Survey: What about Block?

by Cristoffer Wiker, First Edition Brand Manager

9th May 2015

Update: The issue that caused the questionnaire to crash should now be fixed as well as some explanations to help you answer the questions. All data from previously completed surveys intact and there is no need to redo it if you don't want to change anything. We are really sorry for the problems this might have caused.

As promised back in this old article and probably in other places as well, we are now "checking in" to see what you think about how the last six expansions where arranged and bundled, and what your thoughts are on the future of Block.

Block was, from the start, a huge undertaking and a big change from the then standard expansion design. It was a way to give players a smaller format of First Edition to play within. The limited pool of cards was intended to and succeeded in opening up 1E to new and returning players of the game. Also, block was designed when access to cards was restricted to who could afford to trade or purchase them. Now that all cards are available for players to use in any format and because block has now been around for a while, it is time to check in on it and see what's good or if change is required.

As most might have forgotten, Block format was designed with both a limited-constructed and limited-sealed format in mind, with the hopes that it would entice people to try what has always been a very complicated game. Having interviewed both returning and new players, the format was fun and interesting enough to try out, and later on come back to try block as well as Complete. Things like this motivates the 1E design team to continue to keep block interesting and fun.

On top of this we have the Homefront sets to enhance the overall experience of building decks and filling out the holes that needs to be plugged. Homefront used to be a way for older, hard-to-get cards back into the hands of the players. Now, with all cards being printable, the Homefront sets have shifted to be more like a "core" set for Block. This shifted them from pure reprint sets to an amalgamation of cards from all over, including new and useful cards for Block, with a focus on making Block better experience.

We are now reaching out to players for feedback to find out what it is that makes this game fun for them as well as what could be made better. These questions will give design valuable feedback that cannot be found in tournament data alone and will hopefully spark some dialog on this article's forum topic; where First Edition design will be looking for anecdotes, thoughts, criticisms and whatever else you need to say about block.

Keep in mind that the questions should not be seen as indicative of where 1E design will be taking block and feedback received may or may not influence future design. However, surveys like this are important to help First Edition design understand the state of the game as well as where we can push the game to make sure it stays fun, fresh, vibrant, and enjoyable for years to come.

Discuss this article in this thread.