Long before digital card clients became standard, developer Microprose adapted Richard Garfield's 33-year-old trading card game into a single-player role-playing game for personal computers in 1997. Eponymously named Magic: The Gathering, the PC title tasked players with stepping into the role of a Planeswalker traveling to the plane of Shandalar to save it from five evil mage lords casting the 'Spell of Dominion' to summon the demon lord Arzakon.

Quick Facts

  • Release Year: 1997
  • Platform: Personal computers (PC)
  • Developer: Microprose
  • Key Expansions: Spells of the Ancients and Duel of the Planeswalkers

How Shandalar Adapted the Tabletop Rules

Microprose translated the paper game's resource systems and playstyles by mapping colors to the five evil mage lords: White, Black, Blue, Red, and Green. Players chose a starting color for their spellbook and traversed an overworld map, visited towns, completed quests for specific cards or enemies, and explored difficult dungeons to earn iconic 'Power-9' cards.

Defeating the mage lords led to a climax against Arzakon, who utilized all five colors of Magic and possessed the highest life total in the game. Real-world damage dealt to Arzakon during this final battle calculated the player's final score.

Expansions and Modern Connections

The original PC release received long-term support through expansions. Spells of the Ancients added an improved engine, UI, and cards from the Arabian Nights and Antiquities sets. This was followed by Duel of the Planeswalkers, which introduced cards from Legends and The Dark.

Over the years, the game has been kept alive by a dedicated fanbase through mods that introduce modern mechanics and card sets into the Microprose RPG framework. Additionally, the game served as one of the earliest acting roles for Rhea Seehorn, who played a tutorial mage in the retro FMV cutscenes. The single-player framework also influenced CD Projekt Red's Thronebreaker, a spin-off utilizing The Witcher's Gwent card game.

Arzakon is recognized in the upcoming Mystery Booster: Commander set with a playable five-color Planeswalker card. Players can use his abilities to deal three damage to any target, create a Black Lotus token, or force all players to shuffle their hands and graveyards into their decks.