Unless I read it wrong, doesn't a card being on the list also mean that you can't make a functionally equal card [or even, one that is "too close" [to throw in arbitrary terminology] to the card on the list ?
IF so, isn't that, by definition, restricting the design?
If it's just close to a reserved card, it's fair game. So they could print snow duals or Tabernacle that says that the creature can't be regenerated (totally irrelevant most of the time as you'd just pay the upkeep).
Yes they would, but they would lose money in the long run. Once you have the cards you need in Legacy/Vintage you only need a few new cards per year tops to stay current. Once they have cashed in on reprinting the 200 or so cards that people need to break into those formats, they have essentially lost the people who switch to those formats as paying customers. It is much better for them to keep people playing standard where they have to keep buying significant amounts of current product year after year to keep playing.
On the other hand, if those people don't like standard, it's possible that instead of continuing to play it, they just quit Magic entirely if eternal formats are too expensive. Also, if they want people to play Standard, it doesn't make sense for them to create Modern and reprint Shock Duals.
It's hardly too powerful. Sure, it's a powerful effect, but it gives your opponent a significant window to either deal with it, or work around the effect. As it stands, it's only an EDH playable card at the moment. On another note, Wizards prints great cards for Legacy on a fairly regular basis, but suddenly people are saying that a completely unplayably slow card card in Legacy is "too powerful" even for standard?
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If it's just close to a reserved card, it's fair game. So they could print snow duals or Tabernacle that says that the creature can't be regenerated (totally irrelevant most of the time as you'd just pay the upkeep).
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On the other hand, if those people don't like standard, it's possible that instead of continuing to play it, they just quit Magic entirely if eternal formats are too expensive. Also, if they want people to play Standard, it doesn't make sense for them to create Modern and reprint Shock Duals.
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Maybe it's because its not a creature?