the TRADING factor

The 'TRADING' factor in the Trading Card Game.

What is it anyway, why does the 'trading' factor is just as important as the gameplay in TCG?
Well, could it be just a scam by game manufacturers so that we will keep buying their products?

In truth, the 'trading' factor is really as important as the gameplay. Having cards that is collectible means you can have a lot of different type of cards. Being collectible itself is to make THE card itself valueable.

If you have read my earlier post 'The value of a card' and 'The TRADING card game'. I have talk about some details regarding what makes a card valueable and the 'trading business' players held (i'll get to that in a moment). The trading factor is one of the deciding factor in making a TCG successful.

The trading part is to encourage players to either buy the cards they want or trade a card another player wants for it. Trading cards started as Collectible cards, it used to be that you the collecter buys cards you want. But when you buy the cards, it came in a closed packages, you don't know what you will get. To get the cards you want, you need to spend a lot of money on buying the packages. But the collectors started to trade extra cards they don't want with other collectors for certain cards that they want. Thus, Collectible cards have become Trading cards. (if you find old packages of cards from maybe 7 years ago, TCG were acttually calling themself Collectible Card Games).

The trading factor is introduced in TCG as add-ons to card games. I don't know who started it, but i know that Richard Garfield(creator of MTG) spend about 2 years (i'm not sure about the exact time spend, but this i derived from after reading The Creation of Magic:The Gathering by Richard Garfield) playtesting MTG with a group of playtesters to balanced not only the gameplay, but also the rarity of cards to balance out the economics of cards. You need a certain good quantity of rares, uncommons and commons to make them valuable enough for players to buy(or trade).

The Trading factor have sometimes kept TCG's that really bad from dying out. For example, the old Star Wars CCG(Customizable Card Game) from Decipher seem to be keeping itself alive because of the millions of fans of Star Wars. The fans would buy the cards containing their favorite characters, space ships, planets, weopons and many more items from the Star Wars universe. Gameplay-wise, the game really doesn't have that much a chance to be successful because of its REALLY complex gameplay. Only really hardcore gamers who is willing to learn all of its complex rules are able to play the game. Commercially, it failed to get the general public's attention. Its hard for newbies to start on the game, and play the game directly. One could argue that if I try playing the game, it won't be that hard after a few tries. Well, think from a casual gamers perspective. I want to play a game on my spare time, I need a game i can start immediately and have fun with it. See where i'm getting?

OK, OK, back to the topic.

The Trading factor have given the card game industry an edge in the gaming business as their game is made not only for gamers but also for collectors.

The trading factor IS important after all, it made TCG appeals to 2 type of audiences (collectors and players). It can keep a dying TCG alive if the cards itself is interesting enough to be a collectible. And gaming industry likes TCG because its one of a few stable source of incomes.
(A really bad TCG can stay in the market for a few years before actually die out, for example the Simpsons TCG and Harry Potter TCG)



Well, thats all for now
Jya Ne