Hague, The Netherlands — In a sudden but unsurprising move, the International Gaming Association (IGA) ended years of debate Monday by officially adding Magic: The Gathering to its list of "Games of Luck and Chance."

The IGA indicated that events taking place at last weekend's Pro Tour: San Diego helped make up the mind of several voting members of the multinational body. "Clearly, the victory of Marid Ferrenghi, a Frenchman with 9 months of playing experience, can be taken only as the strongest indictment of (Magic). The IGA has a strict policy that winners of major tournaments for any game must have at least the slightest clue how to play," a statement from the IGA read.

Dr. Walter Kirkpatrick, professor of Game Theory and Economics at Harvard University and a twenty-five year voting member of the IGA, further clarified the reasoning behind the decision. "The continued existence of such unskilled buffoons as Sol Malka and Matt Vienneau on the so-called 'Pro Tour' cannot be taken too lightly," Kirkpatrick commented. "Furthermore, the 17th place finish by Jeff Fung speaks for itself."

Months of lobbying by Wizards of the Coast, including a high-profile ad campaign featuring Kai Budde, apparently had little effect on the IGA's decision. Ultimately, the most damning piece of evidence put before the commission was a document detailing 'coin flip' cards such as Crooked Scales and Frenetic Efreet. A presentation from Tom Guevin helped cement the minds of more than one Board member, most observers felt. "As long as cards such as Bottle of Suleiman are allowed to dominate entire formats, causing widespread havoc with their random coinflip outcomes, Magic will truly never be recognized as a game of skill," noted New York Times correspondent Trevor Simpson.

Other luck-based examples which influenced the IGA's decision included the initial die roll, manascrew/manaflood, bad matchups, not drawing sideboard cards, choosing seats, players setting their decks on different sides in the feature match area, "the god draw," and not getting paired up with someone from a Spanish-speaking country.

- MD

Discuss this article in the Magic: the Gathering Forums!

Hague, The Netherlands — In a sudden but unsurprising move, the International Gaming Association (IGA) ended years of debate Monday by officially adding Magic: The Gathering to its list of "Games of Luck and Chance."

The IGA indicated that events taking place at last weekend's Pro Tour: San Diego helped make up the mind of several voting members of the multinational body. "Clearly, the victory of Marid Ferrenghi, a Frenchman with 9 months of playing experience, can be taken only as the strongest indictment of (Magic). The IGA has a strict policy that winners of major tournaments for any game must have at least the slightest clue how to play," a statement from the IGA read.

Dr. Walter Kirkpatrick, professor of Game Theory and Economics at Harvard University and a twenty-five year voting member of the IGA, further clarified the reasoning behind the decision. "The continued existence of such unskilled buffoons as Sol Malka and Matt Vienneau on the so-called 'Pro Tour' cannot be taken too lightly," Kirkpatrick commented. "Furthermore, the 17th place finish by Jeff Fung speaks for itself."

Months of lobbying by Wizards of the Coast, including a high-profile ad campaign featuring Kai Budde, apparently had little effect on the IGA's decision. Ultimately, the most damning piece of evidence put before the commission was a document detailing 'coin flip' cards such as Crooked Scales and Frenetic Efreet. A presentation from Tom Guevin helped cement the minds of more than one Board member, most observers felt. "As long as cards such as Bottle of Suleiman are allowed to dominate entire formats, causing widespread havoc with their random coinflip outcomes, Magic will truly never be recognized as a game of skill," noted New York Times correspondent Trevor Simpson.

Other luck-based examples which influenced the IGA's decision included the initial die roll, manascrew/manaflood, bad matchups, not drawing sideboard cards, choosing seats, players setting their decks on different sides in the feature match area, "the god draw," and not getting paired up with someone from a Spanish-speaking country.

- MD

Discuss this article in the Magic: the Gathering Forums!