Final Fantasy Magic: The Gathering set features new artwork by Amano and Nomura and all 15 Cids

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In approximately a month, we’ll unveil Magic: The Gathering’s new set inspired by Final Fantasy, and the excitement is reminiscent of waiting for my party to make it through Safer-Sephiroth’s Super Nova attack. Despite not yet being released, Final Fantasy has already become the highest-selling set in the 32-year history of this card game. RPGSite got a sneak peek at some fresh cards and spoke with some creators behind the set. From what we’ve seen so far, this release promises to be one of the most significant of the year across various gaming, video, and tabletop platforms.




































This Final Fantasy collection, clearly designed by enthusiasts for fellow fans, showcases an intricate attention to detail, meticulously including elements from all 16 main games with a sense of respect and devotion. The Wizards team collaborated intimately with Square Enix to authentically adapt mechanics, characters, and environments into this fresh magical universe. Unlike the Classes in the Dungeons & Dragons set from previous years, the Job Systems have transformed, exhibiting unique behavior patterns. Instead of being classes, Jobs manifest as special equipment artifacts that trigger a 1/1 hero token upon play, with the artifact automatically equipping to the token. These Job artifacts not only grant new abilities to the creature they’re attached to but also assign additional creature types – for example, the White Mage’s Staff card can transform a creature into a Cleric or Wizard equivalent for the Black Mage’s counterpart. While I found the enchantment-based approach with Classes engaging, I prefer these artifacts because they offer a more adaptable gameplay experience, as jobs can be transferred among creatures. Additionally, these Job artifacts persist even if the creature they’re assigned to is destroyed, allowing them to continue their role.


The same level of attention was applied to both tailoring roles and unveiling earlier Summon cards, as well as crafting new cards that authentically embody their character personas. For instance, ‘Aerith Gainsborough’ gains power as your life increases, but upon her demise, she distributes her +1/+1 counters among her allies. On the other hand, ‘Gilgamesh, Master-at-Arms’ allows you to draw numerous cards and freely place any equipment cards onto the battlefield. Interestingly, while Gilgamesh doesn’t summon ‘Battle on the Big Bridge’, his portrayal of rummaging through his bag for his preferred sword truly reflects his character, bringing a smile to my face when he was unveiled.

In these games, the locations you explore are just as unforgettable as their cast of characters, and this adaptation offers a sneak peek into what these iconic spots have in store. Representing Final Fantasy X’s “Zanarkand, Ancient Metropolis,” this gameplay style presents a unique terrain that can be interacted with in two ways: tapping on green areas for one method or engaging in Sorcery-Adventure for the other. The city is beautifully rendered in art, showcasing both its former grandeur and current state of ruin. Notably, Zanarkand includes the ‘Town’ type for terrain, a feature that is bound to pique curiosity.

It’s thrilling whenever we encounter a revamped version of a familiar card type. With each of the five primary colors receiving their own Adventure land counterpart, I’m eager to discover which locations will be showcased next. As soon as they introduce a Big Bridge land with an ongoing battle scene, I’ll be more than satisfied!

Magic cards are renowned for their artistic flair, and since Final Fantasy is equally famous for its stunning visuals, it’s fitting that esteemed artists like Yoshitaka Amano and Tetsuya Nomura would be involved in some capacity. Wizards of the Coast invited nine guest artists to contribute artwork, allowing them the liberty to depict any character they preferred, regardless of whether it was from a game they had previously worked on or not.

As a gaming enthusiast, I’ve got to say that the recent updates have brought forth some truly breathtaking art – and let me tell you, nothing compares to the fresh pieces from Nomura for Final Fantasy VII or Amano’s work on Final Fantasy IV. But among all these masterpieces, it’s Amano’s latest depiction of Terra that takes the cake. The ‘Terra, Magical Adapt’ double-sided card showcases her dual nature, human and Esper, embodying her strength and resolve, and to top it off, she comes with some seriously potent card abilities!

For Nomura, we were presented with a two-sided poster showcasing Sephiroth, designed in such a way that it could easily be a wall scroll. At the bottom, it displayed the younger SOLDIER from Ever Crisis, gradually evolving into the familiar form we recognize, and then on the reverse side depicted his final ‘Safer-Sephiroth’ form as ‘Sephiroth, One-Winged Angel’.

The collection of Final Fantasy games emphasizes the main series, consisting of 16 titles, regrettably excluding spin-offs such as Final Fantasy Tactics or sequels like Final Fantasy X-2 and Dirge of Cerberus. However, these absences have given the team an opportunity to concentrate on enhancing this latest Universes Beyond release, making it bigger than typical, and delivering a top-notch product filled with globally adored scenes and characters from the franchise. The representation across games may differ slightly, but it seems that Final Fantasy VII, owing to its significant influence on the series and the popular Remake trilogy, will be prominently showcased. Nonetheless, you can anticipate other games’ casts also being part of the presentation.

As a gamer, I’ve recently been blown away by the sneak peeks of characters from my favorite games! We got to see various iterations of Tifa, Kain, Squall, Rinoa, Angelo (from Final Fantasy IV), Zidane (including one badass version as Ragavan for competitive players), Vivi, and even multiple versions of Firion (the character from the somewhat controversial second entry). Plus, I’ve got great news for fans like me who were worried about Cid representation – all 15 Cids are here! Now, these aren’t different characters, but they’re beautifully crafted alternate art versions. Knowing that Wizards took the time to include all 15 shows their dedication and love for the series.

Despite the overall impression that this collection seems like a heartfelt tribute made by fans for fans, there is one particular element that bothers me and slightly detracts from its charm. Interestingly, this imperfection stems from the Golden Chocobo card. Among the new cards you can discover, the iconic Chocobo appears in multiple color variations such as green, blue, black, and classic yellow. However, if you’re aiming to complete the set, your chances are slim. A mere 77 copies of the golden version of the series’ emblematic bird will be produced, on a card made predominantly of gold foil, which can potentially only be found in the expensive Collector Booster packs.

In Magic: The Gathering, the idea of a numbered, unique card isn’t novel, with the renowned example being the 1-of-1 The One Ring from the Lord of the Rings set several years back. However, players could still obtain and play the unnumbered versions of the card. Here, while each chocobo shares the same color, they are not just color variations; they are unique entities. Unfortunately, only 77 sets of these enchanting fantasy birds will be available worldwide. To cater to those who’ve battled to breed their gold chocobo in the past, it would be a shame if only a select few could complete the set. So, consider releasing an unnumbered version with golden foil feathers on the chocobo instead.

Despite a few flaws, my enthusiasm for this collection is growing with each fresh detail and unveiled card. Over the coming four weeks, players can anticipate previews and further disclosures, moving closer to the pre-release events starting on June 6, culminating in the official launch on June 13.

In essence, I find myself aligning with those opinions that suggest Universes Beyond has perhaps stepped over the line a bit, releasing too many products and crossing over too frequently. However, when it comes to Final Fantasy, things seem distinctly different. I’ve noticed an unusual surge of interest in this set from players who haven’t previously engaged with Magic, making them fresh newcomers. This is certainly a positive development. Already, I find myself pondering ways to introduce my favorite characters into my existing decks and create innovative strategies to catch my playgroup off guard. All in all, it appears that the combination of Final Fantasy and Magic is proving to be quite promising.

Magic: The Gathering’s “Universes Beyond—Final Fantasy” expansion set is scheduled for release on June 13. This release will be available in both physical and digital formats on the Magic Arena platform.













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2025-05-10 21:51