E3 2013: New details surface on Magic 2014 - Duels of the Planeswalkers

With summer almost here, our thoughts will soon turn to usual distractions of the season: trips to the beach, sunny afternoon picnics, and the latest annual tablet release of the popular Magic the Gathering collectible card game.

This year, however, Magic is spending some extra mana to come to Android tablets on both Google Play and the Amazon Appstore for the first time.

It'll still be available for iPads as we, naturally.

Storied History

From the outset, Magic 2014 - Duels of the Planeswalkers is a completely different sort Magic experience. There's a heavy emphasis on the story in the single-player campaign and there's also the option to build decks from scratch.

Also, Slivers are back - but we already knew that.

The plot of Magic 2014 follows the Planeswalker Chandra Nalaar in her quest for vengeance against the nefarious Ramaz.

Chandra Nalaar's story is told through videos and cutscenes, but Magic 2014 will frame its story through thematic elements as well.

For example, you begin your adventures on the dark, gothic plane of Innistrad and will fight battles with decks that feature monsters and spells that you'd expect to find in a fantasy horror setting.

And speaking of decks, are eager to create your own from the ground up? If so, Magic 2014 has you covered.

In the "Sealed Play" mode, players will be able to build a custom deck from scratch by opening virtual booster packs.

Players will have complete control over their Sealed Play deck building, but they can also choose an "Autocomplete" feature which will build an optimal deck around their favourite cards.

This sealed deck can only be used in the Sealed Play campaign or online PvP, however. For the main storyline, players will need to use one of the 10 pre-built decks new to Magic 2014 - although, these decks may be modified in the normal manner.

Add to these new features a few new system enhancements like a visual, dynamic life gauge and an "Attack with All" button that allows players to select all creatures and have them attack en masse and it's difficult not to get excited about Magic 2014.