Reviews / previews
Salt Mine Creative's Magic: The Gathering Interactive Encyclopedia started off merely as a complete listing of every Magic card in existence. Its original purpose was to be strictly a resource for players, tournament referees, etc. But when multiplayer mode over the Internet was announced--with every card at your disposal--it caught my attention.
Installing MTE is simple, although it will take a long time to install card art from over 5,000 different cards. And once installed, you'll have no problems building new decks, importing your old decks, or using one of the 10 professional tournament decks included with MTE.
And if that wasn't enough, you'll have access to an incredible search engine that allows you to search for every goblin or elf every made. You can also sort every card by color, casting cost, or rarity A very nice feature indeed. And Wizards of the Coast promise that future expansions will be downloadable via the Internet.
Once you've built a deck, you can log on to the Web-based, MTE matchmaking service and find an opponent. It should be that simple--it's not. The multiplayer mode is a bit unstable: Connections are lost for odd reasons, connections are sometimes hard/impossible to come by, and sometimes the entire Web-site responsible for online play will crash for the weekend. Lowering MTE's Tech and Multiplayer score.
Yet, when multiplayer does work, it's a glorious thing.
The multiplayer software is user-driven; there is no single-player, there is no AI (a la Microprose's Magic: The Gathering). Gamers simple load their decks, shuffle, and then take turns using the MTE interface. You will have to know how to play Magic as MTE will neither help nor teach you how to play In short, the MTE is not targeted at novice players or beginners.
So whether you want a searchable listing of every Magic card every made, or the ability to pit your decks against other Magic players all over the world, MTE will make you a very happy camper this winter. And it makes the ultimate stocking stuffer for that person you know who spends a little too much time playing Magic.-- Nash Werner / GamePro
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