1 counters)
UB(U/B)Dragonlord Silumgar
If it was a crossover enabler why haven't we had a single crossover set/product since legends? 'Inspired by' is very very different to direct-lifting a character without a name or design change.
Current EDH Decks:
Dakkon Blackblade 2WUUB
That's not at all what I said. What I said was that the game took a few sets to really find its footing/identity but that for decades after it had established its identity and set expectations for players. And that identity was independent from IP crossovers (though MtG obviously has pulled considerable inspiration from other IPs/mythologies/pop culture/etc over the years), until recently.
The reason I made that point was to disagree with the assertion that those early days of trial and error when it came to how the game interacts with other IPs/real world concepts can be used to justify Universe Beyond because I feel that is a weak argument. UB isn't less of a big shift for the game because Frankenstein's Monster was a card in 1995. Despite the growing pains of the early days, MtG developed an identity over decades distinctly independent of direct crossover, to the point where the obvious lifts from other IPs don't really feel like they fit in hindsight. That's the basis of my disagreement that early sets like Legends show that MtG was meant for IP crossover like UB, it's a weak and disingenuous line of reasoning. If that's not feeling clear for you, by all means let me know which aspects you need more clarity on.
I'm not against the game expanding, far from it, I just tend to dislike expansions that feel dissonant with the core of the game. And I don't feel IP crossovers fit with that core, certainly others may.
Archatmos
Excellion
Fracture: Israfiel (WBR), Wujal (URG), Valedon (GUB), Amduat (BGW), Paladris (RWU)
Collision (Set Two of the Fracture Block)
Quest for the Forsaken (Set Two of the Excellion Block)
Katingal: Plane of Chains