Magic: The Gathering Video Games - Independent and Freeware Adaptations

Independent and Freeware Adaptations

Various independent programmers have made software associated with Magic: The Gathering, albeit not always with the approval of Wizards of the Coast. One of the more notable early attempts was Apprentice, which was designed to emulate real-world play over the Internet. It allowed players to connect to each other and play, but all the rules-enforcement was done "by hand," just as in the real world. DragonStar studios got Wizards of the Coast's permission for the product, and it had no copyrighted art in it. Magic Workstation is similar to Apprentice in that is gameplay only, but adds more graphical support. It is not officially sanctioned by Wizards of the Coast, and mentioning it on their official forums is a violation of the Terms of Use. Another piece of software in a legal grey area is MtG Editor, a tool which creates images of self-designed Magic: The Gathering cards. Its creator, Mr. Weikopf, was sent a cease and desist letter concerning distribution of the software.

Magic Set Editor, a custom card creation program created by Twan Van Laarhoven, is still undergoing development, and released a new version (0.3.8) on January 15, 2009. The program has grown to include various additional features, including statistical data on the set being created, random booster pack generators, translations for ten languages, and support for 28 games. MSE also supports exporting created Magic sets to both Apprentice and LackeyCCG.

Firemox (previously known as Magic-Project) is an open source Java program that matches players over the Internet and also enforces the rules. The card game rules are coded in a custom XML language. Moreover, the rules engine is independent from Magic: The Gathering, so further implementations of other card games are possible. Currently Firemox has around 6,000 Magic: The Gathering cards available.

Forge (previously known as MTG Forge) is an open source Java program with rules enforcement; it also attempts the more difficult problem of artificial intelligence for a computer player. Currently it has over 10,000 cards (as of February 3, 2012).

Lackey CCG is an engine that attempts to simulate many card games. It has a plugin which contains over 13000 Magic cards, some of which are different editions of the same card. Like older attempts, the rules of play are enforced "by hand". It offers simple networking, and has a constant server to host all games, but matching people with identical plugins is more difficult.

OCTGN is a collectible card game simulator which is designed to play Magic: The Gathering and other games. The software is modeled after the Magic: The Gathering Encyclopedia, and uses the same format for card data. Currently, OCTGN version 3 can be setup to support online play, including sealed, games and users can import over 13,000 Magic: The Gathering cards to build a deck using the deck editor component.

Daring Apprentice is a 3d Apprentice-like Magic: The Gathering tabletop. It focuses on an intuitive user interface, but does not support internet play yet.

Wagic, The Homebrew is a game with rules enforcement, that includes an artificial intelligence and focuses on solitaire game versus the computer. Although a Windows, Linux, and Maemo version are available, it is primarily designed for the Sony PSP.

MagMa (Magic Machine) is a project with rules enforcement. It includes AI and almost 6000 cards (December 2010).

Cockatrice is an open-source multiplatform software for playing card games, such as Magic: The Gathering, over a network. It is fully client-server based to prevent any kind of cheating, though it supports single-player games without a network interface as well. Both client and server are written in Qt 4.

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