“Cast spells and summon fantasy monsters in the original collectible card game.”

Link: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/463/magic-the-gathering
Playing Time: 20 mins
Weight: Midweight
Genre: Collectible Card Game
Designer: Richard Garfield
Players: 2+

Image from boardgamegeek. Look at those ancient white-bordered cards.

Easily the most-played game on my list, Magic the Gathering just celebrated its 30th anniversary last year and shows no signs of slowing down. “Friday Night Magic” continues to be the lifeblood of brick and mortal comic book stores, Magic: Arena is a delightfully slick way to play, and “Commander” has in the last decade gone from fringe fan favorite game format to the favorite way to play large multiplayer games.

Magic does have a perception of being a ‘money’ game (i.e. the player with the most expensive deck wins) but this is really only a problem with certain formats. Drafts are the lifeblood of Friday Night Magic (being an ideal way to learn the game and build your collection) and formats like pauper (no rare cards allowed) have emerged to provide cheaper options. And if you’re just playing casually, buy a couple of duel decks and face them off against each other.