A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) among other names, is a type of

card game A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ...

that mixes

strategic Strategy (from Greek στρατηγία ''stratēgia'', "art of troop leader; office of general, command, generalship") is a general plan to achieve one or more long-term or overall goals under conditions of uncertainty. In the sense of the "art ...

deck building elements with features of

trading card A trading card (or collectible card) is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing (fictional or real) and a short description of the picture, along with other ...

s, introduced with ''

Magic: The Gathering ''Magic: The Gathering'' (colloquially known as ''Magic'' or ''MTG'') is a Tabletop game, tabletop and Digital collectible card game, digital Collectible card game, collectable card game created by Richard Garfield. Released in 1993 by Wizards ...

'' in 1993. Generally a

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who is ...

may begin playing a CCG with a pre-made starter deck, and then customize their deck with a random assortment of cards acquired through

booster pack In collectible card games, digital collectible card games and collectible miniature wargames, a booster pack is a sealed package of cards or figurines, designed to add to a player's collection. A box of multiple booster packs is referred to as a b ...

s, or from trading with other players, building up their own library of cards. As a player obtains more cards, they may create new decks from scratch from their library. Players are challenged to construct a deck within limits set by the CCG's rules that will allow them to outlast decks constructed by other players. Games are commonly played between two players, though

multiplayer A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...

formats are also common.

Gameplay Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and pla ...

in CCG is typically turn-based, with each player starting with a shuffled deck and on their turn, drawing and playing cards to attack the other player and reduce their

health points Health is an attribute in a video game or tabletop game that determines the maximum amount of damage or loss of stamina that a character or object can take before dying or losing consciousness. In role-playing games, this typically takes the for ...

to zero before their opponent can do the same to them.

Dice Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing g ...

, counters,

card sleeve Plastic card sleeves are used to protect trading cards, game cards, and collectible card game cards from wear and tear. The sleeves are a sheath of plastic into which a card is inserted. Varieties A wide variety of protective devices have been ...

s, or play mats are used to complement gameplay. CCG

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

s exist for expert players to compete for prizes. CCGs are typically themed around fantasy or science fiction genres, and have also included horror themes,

cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently animated, in an unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved over time, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or series of images ...

s, and

sport Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...

s, and may include licensed

intellectual properties Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

. Cards in CCGs are specially designed sets of

playing card A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a fi ...

s. Each card within the CCG represent an element of that theme geared towards the gameplay of the CCG, and can fall in categories such as creatures, enhancements, events, resources, and locations. All cards within the CCG typically share the same common backside art, while the front has a combination of

proprietary {{Short pages monitor Meanwhile, strong sales continued with the three top CCGs of ''Pokémon'', ''Yu-Gi-Oh!'', and ''Magic: the Gathering''. The Warhammer series ''Dark Millennium'' ended its run in 2007. ''Magic: the Gathering'' saw a large player boom in 2009, with the release of the ''

Zendikar The Zendikar block is a '' Magic: The Gathering'' block consisting of the sets ''Zendikar'' (October 2, 2009), ''Worldwake'' (February 5, 2010), ''Rise of the Eldrazi'' (April 23, 2010). The eponymous setting is a vast, untamed wilderness, whose ...

'' expansion. The spike in the number of ''Magic'' players continued for a few years and leveled off by 2015. Interest also developed with their multiplayer format called

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

. This increase in the player base created a ''Magic'' subculture based on finance speculation. New players entering the market from 2009 to 2015 desired cards that were printed before 2009 and with smaller print runs. Demand outstripped quantity and prices of certain cards increased and speculators started to directly manipulate the ''Magic'' card market to their advantage. This eventually attracted the interest of the controversial figure

Martin Shkreli Martin Shkreli (; born March 17, 1983) is an American former hedge fund manager. Shkreli is the co-founder of the hedge funds Elea Capital, MSMB Capital Management, and MSMB Healthcare; the co-founder and former chief executive officer (CEO) of ...

, former CEO of

Turing Pharmaceuticals Vyera Pharmaceuticals (formerly Turing Pharmaceuticals) is a pharmaceutical company incorporated in Zug, Switzerland, with offices in New York City. The company started to do business in the US as Vyera Pharmaceuticals in September 2017. The com ...

, for a brief period of time. Prices of cards from previous sets increased dramatically and the American market saw an influx of Chinese

counterfeit To counterfeit means to imitate something authentic, with the intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original, for use in illegal transactions, or otherwise to deceive individuals into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value tha ...

s capitalizing on the demand. This created a unique situation where the most desirable and expensive cards could be printed by counterfeiters, but not by the brand owner, due to a promise made with collectors in 1996 and refined in 2011. In 2015, Wizards of the Coast implemented more anti-counterfeit measures by introducing a holographic foil onto cards with specific rarities, in addition to creating a proprietary font. Between the time period of 2008 to 2016, Magic: the Gathering sold over 20 billion cards. A rise in tie-in collectible card games continued with the introduction of the '' My Little Pony Collectible Card Game''. It was licensed to Enterplay LLC by Hasbro and published on 13 December 2013. The collectible cards, according to president Dean Irwin, proved to be moderately successful, so Enterplay reprinted the premiere release set mid-February 2014. Other tie-in games released included the '' Final Fantasy Trading Card Game'' and '' Star Wars: Destiny''; which had collectible cards and

dice Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing g ...

which after a 3-year run ended production in early 2020. '' Force of Will'' was released in 2012 in Japan and in 2013 in English, but as an original intellectual property. One of the longest running CCGs, ''Legend of the Five Rings'', released its final set ''Evil Portents'' for free in 2015. After a 20-year run, the brand was sold to Fantasy Flight Games and released as an LCG. In March 2018, it was announced that PlayFusion and

Games Workshop Games Workshop Group (often abbreviated as GW) is a British manufacturer of miniature wargames, based in Nottingham, England. Its best-known products are ''Warhammer Age of Sigmar'' and ''Warhammer 40,000''. Founded in 1975 by John Peake (gam ...

would team up to create a new

Warhammer Warhammer may refer to: * War hammer, a medieval weapon Warhammer media franchise *''Warhammer'', a series of games and related media: ** ''Warhammer'' (game), a table-top fantasy miniature wargame, and origin of the franchise ** ''Warhammer Fan ...

trading card game.

Reception

In 1996 Luke Peterschmidt, designer of

Guardians Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Uni ...

, remarked that unlike board game and RPG players, CCG players seem to assume they can only play one CCG at a time. Often, the less popular CCGs will have localized sales success; in some cities a CCG will be a hit, but in many others it will be a flop.

Concerns about gambling

Like lootbox in

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

, there are concerns about the random and sealed booster packs. A survey among users of Reddit's online message boards found little evidence of the need to regulate collectible card games. This concern for gambling plays a big part of the brand messaging for Living Card Games with fixed non-randomized distribution of cards.

Reception

Concerns about gambling

See also

Bibliography

Footnotes

References

Further reading