Las Vegas, also known as Sin City, is popular for being the biggest place in America to host adult entertainment and gambling, but this year, it was also the host of the biggest trading card game and its convention Magic: The Gathering!
Eleanor Kleitsch/THUNDERWORD
A look at some content creators who attended MagicCon 2024 (left to right: Brian David Gilbert, Ify Nwaide, and Jarvis Johnson).
Created by game designer and mathematician Richard Garfield, Magic: The Gathering (or MTG for short) has become one of the most popular card games ever since its initial release in 1993 and has enjoyed immense popularity since then.
To celebrate 30 years of Magic, Wizards Of The Coast (the company that owns Magic: The Gathering) put together MagicCon 2023 in Chicago, a convention to celebrate the history of the game by having exclusive meet and greets, cards you can only obtain while at the convention, and having popular creators in the space attending as well.
Now, one year later, Wizards Of The Coast held yet another convention; MagicCon 2024 but in Vegas this time around.
MTG has fans of all demographics, people of all ages, genders, and nationalities gathering in Sin City to sit down and play card games with one another and celebrate their love of the game.
“I’ve been playing for almost 15 years now,” said Charlie Jamison, an attendee of MagicCon and longtime player. “My buddies back in highschool taught me how to play, and now I’m teaching my kids how to play as well.”
While you have friends and family attending, you also have popular YouTubers and content creators attending as well, doing meet and greets, signing events, and even hosting live shows on the convention center’s stage.
A few notable appearances are youtubers and entertainers in the Magic:The Gathering community like Ify Nwadiwe, host of the nerdiest game show on the internet “Um Actually”, The Professor from Tolarian Community College who’s regarded as the smartest man when it comes to all things MTG, and even artists for the game itself such as Kieran Yanner doing card signings or selling art.
Eleanor Kleitsch/THUNDERWORD
A look at the event exclusive Mystery Booster 2 box, which will only be sold during MagicCon 2024.
“Magic [The Gathering] has a welcoming community open to newcomers of all ages,” said Ify Nwadiwe. “It can be intimidating at first, learning a new game with so many rules, but once you grasp the basics, the rest is easy.”
MagicCon 2024 had art panels, cosplay events, showcases of upcoming events and card releases, and even offered opportunities to compete in events to win prizes and special promotional cards you can get only there in Vegas.
Some of the special cards are reprintings of old cards that haven’t been seen in over 10 years with new art, updated game mechanics, or even some new joke cards made specifically for MC24.
All in all, MagicCon was THE place to be this halloween if you’re someone remotely interested in the most popular Trading Card Game in the world.