Picking the right trading card game for you can be a complicated decision. You have to weigh up not just which looks the coolest to you, but also how much it costs and who else in your local area plays. Fortunately, the genre is more diverse than ever, and there are lots of different routes you can go down.
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Whether you want to just crack packs and look at pretty cards, want something more anime-themed, or want to get in at the ground floor of a new game and discover it with everyone else, here are the best TCGs to check out in 2024.
- Original Release Date
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March 8, 2024
- Publisher
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Fantasy Flight Games, Asmodee
- Designer
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Daniel Schaefer
- Player Count
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2 Players
Star Wars: Unlimited is the new kid on the TCG block, bringing with it vehicles and space battles. That’s not even mentioning appearances from the likes of Luke Skywalker, Yoda, and Darth Vader, with future expansions free to explore just about any part of the canon.
- Clever ground-and-space gameplay
- Includes all your favourite Star Wars characters
- The card design itself is lacking.
Star Wars has had a number of trading card games over the years, but Star Wars: Unlimited is set to be the most promising to date. Despite only launching earlier in 2024, it’s already picked up a dedicated playerbase all brewing decks and duking it out in outer space.
Vehicles play a big role in Unlimited, letting you take the fight from the ground out into space with the likes of the Millenium Falcon and Death Star. Of course, you’ll also find characters from every era of the game, with the first set focusing on the original trilogy, while the second set, Shadows of the Galaxy, heads off to the Outer Rim to check in on the bounty hunters of the galaxy.
- Original Release Date
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September 1, 2023
- Publisher
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Ravensburger
- Designer
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Ryan Miller, Steve Warner
- Player Count
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2-6 (suggested)
After its huge launch in September 2023, Disney Lorcana’s gone from strength to strength with its clever blend of tactical card game design and colourful Disney art. Play as your favourite characters from across the Disney canon as you race to 20 lore, with four new expansions full of new cards planned every year.
- Fantastic Disney art
- Frequent new expansions
- Massive playerbase already
- Slightly simplistic
- A tough sell for non-Disney fans
It’s hard to imagine a trading card game genre without Disney Lorcana now, and it only launched in September 2023. This massive hit from Ravensburger has given the likes of Magic and Yu-Gi-Oh! a run for their money with cards based on all your favourite Disney characters.
Though the game itself is slightly more simplistic than its competitors (making it a great jumping-in point to the genre), its art, style, and clever decks you can build all help solidify it as one of the big names in TCGs despite launching over 20 years after some of its peers.
- Original Release Date
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October 11, 2019
- Designer
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James White
- Player Count
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2+
- Age Recommendation
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16+
- Length per Game
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< 50 minutes
Launched in 2019, this New Zealand TCG developed and published by newcomer Legend Story Studios offers a more mature take on the fantasy genre than the likes of MTG. Combine that with high-value chase cards and a bustling in-person play scene, and Flesh and Blood has become a real force to be reckoned with in the TCG space.
- A mature and gritty fantasy world.
- Complex and strategic gameplay.
- Support for both constructed and limited play.
- It can be tricky to find stores that sell it.
- The unique ban system might confuse new players.
- Some balance problems here and there.
Launching back in 2019, Flesh and Blood has quickly risen up as one of the biggest potential competitors to Magic: The Gathering’s throne as the fantasy TCG to beat, thanks to a heavy focus on collectability, deep and strategic gameplay, and plenty of in-person events and tournaments.
Taking a darker, more mature tone than most TCG, Flesh and Blood is violent, gory, and often grim – but still full of amazing world-building and that stunning art you’d expect from a TCG. Add to that a really fun, complex game, and Flesh and Blood has become the one to watch in just a few short years.
- First Film
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Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie
- First TV Show
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Yu-Gi-Oh
- First Episode Air Date
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April 18, 2000
- Latest Episode
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2004-04-29
Starting out as a manga completely unrelated to the duel monsters we know today, Yu-Gi-Oh! has become a hugely successful anime and TCG series.With multiple expansions a year and tons of special products, Yu-Gi-Oh!’s big appeal is its lavish manga art. Picking your favourite archetypes – from deserts and cute animals, to demons and robots – and mastering their strategies also gives you an endless amount to learn and master.
- Cheaper than other TCGs.
- Quick, highly tactical games.
- Top-tier anime art.
- Cards can be tricky to parse.
- Very combo-heavy, with lots of turn-one wins.
- Smaller cards will need special sleeves to protect them.
Yu-Gi-Oh! is a big player in TCGs, having spent over 25 years building on its wild and wonderful assortment of characters, aesthetics, and archetypes. No other game will let you make decks combining cute anime animals, tasty desserts, and Egyptian God Dragons, after all.
While Yu-Gi-Oh!’s design is feeling a little dated now, and the card frames desperately need a visual overhaul, it’s still by far the best TCG you can get into if you want brilliant anime art, a high skill ceiling to take on, and speedy, combo-heavy gameplay.
It’s also a lot cheaper than other TCGs, with booster packs, boxes, and even the decks themselves costing less than similar games, like Pokemon or Magic: The Gathering.
- Franchise
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Pokemon
- Original Release Date
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October 20, 1996
- Player Count
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2
- Age Recommendation
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6+
- Length per Game
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Variable
Based on Nintendo’s mega-hit, the Pokemon TCG has been going for over 25 years now, bringing with it thousdands of Pokemon, trainers, energy, and item cards.Perhaps the most appealing aspect of Pokemon is how collectible it is, with older cards being highly sought-after (such as the famous Shadowless Base Set Charizard), and every expansion adding new alt-art and secret rare cards to hunt down.
- Suitable for all ages.
- Gorgeous art.
- Lots of promos, rare cards, and alternate art to collect.
- The game is more random than other TCGs.
- Older cards could set you back hundreds of thousands of dollars.
- High demand can make it hard to find.
The cool thing about TCGs is that they’re collector’s items just as much as they are a game. Plenty of people are way more into finding and showing off their rare Pokemon Trading Card Game cards more than they are playing the game, and Pokemon is more than happy to oblige.
Alongside the regular cards, every Pokemon expansion is bursting with secret rares with glorious full-art, special holo foiling, and more to make cracking booster packs feel more exciting. If that isn’t enough to you, Pokemon regularly releases special products, such as 2021’s Celebrations or 2023’s Crown Zenith, which give you the chance to get exclusive promo cards not found anywhere else!
If you want to get into the big-time collecting, though, be prepared to drop some serious cash. The rarest cards only show up in auction once in a blue moon, and even then often go for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Whether you’re wanting to crack packs or go for the very best, though, Pokemon is an excellent way to get into the trading part of trading card games.
- Franchise
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Magic: The Gathering
- Original Release Date
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August 5, 1993
- Publisher
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Wizards of the Coast
- Player Count
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2+
- Age Recommendation
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13+
Created by Richard Garfield in 1993, Magic: The Gathering is widely considered the world’s first trading card game. With hundreds of sets, tens of thousands of cards, and dozens of different rulesets (known as ‘formats’) to play by, it is a tactically dense game full of discovery and creativity.
- Tens of thousands of cards.
- A near-infinite number of strategies.
- Stunning art.
- Can be intimidating to learn.
- Hard to keep up with constant releases.
- Can be expensive.
The granddaddy of all trading card games, Magic: The Gathering popularised the idea of trading cards, and has been going strong for over three decades since. Set in a bustling multiverse with worlds inspired by everything from Gothic Horror to Cyberpunk, each release takes you somewhere new and exciting with lavishly-illustrated cards.
More than just pretty pictures, though, Magic is a deep and complex strategy game, with a nigh-unlimited number of decks you can build. Best of all, Magic isn’t really one game: between formats like Standard, Pioneer, Modern, and the ever-popular Commander, you can change up how the game is played and always find new ways to breathe life into it.
MTG’s long history may make it intimidating for newcomers to start, but if you can crack it you’ll find one of the most rewarding TCGs around. Just don’t expect it to come cheap, as Magic releases new sets every few months, and keeping up with the new cards turns it into a full-blown hobby in its own right!
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does TCG Stand For?
TCG stands for Trading Card Game. That first bit, Trading, is what sets it apart from other card games like Poker, as the collectibility and trading cards with other people drives games.
TCGs are defined by their high skill ceiling and endless collectibility, meaning you can either learn to play, or simply get the cards to collect.
Are TCGs Gambling?
Legally speaking, TCGs aren’t considered gambling as they don’t pay out in real money. Most TCG publishers are very careful about the line between TCGs and gambling, with older ones like Magic: The Gathering once falling foul of it thanks to old mechanics like playing for “ante”.
These days, the question is more a moral one. Some see it similar to video games and their loot boxes, with you buying boosters without knowing exactly what you’ll be pulling from them. You have the chance of finding valuable cards in your booster packs, but does that make it gambling ifyou’re not winning through actually playing the game?
Who Created TCGs?
Magic: The Gathering creator Richard Garfield is often credited with inventing TCGs as we know them today. Of course, he had his own inspirations, ranging from Dungeons & Dragons to baseball cards.
Though card games had come before MTG, it was Magic that introduced the trading, collecting, and deckbuilding aspects that make it so popular today. You can draw a line from every modern TCG back to Magic, whether it be in mechanics or visuals.
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TheGamer’s calendar for every major trading card game release, including MTG, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Flesh And Blood, Disney Lorcana, and more.