It began with the forging of the Great Rings. Three were given to the Elves, immortal, wisest and fairest of all beings. Seven to the Dwarf lords, great miners and craftsmen of the mountain halls. And nine, nine rings were gifted to the race of men, who, above all else, desire power. But they were, all of them, deceived, for another Ring was made. In the land of Mordor, in the fires of Mount Doom, the Dark Lord Sauron forged in secret a master Ring, to control all others.
Wizards of the Coast recently started revealing their Tales of Middle Earth set for Magic the Gathering. The biggest reveal is that they are printing exactly one copy of a specific version of the One Ring card (there will be other versions too that have a more normal mythic rare distribution):
Thematically, it makes sense: It’s the One Ring. It’s also a rather brilliant (though divisive) marketing technique, as people who might not normally have paid $20-$30 for a collector’s booster pack might now buy a few (or a box) in the hopes of opening such a special card.
Collectible card games use rarity to drive interest and speculation, but this isn’t common at all in other tabletop games, especially not with the element of random chance as found in CCGs. Perhaps the closest comparison are super-deluxe limited-edition versions of games.
I looked back through the blog archive, and I found a few more examples in a post I wrote in 2014 that highlighted a few copies of Terra Mystica: Fire & Ice that randomly had beautiful hand-painted tokens in the box.
I discuss the pros and cons of such random rarity in that post, including a poll that asked readers if they liked the idea of “5 random products have something super special (“golden ticket items”) inside the box, and you have a chance at getting one of them if you’re a backer.” 80% or readers emphatically did not like the idea.
I wonder a little if this type of fun rarity in tabletop games doesn’t work for crowdfunding but can work otherwise in select situations. Personally, I love that Feuerland put forth the effort to have the buildings painted and placed in select copies of the expansion–I’m happy for the people who opened them, and I had no issue with my copy only having normal buildings inside.
This leads me to a little secret that only a few people know about. In mid-2021, I was excited to share with designer Elizabeth Hargrave that we had begun a print run of Wingspan that would include the 1 millionth copy of the game, a first for Stonemaier Games.
I asked Elizabeth if she would consider writing a short note to commemorate the 1 millionth game. She kindly agreed and sent it to me, and I arranged for it to be sent to China so it could be packed inside one of the games (as close as possible to the actual millionth copy on the assembly line). We decided not to say anything about it at the time, as we didn’t know if the existence of the special note would result in any unpredictable consumer behavior.
At this point, the game with the note inside has been in circulation (or in one of our fulfillment centers) for over 18 months, so I’m comfortable mentioning it here. It’s quite possible that someone has opened it, though I’ve never seen anyone indicate as such on social media.
What’s your perspective on the One Ring card or non-random games with a randomly selected copy for a special component or a signed note? Would you rather know about the possibility in advance, or is it more fun to learn about it when someone actually opens and shares it? What are some other examples of this in games or other product categories?
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28 Comments on “The One Ring and Extreme Rarity in Games”
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I don’t like the idea of a special component that contributes to the gameplay. If it’s announced beforehand, it makes it seem like a marketing gimmick. However, I think it would be really cool to secretly include something like a signed note. Perhaps maybe additional cards, just copies of other cards but with a variant design or artwork? If I received a game with something like that I would definitely more think positively about the company.
There are a lot of legal issues that may arise. It can easily be considered a lottery if advertised beforehand, especially since a purchase is required.
If a random bonus is included without prior advertising or knowledge by the consumer, then the legal issues are certainly lessened.
Personally, I’m in favor of anything that does not add or alter game play.
Just my opinion, but I strongly feel that any kind of extreme rarity (or unique) element to a game should by only a ‘component quality’ upgrade – like the painted tokens you mentioned. They should not be added/changed components; i.e. a ‘Founders Civ’ in one copy of Tapestry.
I don’t know anything about the One Ring card you mentioned (not my type of game), but if it was the same card, just unique artwork, and the flavor text in the Black Speech instead of English, I would be amused/appreciative. If it was a unique card with a unique (and probably super-awesome) ability, I would be vehemently against it.
I agree that CCGs have a fundamentally different model, but in the ‘standard’ CCG model, yes, there are ultra-rare cards, but most anyone who is a serious player will be buying enough copies to end up with one or more of them, and no one card should be significantly ‘better’ than the others. Very few players are buying multiple copies of Terra Mystica!!
I had a card from cards against humanity in my gloomhaven copy , i felt spécial 🤣🤣
I would enjoy seeing something like a special edition 1 in 500 Rolling Realms cards have a special foil or something fun like that. Or maybe a limited edition Wingspan bird with shiny feathers that’s ultra rare. It would definitely motivate me to want to buy it and try!
A coffee company I follow recently did a “golden ticket” style giveaway to win 1 of 5 unique mugs if you place an order on their site within 24 hrs. You don’t know if you won until you open your package. Thought it was a pretty cool marketing idea and they got me to it some coffee!
I despise advertised rarity promotions as speculators will only drive the price up for the players that actually want to play the game.
I have no problem for an unadvertised rare chase item. Since it being unadvertised that product won’t be gobbled up by speculators and the actual players of the game would have a slight chance of getting it before a retailer.
I think extreme rarity on any sort of game is a terrible idea. It should be available to everyone and things like this only serve to ignite fans in anger. All collectable items should be available for everyone to have and collect.
Little surprises don’t bug me, I think I would get some enjoyment in receiving something like that and it would not bug me if I did not. But I think the most fun is not even knowing it was possible — sort of like the one-millionth Wingspan note you brought up in this post. That will be fun for whomever receives it! I certainly hope that they bring it up when it happens.
I just see it as another way to drive fomo and since i despise fomo to begin with it’s just easier to keep away and spend money elsewhere.
A few people seem to have overlooked the fact that there will be multiple of the one ring card. It’s the special VERSION of it that will only have one copy in existence. So in the long run it won’t effect the game play or anything like that.
It baffles me that folks consider rarity or chase items in a game or hobby based on collecting being detrimental to that game or hobby. Of course the rarity is going to affect how people spend their money, that’s true of every set. If you can’t have access to the whole game or you acknowledge some packs are duds while others are gold, you’re all-in on the slot machine, sorry! Collectable means there is collecting involved.
The One Ring feels like a unique event–i think it’s great thematically, and i think people understand what’s going on there. I don’t think Rosewater, et al endorse rarity as part if game design to this extreme. If there is another one-of in future sets i will take it back though.
For what it’s worth collecting is what keeps me from playing MTG. I don’t enjoy pay to win. Nothing wrong with a little surprise in a box. I would be thrilled to find a keychain or something in my copy of Wingspan.
For random elements in non-random games for me it comes down to whether the random component influences gameplay and how much. Special components could enhance the experience and not getting them would be a bit annoying, but once a game comes out there’s usually comparable upgrades that give everyone the chance to improve the experience while still retaining the extra special feel of those random copies. I don’t think a crowdfunding campaign would be the right place to do this, though – it would just artificially increase FOMO and potentially push people to buy more than they need. Signed notes, on the other hand, are great! They’re a very personal extra that doesn’t influence the playing experience but still creates a magical moment when one finds it.
I used to collect Pokémon cards when I was a kid, but as I started to pay for my own hobbies and have less time to dedicate to them I moved away from CCGs in general. It felt too much like gambling, and I didn’t like having to waste time and money for just a chance to play better – not when I could save for a while and get a full game I could experience at my own pace. The One Ring is, from a marketing perspective, genius, and I’m genuinely happy for the person who’ll eventually find it. For me, the FOMO it creates and the way it pushes people to overspend is scummy and exploitative, and I wish companies would stop doing stuff like this to inflate sales.
I love the idea of small surprise and delight elements popping into a game. With Tabletop games, especially with small communities, it demonstrated an element of care.
I loathe the very manipulative idea of manufacturing rarity for the sole purpose of creating an expensive chase item to intice your customers to gamble more. Sports cards have been pushing into this model for 20 years with 1 of 1s and they are toxic to the industry.
There might be a Grey area in the middle, but The One Ring isn’t even close.
I dislike the idea of randomly collectible cards like MTG. As a kid, I used to collect car and football card albums. I never got to complete the cars album because I never found the Ferrari Testarossa card, which was one of the rarest.
I liked it, probably because I did not have to pay for packs myself. My parents bought a few of them every weekend and that was that.
But I respect it as a business proposition as long as the customers know what they are getting into.
This One Ring thing is simply an extreme case. I fully endorse capitalism, so if somebody is willing to get rid of a lot of money for a useless thing such as a playing card, they have my blessing.
I actually do prefer little surprises you can achive by your own actions instead of random chance but which are included in games without neccessarily knowing about it. For example, things like what’s not in any Too Many Bones game out there.
I’m very curious about what’s not in any (did you mean “many”) Too Many Bones games–can you clarify? Thanks!
Well, that’s kind of the point … there might be – or might not be – some sort of secret … puzzleish thing hidden in, at or around the Too Many Bones games. But if there were a secret, it wouldn’t be much of a secret if anybody would tell about it, wouldn’t it?
But if there were, it probably would have a lot of fans probably talking about it on some big …boardgameish database. Probably. If there were. :)
But I did found this information that might clear some things up if I’m allowed to share that here:
https://chiptheorygames.com/introducing-riffle-for-a-limited-time-only/
If my dad had gotten the 1 millionth copy, he might have said “Huh, that’s nice!” and recycled it.
Knowing a box could have something rare is reminiscent of Willy Wonka. But it’s also over done. If there is a short time period that might be more interesting. I guess I prefer knowing so I could look for it or tell my friends.
When I learned of the Lord of the Rings and Magic The Gathering partnership I was very excited. I considered myself six years sober of MTG, but would be willing to have a bit of a relapse in the case of Lord of the Rings. I am a huge LotR fan and seeing my favorite characters interact and work in a game system I and my friends know well is exciting!
Rarity and scarcity of cards in CCG/TCG games is no stranger to me and part of the fun. However, The One Ring changed my stance on this considerably. A single card in a chase package with an extraordinarily high price does not sit well with me. My concern is an intense flood of FOMO purchasing and encouragement of over spending being created by Wizard of the Coast.
Personally, my emotions are mixed. This is very exciting and I can’t wait to follow the history and story of the one card, if it should ever be found. (It’s no hidden secret that countless un-opened packages of MTG have ended up in landfills). On the other hand, this one card drives the very excitement of the Lord of the Rings set so much that my interest in buying packs of cards is near zero. Knowing the odds of getting rare and super rare cards usually gives hope and drives the desire to buy more. Knowing the odds of finding one specific print of a select card takes all the fun right out of it.
With this single card, the set could be either the most successful MTG set produced, or it could be it’s biggest flop. After (if) it is found will sales dip? What if it’s never found; will there be backlash? Even worse, what if it’s revealed that more than one exists? Mr. Wonka knew where each ticket was, will Mr. WotC know where the one card is going and what would the implication be?
To really put a nail in the coffin is the variety of different booster packages now offered for each new set of cards. Draft, Set, Jumpstart, Theme, and Collector Booster packs are have different degrees of card distribution, rarity, and price. Lord of the Rings I believe is offering up four of these five different types of Booster Packs. I miss the days of just starter decks and general booster packs. Simple, predictable, and consistent.
As it stands, I will not relapse back into MTG with release of an IP I hold dear and near primarily on this one chase card existing.
I hear you! My primary/only way of playing Magic now is that when a new set excites me, I buy enough packs for a round-robin draft, and I invite friends over to play for a few hours. That’s it. So as complex as Magic is now, I’m able to keep it simple with that system, and I’ve had a lot of fun with those 2 or so annual drafts.
If it has any gameplay relevance then I’m incredibly uncomfortable with any randomised availability it content – Which isn’t to say that I don’t find it tempting, but it’s the same temptation as there is to throw all my money into a slot machine or roulette or similar.
I’m happy to play with odds within a game, but when you make that part of obtaining it and you’re spending your actual money, it’s straight up gambling and comes with all the problems of regular gambling, so I feel it should be heavily restricted.
If it’s just a cosmetic thing…I still don’t like it but I’m much less bothered – A cosmetic difference doesn’t seem to scratch at that itch for me so I can merrily ignore such things and hope others can too (aside from the people who get lucky who of course I’d hope enjoy it).
(Apologies for this randomly being a replying to a thread, it was not intentional, not sure why it didn’t post at the root level but I was having some layout difficulty on my browser with the page when I posted, sorry about that).
I haven’t seriously played MtG since around 2000. Once in awhile we’ll buy some boosters and play a few games and genuinely enjoy it. The announcement of the LotR set has us interested, and the One Ring card had us all giddy like teenagers… for a few minutes.
Then, once I thought about it… all this represents us 1) A gimmick to sell more cards by WotC; 2) An opportunity for foul play (how does this card get randomly chosen placed, what protections are in place?); 3) A wealth transfer to the person who finds it and almost certainly sells it, from the person who loves the hobby and has the means to afford it.
Because of those reasons, I think it feels kind of gross — contrary to the unannounced note in the millionth copy of Wingspan, which seems wholesome, and could end up being a very meaningful keepsake for a gamer.
Reposting on FB because of my grammatical errors :D
I’d it was a mechanically unique card I could see this point. It’s just different art and a serial # though.
I think it’s a clever and fun idea especially considering the theme…but I think it’s easy (and maybe appropriate) to be cynical regarding this considering Wotc has been and continues to be under fire for over monetization of their properties
I think a lot of people are now going to open their previously unopened copy of Wingspan.