Card games

In “Dune: Part 2,” Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) rallies the Fremen people against the oppressive House Harkonnen, leading to an epic clash that unites characters from across the galaxy that author Frank Herbert first visited in his 1965 science-fiction novel “Dune.” Director Denis Villeneuve’s sequel, which comes out on Friday, March 1, is a complex portrait of a people at war that has already garnered widespread critical acclaim. Naturally, any game that’s officially tied to it must echo that sense of scale and…

LocalThunk Have you ever stopped to think about your average deck of playing cards and what a design feat it is? Those 52 cards have kept people entertained for centuries thanks to limitless creativity. You can use them to play anything from Go Fish to King’s Cup. No matter how many times you shuffle them, there’s seemingly no bottom to the amount of games that can be dealt out. The new video game Balatro isn’t just another example of an inventive card game, but a celebration of playing cards themselves. In this…

Image used with permission by copyright holder Pokémon is the game of collecting them all, but there are just too many. And with the popularity of pack openings, the Pokémon TCG has maintained immense popularity over the years, meaning more and more cards to collect all of the time. This deal, which gets you 36 packs at a discount rate, will help even out the odds into your favor. Right now, as part of Black Friday toy deals, you can get the 36-count Scarlet and Violet: Paradox Rift Booster Display Set for just $114,…

Today Wizards of the Coast launched one of the biggest external collaborations it has ever done with Magic: The Gathering—Tales of Middle-earth, an entire expansion dedicated to the world of Tolkien’s beloved fantasy works. If you’re a Lord of the Rings fan intrigued by all the gorgeous art, but a Magic neophyte, we have you covered.Gillian Jacobs Reacting to Her D&D Character Sheet From Community | io9 InterviewWhat Is Magic the Gathering: Tales of Middle-earth?Tales of Middle-earth is the first major release of its…

Announcement: The Gizmodo Monday Puzzle is going on a summer hiatus. Look out for us again in the fall! Follow me on Twitter to stay up to date about the series and for more puzzles, math, and other curiosities.Apple's Bigger-Screen 15-inch MacBook Air | Gizmodo ReviewThere is a famous problem in math called The Secretary Problem. You are hiring for a job at your company, and you will interview n people, one at a time. Through the interviews, you are able to rank each candidate in order relative to the other candidates…

Fantasy Flight Games and Lucasfilm Ltd. have just announced an all-new trading card game based on the Star Wars properties, called Star Wars: Unlimited. The game will launch globally in 2024 and, according to the press release, one of the main strategies for launch will be the availability of Organized Play at local game stores. This is a very strategic move, as establishing a community of players and collectors within the game stores themselves has almost always been the key to a TCG’s initial success.Cards will feature…

I used to do research in pretty esoteric math. When people politely asked about my work, I would deliver my prepared layman’s elevator pitch and then wait for the inevitable dreaded question: “How does that apply to the real world?” I would then try to appease them with the few stretch-use cases of my research, or some spiel about how basic mathematical inquiry is important because many modern technologies rely on abstruse math developed centuries ago by people who couldn’t have envisioned its applications. Anything to…

Magic: The Gathering leaks are nothing new. Whether by accident or on purpose, reviewers and gamers with early access to new sets of card packs have, pretty regularly, shown off card pulls before they were allowed to do so. Usually the consequences for leakers are simple and effective: Wizards of the Coast, which publishes Magic: The Gathering, typically refuses to allow those individuals early access in the future. It’s slightly more unusual for Wizards tohave allegedly sent Pinkerton agents to a man’s house in order to…

Image: Wizards of the CoastIt seems like Wizards of the Coast announced it would be releasing a Lord of the Rings-themed edition of its venerable Magic: The Gathering trading card gameback in the First Age, but in fact, it’s only been two years, and other than a peek at a little of the art, we’ve learned little about it. Now, we—well, we don’t know much, other than you’ll be available to blow an entire dragon hoard on the set.This second installment of Magic’s Universes Beyond series will be a massive release on par with…

Image: Josh Hass/Wizards of the CoastA new Magic: The Gathering set is on the way, and that of course means more cards to fling at your opponent’s deck—and io9 has a look at a particularly sneaky card coming to The Brothers’ War.01:25Randall Park's Favorite SuperheroesMonday 5:02PMThe Brothers’ War is—and you might want to sit down if you’ve not played Magic in a hot minute before reading this bit—the 94th expansion to the venerable card game, and based around the events of the titular conflict in Magic’s original plane,…