Marvel Trading Card Game - Reception

Reception

Reception of Marvel Trading Card Game across all three platforms was mixed. The game was compared to other collectible card games such as Pokémon, Magic, and Munchkin. Reviewers were pleased with the game's representation of the VS System rules, but felt that it was less accessible to players who weren't familiar with the physical version. Several reviews referred to the gameplay as addictive; IGN's Hilary Goldstein said "I have to admit, I am somewhat addicted to the Marvel Trading Card Game. It's not a great game by any measure, but it does an excellent job of tapping into the collector's mentality of comic-book fans."

The game's difficulty, especially the complexity of the VS System ruleset, was described as a potential barrier for gamers. PALGN said "Even though there are a handful of in-game tutorials, they aren’t entirely utilised efficiently as they’re basically just a big slab of text making the game less friendly towards a wider audience." GamesRadar's Eric Bratcher said "If you aren't familiar with the source, get ready for a very steep learning curve." One X-Play reviewer commented that the game's tutorial "might go down in history as the worst in-game tutorial ever created," and another said that gamers who would be most interested in the video game would already be avid players of the physical version.

"Overall, while Marvel Trading Card Game for the Nintendo DS does a reasonable job of recreating the real life game, the experience is slightly hampered by a cramped layout."

On the handheld versions, many reviewers complained that Marvel Trading Card Game's layout made it difficult to play, as there wasn't enough room on the small screens for the playing field of a match. IGN referred to the presentation and visuals as "abysmal". GameSpot described the game's portrayal of plot twist chains as "an alien tax return". The text on individual cards on the PSP version was considered difficult to read, but the DS format of holding the console sideways to play was praised.

Reviewers praised the gameplay options available to players, although GameZone described the story mode as "bland" and IGN called it "too long for its own good". Multiplayer gameplay was well received. GameSpot called the multiplayer "surprisingly solid" and Pocket Gamer described the choice of online modes as "a raft of pleasing multiplayer options." IGN said of the PSP version "Though MTCG's single-player is fairly deep and enjoyable, the focus is on multiplayer...It's only through the infrastructure online mode that you can access the aspects of MTCG that make it worth the $30 purchase."