Without a doubt, Magic the Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 faces a number of a major challenges right from the start in making a game that can 1) draw in new players unfamiliar with the series, 2) recapture old Magic the Gathering card players that have drifted from the game, and 3) satisfy the lofty expectations of its hardcore fan base. At the same time, Wizards is trying to bridge the gap between the card game and the video game communities. Impressively, they have done a good job with most of these goals by implementing solid tutorials, lots of decks to battle, and a good set of new puzzles.

The game starts out with a beautiful cinematic that creates a storyline that was missing from previous versions of the game. This opening movie promises a story that will unfold as you progress through the game, but unfortunately, this is one of the few places where the game fails to deliver. As you play through the campaign, you face more challenging matches and gameplay, but there is no more storyline to follow to give you a sense of progress towards some ultimate ending.