When In my first round of the new Transformers Trading Card Game (TCG) from developers Wizard’s of The Coast and Hasbro, I was admittedly underwhelmed. I felt the game was extremely derivative of other big name TCGs. I loved the art of the trading cardss and also the size of them. Yet, despite the the colorful large cards I still felt the game at it’s core was generic. And while my thoughts changed slightly in subsequent rounds, I came to realize that this games largest strength is that it is in fact familiar.
Magic The Gathering is somewhat an older brother to this new TCG from Wizards of The Coast. And it seems that the developers of the game want you to know that. The game uses lots of the same terminology, tactics and nuance. While this was at first bland and overly familiar, it soon turned into a lovely birthright for the game. The rules are easy to understand, because if you have played Magic (which is more complicated to say the least), then understanding, and picking up Transformers will be an absolute delight.
Artistically, I love the style of the game. The style isn’t that of the big blockbuster movies. No, the art style is a one-to-one of the classic animated series’ that fans know and love. Also, I absolutely love how the Transformers themselves are large cards juxtaposed to a standard trading card game that utilizes cards roughly half the size. These larger than life Transformers dominate the table, and look absolutely stunning with their bright colors and holographic images.
I wont go into much about “how to play” Transformers TCG (Tutorials will be shared at the end of the article). However, I will go into the key characteristic of the game that I absolutely loved. That characteristic being cards are playable in both Bot, and Alt-mode (vehicle, dinosaur, insect, building). This mechanic really sells the the Transformers name and shows why this TCG should be given a fair shot. Obviously, different situations call for more than meets the eye and there are reasons to have a bot in either position by flipping the card over. This will also affect stats of the card as well as the advantage a player would get from drawing certain upgrades from your upgrade deck.
Now I can’t fully call this article a “review”. Hasbro was kind enough to provide the product to us. This included them sending out A starter set and two booster packs. A starter set is all you need to get the game rolling, but the full game thrives on having a variety of different bots in your arsenal. Maybe you want a mix of Autobots and Decepticons. Maybe Insecticons, and Dinobots? Unfortunately in every booster pack only comes one new bot for your collection, with a handful of upgrade cards. Because of this, I didn’t get to see for myself the different play-style that all these different factions can provide. Something that will encourage me to go and buy my own booster packs and add them to my collection.
While Transformers TCG at times seems a little too familiar, that familiarity ultimately invited me and my friends to easily pick it up and like what we were being presented. The game relies on familiarity from other TCGs and It’s Transformers name. This ultimately does present both good and bad to the game. However, without a doubt, if you are a fan of Transformers and other TCGs you will undoubtedly have a great time playing this new game. It is worth picking up for yourself, and checking out.
A tutorial will be found here