Collectible card games

A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) or customizable card game, is a kind of card game that first emerged in 1993 and consists of specially designed sets of playing cards. Successful CCGs typically have upwards of thousands of unique cards, with the first developed, and most successful one, Magic: The Gathering, having over 16,000.

Typically, a CCG is initially played using a starter deck, or intro deck, which has a basic complement of cards that can be used to play the game. This deck may be expanded or modified with cards from booster packs, which contain a random selection of cards of varying rarities, usually between 8 and 15 cards. One of these cards is a rare or unique card that is much harder to obtain than the remaining cards and often has a higher value than the rest. These values can change over time as distribution changes, cards become banned in playing formats, or the metagame is altered by interactions with new cards. Eventually, with enough cards, players may create new decks from scratch.

Despite the dominance of Magic: The Gathering in the CCG market, a few have met with success and have built a niche for themselves including Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokémon, and Legend of the Five Rings. Other notable CCGs have come and gone: Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Vampire: The Eternal Struggle, Middle-earth, World of Warcraft, Dragon Ball Z, and Netrunner among others. Many other CCGs were produced, but had little or no commercial success. More recently, digital collectible card games have gained popularity, spurred by the success of Hearthstone.

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