I love all of the new cards that have come out. My favorite set is Saga and next in line is Tempest and Prophecy. All of the new rules concepts are fun and make the game more interesting.
Magic is conststantly getting more complicated and thought provocing. But even though Wizards is making an attempt to spice up the game and slow it down a bit... the same old deck types will continue to dominate, and further isolate certain cards. The value of most rares will drop while a few soar. Type 2 and sealed deck are now the only fair tournament environments. And for now, type 2 is still too quick for my liking.

I have just been alerted to a new problem that will eventually arise in the "new" type 2. Unless the next set comes out with a whole chain of BIG mana producers, all of the new avatars and winds will see very little if any play. How are you supposed to play an Avatar of Woe or a Denying Wind when your opponent is pressing a turn 4-5 kill? When the Urza's block rotates out, the best cards, the NEW cards, will never see the light of day in a tournament environment. Type 2 is going to face a lot of problems. At first I thought that it would be better, but in fact deck types will become even more isolated because of it!!! Wizards doesn't think all of the time do they?? They won't even be able to restrict cards from the certain onslought of stompy decks because of the deck type- STOMPY!! How do you expect Wizards to restrict Seal of Might or Wild Might? The card isn't anywhere near THAT good. We're in a world of trouble here people...

I have separated Magic into 3 stages: old- this was from Alpha to Mirage. In the old stage, games were unseemingly slow and devoid of action for a while. This was fun at first, but frustrating soon later. During the old stage, You had to think about your opponent just as much as about what your deck was supposed to do... but now a-days you make a deck and play it just to win, and whoever is faster is the victor.
Then the middle stage... the "good old days"; of Mirage to Saga. The Rath cycle and a few sets preluding it made up the best stage in the history of Magic. Here, games lasted an average amt. of time... took skill, and involved many original types of theme decks. This period, was free of first and second turn kills. Play was fun, and your deck could essentialy dictate the length of the game providing your opponent's deck fit yours to a degree. This, the middle stage, ended the most fun way of playing Magic.
The third stage brought on a wide new variety of cards, rules, and an onslaught of sets and ideas. But the game began moving too swiftly, and many cards... many RARES now go unappreciated because they have no real use in an environment that houses decks that can garontee a kill on turn three or four. Which brings me to my point.
Magic is most fun when a game is drawn out, and when you must use your wits to win the game. Yet people are loosing sight of the fact that we need to have fun with this. What's so fun when you go to a turney and see 5 decks exactly alike? Or 8 total burn decks? How is that fun? Where is the desire to outwit your opponent? This is why I welcome Prophcy... and yes , Nemesis too. These sets are bringing back a little of what Magic used to be. Everyone's (type 2 that is) decks are gonna run slower and have to involve more creatures. This is what I've been longing for... and I hope that not too many of you dislike the sets, cause I think Wizards is setting a new trend for their next coupla sets. I just hope that all of you can appreciate the true way to play Magic. A slow game and a hard fought battle is absolutly fulfilling. (the one exception is when you have an annoying opponent who locks you down, draws out the game, and forces you to concede before he kills you)

As I play with some of my friends... I now notice a change in their behavior after a loss. During the "good ol' days", when I lost a game (especially in a tourney) I beat myself up over the fact that the game would have ended differently if I had done something else. I would be extremely critical over not attacking, destroying one creature over another, or letting an attack go through in order to attack my opponent... the list goes on. But now... my friends and I are not beating ourselves up over a bad move, we're saying- "if I only had one more turn" or- "if I had drawn this instead"... They were mad beacuse their deck didn't work fast enough. It is no longer a question of skill... but a measure of your deck's speed and compatibility compared to another deck.
This is wrong. And I strongly believe that people would enjoy the game more if all could be played fairly... when the winner is the person who outwitted all of his opponents. All I know is that I'm going to be extemely ****ed if Wizards puts out another "fast set" soon. Most of you who have replied agree... and that makes me believe that there is still hope for the ideal game...
Hope, while meaningless at first, may someday become reality... but until then I will be very angry with the turn the my favorite game has taken. (grrrrr!!)

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•·.÷.·•- ----•[ im tha masta]•---- -•·.÷.·•

To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first, and call whatever you hit the target

I had a red/blue deck too. Terribly slow (4 Shivans, 4 Vesuvans, 4 Mahamotis, etc.), but if you get to turn 6 or 7, watch out below!

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On guard for larger dangers,we underestimated the power and speed of the Imp's muck-crusted claws.
-Bog Imp

Personally, I will no longer enter a local tourney unless it is sealed deck or draft. No other format is fair anymore... and if it is fair, it isn't fun...

HASTA!!!!

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"Gnawed to death. Bad way to go."