MTG Won't Tone Down Pop Culture References Any Time Soon, Says Head Designer

Summary

• Magic: The Gathering's recent sets have all been based on literary tropes, and fans are tired.
• Wizards of the Coast works a couple of years ahead so they can't change course.
• Head designer Mark Rosewater is aware of the criticism and has responded.

It's no secret that Magic: The Gathering (MTG) has been relying heavily on pop culture in recent sets. So far, in 2024, all of MTG's sets have been based on literary tropes. Murders at Karlov Manor (murder mystery), Outlaws of Thunder Junction (western), Bloomburrow (woodland fantasy) and Duskmourn: House of Horror (haunted house).

There are no signs of this approach slowing down, either, as the upcoming set is based on a death race á la Mad Max and next year is going to feature a space opera set, a genre popularised by Star Wars and Star Trek. Although this trend has allowed Wizards of the Coast's game design team to explore genre fiction in neat ways, some players are beginning to get tired of sets based on popular culture, especially when Magic: The Gathering has its own expansive lore that has been neglected in favour of references.

Wizards of the Coast Won't Change 2025 Plans

This feedback has reached the attention of Mark Rosewater, Magic: The Gathering's head designer. Rosewater released a post on his blog responding to this criticism, and outlining some of the team's plans going forward.

"It's been noted several times now, in several areas, that one of the most noteworthy issues in recent sets has been allusions and references being both too abundant and too on the nose," a user posits to Rosewater. "Which upcoming premier set was the first to see changes based on this feedback? Did sets like Tennis or Ultimate [project names for the two upcoming sets] see some late art/flavour text changes to address this, or were both sets too far in for a change?"

Rosewater posted his answer beneath the question, saying "A lot of that had to do with volume. In 2024, we had four sets with new worlds and/or new themes with the world as a backdrop. First time visits of a resonant theme tend to use more allusions. Look back at Innistrad or Theros and you'll see the volume is the same. The other factor is people treat allusions to newer sources a bit differently than older ones."

Rosewater is essentially saying references to pop culture inspiration tend to be less subtle when you're introducing a new world, because you're trying to give the audience a cultural touchstone to work from. He then adds that people tend to be more bothered by references to newer material.

"All of this is being taken into account as we work on new sets. Just be aware that we work two to three years ahead, so it will take a little time to see the impact. I'm not sure much in 2025 was influenced by the audience's reaction to the 2024 sets," he concludes.

Despite some of the discontent in the community, the design team won't be able to change course until at least the 2026 sets. Wizards of the Coast hasn't officially announced the details of its upcoming sets, but the unnamed 'Death Race' set will be released on February 7, 2025.

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