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Benjamin Macready

My name is Ben, and I am a Gold Standard NCTJ certified journalist. I specialise in pieces about gaming and the culture surrounding it. I believe that games, whether they are played digitally or on a tabletop, are unambiguously art. Games can tell branching stories that wouldn’t be possible in other mediums. I aim to document and critique them on their own terms.

Wargamer •

This Pikachu in a raincoat is now the second most expensive Pokémon card ever sold

Back in February, Wargamer covered the most expensive Pokémon card sale of all time, Logan Paul's PSA 10 Pikachu Illustrator, which sold for $16 million dollars (£12 million pounds). On September 28th, another Pikachu card earned a silver medal, selling for around half as much at $8.4 million dollars (£6.3 million pounds). This time, Pikachu was kitted out in a raincoat, and carrying an umbrella rather than a quill pen.
The card, unofficially known as "raincoat Pikachu", is a promo from a 2015 c...
Wargamer •

This new MTG Commander from Darkhold Destiny can become massive, despite having a 0/0 statline

Gargantos, the Endbringer from Magic: the Gathering's new Darkhold Destiny expansion has the potential to become truly gargantuan.Given that it was only revealed on Friday, we've only seen a small number of cards from the upcoming MTG Darkhold Destiny expansion. All the same, some of these new reveals seem pretty massive, quite literally in the case of Gargantos, the Endbringer, a card that can grow to incredible sizes, despite technically being a 0/0.
If you're unfamiliar with Gargantos, they a...
Wargamer •

MTG's four new Marvel - Darkhold Destiny Commander decks have been revealed

In 2027,  Magic: the Gathering and Marvel will be crossing over once again for Darkhold Destiny. This set will tell a new original story featuring the Asgardian Death Goddess Hela, the magical mutant Ilyana Rasputin, and, of course, the sinister Darkhold tome. Just like the previous Marvel crossover, it will also release alongside four Commander decks. Card lists haven't been revealed, so we can't delve fully into their eldritch secrets just yet, but we can still analyze what we know so far.
The...
Wargamer •

Futuristic Rare Mew and Mewtwo Pokémon cards are now worth less than their full art counterparts

Futuristic Rares are the headline new art treatment introduced in the Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebration set. Cards in this art style are depicted as though they're made of chrome, with the energy card symbols displayed in the background behind them. Only four Futuristic Rare Pokémon cards currently exist, and only two of them have been released: Mew and Mewtwo ex (the two Futuristic Rare Pikachus are debuting in the 30th Celebration Ultra-Premium Collection, which releases in November). Yet, for al...
Wargamer •

New Delta Reign artwork puts a smile on the face of one of the Pokémon TCG's saddest Pokémon

There are several unwritten laws of the Pokémon universe: Magikarp will always splash around impotently, full art Charizard cards will always be worth an obscene amount of cash, and Azurill will always be miserable. Quite why this is the case isn't exactly clear, but in almost every piece of official artwork, the Polka Dot Pokémon Azurill is depicted looking absolutely heartbroken. Well, that cycle of sadness ends in November, since the new Pokémon TCG expansion features two pieces of Azurill ar...
Wargamer •

The artwork on this new MTG card comes from a 15 year old unreleased set

The artwork for the new MTG card Darksteel Angel was first commissioned back in 2011, but it's only gone to print now. Let's talk about why.If you thought the artwork for Darksteel Angel from the new MTG Reality Fracture Commander deck seemed eerily familiar, but you couldn't quite put your finger on why, you're not alone. Darksteel Angel's art actually comes from a year 15 year old advert for an MTG set that was marketed but then deliberately never saw the light of day: Mirrodin Pure.
Let's jum...
Wargamer •

MTG head designer reveals scrapped plans to return dead characters in Reality Fracture

Five deceased MTG characters were planned to be included as the Deans of Hexhaven in Reality Fracture, according to the head designer.Mark Rosewater is Magic: the Gathering's Head Designer. His Drive To Work podcast contains more than 1300 episodes of him providing insider stories about MTG's design and development. One of the most recent episodes contains some insights about Reality Fracture, including cut plans to incorporate parallel universe versions of several dead characters.
The podcast e...
Wargamer •

The Pokémon TCG is releasing a new tool kit designed to encourage players to play competitively

Anyone who has seen just how quickly Pokémon TCG packs sell out can tell you that these cards are incredibly popular. Despite this, the game isn't played by every member of its community. A large fraction of the Pokémon TCG's audience exclusively slot their cards into binders to collect, rather than shuffling them together to form a deck. The Pokémon Company is attempting to address this, with a new release designed to streamline the experience of playing competitively - the Deck Crafter's Colle...
Wargamer •

The next Pokémon TCG expansion features the most hauntingly beautiful illustration of a sea urchin that I've ever seen

Tetsu Kayama has given us one of the eeriest, yet also most beautiful, pieces of Pokémon TCG art of their career with a new Pincurchin card.Every Pokémon out there is someone's favorite, and thanks to Pokémon TCG artist Tetsu Kayama, Pincurchin, the sea urchin Pokémon, is sure to gain a few more fans. When the Delta Reign expansion launches in November, the unusual echinoderm will appear on an illustration rare card that shows off the unnerving elegance of the deep sea.
Someone at the Pokémon Co...
Wargamer •

MTG's oddest Secret Lair deck launches tomorrow

Odds and Ends is a Magic: the Gathering Commander deck all about playing cards with odd mana values, and it is due to release tomorrow.Sometimes Magic: the Gathering Secret Lair drops contain a handful of cards, and sometimes Wizards of the Coast just decides to release an entire deck. Odds and Ends is a Commander deck that will be available to purchase from the Official MTG Secret Lair store from Monday, September 28th 9am Pacific Time to Tuesday, September 28th 9am Pacific Time.
Odds and Ends...
Wargamer •

Draw an obscene number of cards by worshiping a ghostly dragon with this new MTG combo

Prerelease weekend for Reality Fracture is upon us. Since Magic: the Gathering's newest set is almost officially out, cunning players have been scanning every card it contains to find all manner of busted combos. As usual, they've succeeded in digging up something truly bizarre. It turns out that you can draw heaps of cards by combining the brand new ghostly dragon Niv-Mizzet, Ghost Counsel with the obscure enchantment Words of Worship. The latter was only ever printed once, 24 years ago, in the...
Wargamer •

Pikachu literally goes to space alongside a new selection of Pokémon TCG accessories

The Pokémon Company teamed up with the European Space Agency to send a plushie into space and to release a new line of Pokémon accessories.In one small step for a mon, and one giant leap for Pokémon kind, the Pokémon Company International has teamed up with the European Space Agency (ESA). The week of the 4th to the 10th of October is Space Week, and this year Pokémon fans will be able to celebrate this cosmic occasion with a series of events, exhibits, and new Pokémon TCG Accessories. Let's tak...
SUPERJUMP •

Interviewing Writer Leon Richardson About Their TTRPG, Rangers of A Broken World

Becoming a SUPERJUMP member is free — save stories to your library and pick up reading on any device.

Leon Richardson is a Canadian designer of both tabletop and digital games. You can find their work online at Blind Snake Studio, which they describe as "a charming little RPG boutique just off the main road." Their current titles include Blazing Hymn, an Evangelion-inspired TTRPG about overcoming eldritch angels through the power of music; Commandment, a text-based puzzle game where players cha...
Wargamer •

The MTG Reality Fracture Commander precon reprints this $24 dollar demon

The MTG Reality Fracture Multiverse Reforged Commander deck has reprinted the $20+ demon Archfiend of Despair, allowing it to resume its reign of terror..Originally printed in Battlebond back in 2018, Archfiend of Despair is a massive damage doubling demon, popular among MTG players willing to pay big mana for a big threat in black. This hellish curve topper was reprinted once in Commander Masters in 2023, but Wizards of the Coast has dragged it back from hell and slotted it into Reality Fractur...
Wargamer •

This big buff bug is the least valuable reprint in the Pokémon TCG's Celebration Classic Collection

The Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebration Classic Collection contains a slew of valuable reprints, but which of them is the least exciting option?The Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebrations Classic Collection contains some incredibly iconic reprints. From Base Set Charizard to Aquapolis's Crystal Lugia. Yet, given that the collection contains 30 cards, not all of them can be winners. Every iconic group has to contain a weak link. For every Umbreon, there must be a Flareon.  In the case of the Classic Collectio...
Wargamer •

MTG players are incredibly underwhelmed by this new 5 color planeswalker typal commander

Designing 5 color MTG Commanders can be tricky. Their prohibitive casting cost makes them difficult to play, and it's tough to determine what an acceptable power level is for a five colour card. Because of this, Wizards of the Coast sometimes use a little trick where they design a legendary creature with only a few colors in its casting cost, but then they give it a five color activated ability. This means that the card is able to lead a five color Commander deck, but can be played very easily....
Wargamer •

Get ahold of some Bat Themed Pokémon TCG promos for Halloween

Since it's the middle of September, Halloween is on the horizon, and you've probably already seen plenty of pumpkin themed merch creeping into stores. The Pokémon TCG is getting into the spooky spirit, with the announcement of this year's batch of promotional 'Pokéween' cards. As anyone who's been lost in Mount Moon in Pokémon Red or Blue will tell you, there are few things scarier than a swarm of Zubats. So, in that spirit, throughout October 2026, players will be able to get their hands on pro...
Wargamer •

The Eldrazi make an explosive return in MTG's Reality Fracture expansion

It's not a real party until the Eldrazi show up. At least that's what Emrakul has always proclaimed in her million and one twisted voices that are at once as fleeting as a whisper and as furious as a scream. Magic: the Gathering players looking to harness some eldritch power are in luck, since the infamous otherworldly titan Emrakul has finally broken free of Innistrad's moon, where she was once imprisoned, to devour and consume once more.
Emrakul, the Exigent Doom, like each of the previous ite...
Wargamer •

This Jigglypuff reprint from the Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebration set shows how much the game has changed over time

Many of the reprints included in The Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebration Classic Collection are former meta champions. Long before Dragapult dominated the competetive scene, Sneasel from Neo Genesis was beating up the opposition, and EX Ruby and Sapphire's Delcatty was the premier option for digging through your deck. It's hard to believe it, looking at the card now, but Erika's Jigglypuff has absolutely earned its place in this highlight reel of former champions thanks to the curve topping power tha...
Wargamer •

Why is MTG's echoverse so edgy?

Is anyone else noticing a bit of a trend emerging in Magic: the Gathering's Reality Fracture card reveals? The alternative universe version of Gideon Jura is a selfish mercenary, unlike his prime timeline counterpart, who died a heroic martyr. Gallia of the Endless Dance has gone from being a frolicking party girl to a zombified mourner. Even Mabel the mouse, from Bloomburrow, is wielding the dark arts and embarking on a regicidal quest of vengeance. Why is everyone from the Echoverse so edgy, e...
Wargamer •

I'm Hyped for the Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebration set, I just wish it was bigger

The Pokémon TCG's 30th Celebration set releases next week, and it's going to be big! It's designed as a commemoration of three decades of Pikachu and pals, and as a tour of the most beloved icons in the series. Still, given that there are more than 1,000 Pokémon out there (1,025 to be exact), and 30th Celebration contains 128 unique card (32 of which are Pikachu), it's inevitable that a few fan favorites won't make the cut.
One of the main strengths of Pokémon is its character design. Every Poké...
Wargamer •

The Pauper format is set to get a Zeta makeover

In a change of course, MTG's Pauper Format Panel has made most of the downshifted cards from the Zeta Secret Lair playable in the format.The MTG Zeta Secret Lair dropped earlier this week. The release definitely did not go smoothly, with even Wizards of the Coast describing it as a "disaster". Yet, despite the fact that many players won't be able to get their hands on Zeta cards, the Secret Lair is still going to be incredibly impactful. Many Zeta cards were downshifted to the common rarity, mea...
Wargamer •

The Pokémon TCG is receiving a new slew of Mega Attack Rares

Mega Attack Rares have been part of the Pokémon TCG for just over a year now. This, somewhat divisive, art treatment is exclusive to mega evolved Pokémon. A Mega Hyper Rare card has the name of its most powerful attack written out in bold font in the background of its art. English Mega Hyper Rares feature Japanese text, while Japanese Mega Hyper Rares have English text scrawled behind them. We've not recieved any new Mega Hyper Rare cards since they debuted in Ascended Heroes earlier this year....
Wargamer •

The upcoming MTG set will contain an ogre crab wizard

MTG's head designer has just shown off a slew of previews for Reality Fracture, including information about an unusual new creature.Magic: the Gathering contains a lot of... distinct creature type combinations. There's a shark octopus ninja (Shark Shredder, Killer Clone), a bird assassin (Aven Heartstabber), and even a snake elf detective (Lonis, Genetics Expert). Well, when Reality Fracture comes out, we'll have a new unusual creature in town: an ogre crab wizard.
We've not yet seen the card th...
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