Elden Ring is hitting new heights of popularity thanks to Shadow of the Erdtree, and MTG players think it would make a perfect Universes Beyond set.
Magic: The Gathering’s Universes Beyond sets have gone through an extremely successful period, with hardly a wrong step. MTG’s crossover brand has grown significantly. From comparatively small-scale beginnings, adapting The Walking Dead into a handful of cards, Universes Beyond has ramped up its output significantly.
Now, multiple Commander decks and even full Universes Beyond sets are a key part of Magic’s overall strategy. Universes Beyond is taking on world-famous properties like Lord of the Rings, Fallout, the upcoming Final Fantasy set, and more.
July 5’s Universes Beyond: Assassin’s Creed set will be a true test for the line, dabbling in new styles of booster packs as well as a smaller set size than usual. Beyond Assassin’s Creed, however, MTG fans have locked in what they’d think the next perfect crossover for Universes Beyond would be: Elden Ring.
Elden Ring had a lot to live up to as a spiritual successor Dark Souls, Demon’s Souls, Sekiro, and the ever-popular Bloodborne. But the game very proved itself to be a true standout.
Much like MTG itself, FromSoft’s punishing action RPGs have emerged from their cocoon of obscurity, blossoming Malenia-style into intimidating, impactful, can’t-miss titles.
Both Magic and the Souls series have always had legions of dedicated fans, keyed into the games’ respective wavelengths and peculiarities. But both have recently enjoyed a much broader amount of mainstream success through creating new on-ramps of accessibility.
Elden Ring kept the Souls formula’s punishing difficulty while removing sources of frustration for new players like long, winding runbacks. MTG on the other hand managed to draw in a varied new audience through Universes Beyond, converting existing franchise fans into budding new TCG players.
It’s the perfect time for an Elden Ring Universes Beyond set to be announced. The game’s incredible reputation has barely wavered in the time since its launch. What’s more, the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC is bringing in new and returning fans in droves, turning all eyes back towards The Lands Between.
Shadow of the Erdtree could even work as a separate MTG Secret Lair release, in the vein of Fallout’s additional set, getting a similar standout DLC treatment.
As was the case with successful Universes Beyond sets like Fallout and Doctor Who, Elden Ring comes with a wealth of material that is practically ready-made to be converted into MTG cards. A game of Elden Ring’s prodigious size and depth comes with a huge variety of characters, locations, weapons, artifacts, and more to adapt.
FromSoftwareMTG players have been pitching other elements of Elden Ring that make it a perfect fit for Universes Beyond and Magic as a whole.
As pointed out by one Reddit user, an Elden Ring MTG set comes with “A solid color breakdown (Blue – Glintstone, White – Erdtree, Green – Crucible, Red – Magma/Fell God, Black – Destined Death/those who live in death) and a lot of multicolor built in through the lore where those areas meet.”
It’s always interesting to see how MTG’s designers choose to interpret Universes Beyond elements through MTG’s color identity. This user has made a strong pitch for the Elden Ring factions that would be a good match for each mana color.
Another user mentioned that “All the FromSoftware games would be a good fit for UB sets tbh.” A partnership between Wizards of the Coast and FromSoft could lead to a huge number of potential crossovers. Given that it already features a huge emphasis on both Gothic and Lovecraftian horror, the plane of Innistrad would be a perfect fit for a series of Bloodborne alters in the style of Ikoria’s Godzilla cards.
Elden Ring’s reputation as a masterpiece makes it unlikely to disappear from players’ memories any time soon. Even if Wizards of the Coast doesn’t already have a collaboration in mind, now would be the perfect time to get those wheels turning.
