Comments from local game stores are flooding in about the recently-introduced 30-pack booster boxes.
In short, the boxes (which replaced the 36-pack boxes with the release of Aetherdrift) aren't exactly hitting it off with stores or with players with 73 percent of WPN responders on Facebook saying that they've experienced lower overall sales.
"We had more then a few customers dislike the 30 pack box," comments Brian Andersen of Menominee, Michigan. "The price point was not the biggest focus but the lack of packs. Some people like the change but more negative responses than positive."
James Dismore, another Wizards Play Network (WPN) member, adds "It’s not really a cheaper box. Paying the same price per pack for less packs is paying exactly the same as paying for 36 packs. It is absolutely dumbfounding that we continue to see the words “cheaper price point” when it’s just less product."
Jarin Udom, the owner of Bards & Cards Game Shop in San Diego, California, sees a different issue.
"One thing I kind of didn’t realize would be a bit of a pain is that 30 pack boxes sort of throws off the math when it comes to events," he says. "30 packs is 10 players for draft and 5 players for sealed, while 36 packs is 8 players + pack per win prizing for draft, while 16 player sealed + pack per win is an even 8 boxes."
Based upon Amazon pricing, an Aetherdrift Play Booster box costs $119.95, which breaks down to roughly $3.99 per pack. Comparatively, a Play Booster box of Magic: The Gathering - Foundations, which contains 36 packs, is currently listing at $152.00 according to Amazon pricing. That breaks down to $4.22 per pack.
To that end, it's possible that it's not so much the price of Play Boosters as it is the overall lack of enthusiasm for Aetherdrift overall.
"Sales may have been better with a different set as some really did not care for this theme at all," says Andersen. "As it seemed the ones being vocal about pack changes were the ones not interested in the set as a whole."
Brian Mitchell of WPN store A Muze N Games in Winnepeg, Manitoba, seems to echo this sentiment.
"There was very little demand for Aetherdrift outside of Finish Line Bundles and Commander decks," he says. "The adjustment to 30 Pack boxes won't be felt for several sets, as players have generally decided that they can't afford boxes anymore."
The next test for Magic: The Gathering's 30-pack Play Booster boxes will be with the release of Tarkir: Dragonstorm, which releases April 11. The preorder price for a 30-pack Play Booster boxes for that set, as of the time of this article's publication, is $134.45.
