Electronic Arts enters the card-based MMO arena with BattleForge

by Akela Talamasca Apr 30th 2008 at 9:00PM

Filed under: At a glance, Fantasy, Business models, Game mechanics, New titles, News items, Trading card games

With games like Magic Online and Freaky Creatures in the gaming consciousness, this variant on the concept of microtransactions is on the rise. Electronic Arts must think so too, because they've just announced their card-based MMO offering, called BattleForge.

BattleForge will be an entirely Web-based card-game, where you'll build your fantasy army by the purchase of online decks, or trading them with other players, or even winning them in tournaments. Gameplay itself will feature the use of four elements and a mystical forge to do battle. Being developed by EA Phenomic, Germany-based creators of the SpellForce series, this upcoming MMO is expected to launch in the Fall of this year.

[Source]

Tags: battleforge, card-based, electronic-arts, freaky-creatures, magic-online, phenomic, spellforce, tcg, trading-card-game

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

breezer said on 2:27AM 5-01-2008

Why cards? Why do continue to be incorporated into games?

Remember Metal Gear Acid for PSP? It was a decent game if you're into Tactical/Stealth Shooter/Action Turnbased Strategy Card games.
But the whole time I'm playing I'm wondering... What do cards have to do with anything?!

Why is this based on cards? Why not Pogs? Why not flags, or coasters? I want to control my actions through a set of collectible spoons. Why are there no turn based commemorative plate battle games?

I mean, cards in games just act as some kind of menu. But someone arbitrarily decides they're "cards" which never makes any more sense than if they are say... precious moments figurines.

Then again people don't traditionally trade or wager with their precious moments figurines (pfft their loss), so I guess it makes sense in that respect (I guess) but it's still random and arbitrary enough that I refuse to tolerate it silently.