Changes to VS System Organized Play in 2007

Upper Deck Entertainment recently announced changes in the VS. System Organized Play for 2007 which you can read about here. There are some major changes here, so I'd like to go over how I feel about them.

The first major change is one "vacation" PC per year. I like this idea despite its being blatantly stolen from M:tG. One of the main draws for me when I started playing Magic competitively several years ago was the chance to do some traveling, see the world if you will. The Magic Pro Tour changed destinations from year to year, with one stop in Europe and one in Asia (Japan). The constant change of scenery added an element to the PT. VS. System so far, with the exception of Amsterdam has pretty much gone to the same places for three years. This will only change somewhat as GenCons SoCal and Indy will still host a PC every year.

Next, is the consolidation of Modern Ages. Instead of Marvel Modern and DC Modern, there will just be Modern Age, consisting of the 4 most recent sets. Along with this change they will be cutting one PC per year. As far as the new Modern Age, there was some pretty intense debate on the Internet about whether the formats were good for the game. I didn't really care one way or the other. I do think that a 4-set format will lead to more balance than 2-set formats, but I wasn't calling for change. On to the new 3 PC per year structure. Until we know more about the $50K events, store championships, and exactly how much more money will be awarded at PC's, it's hard to judge this change. On the one hand, VS. System is now 3 premiere events per year behind M:tg (assuming you count Nationals as a premiere event). I don't think the added money per event will make PC's drastically better than PT's in Magic, but how the $50K's and Store Championships are handled will determine in my mind whether Professional VS. is considered a peer to Professional Magic or just a bad imitation.

The final change will be to the Hobby League. Since the changes at this point are still pretty vague, and I don't live in a town with a Hobby League these changes don't really affect me. But from Internet reactions, Hobby League is in need of a revamping. And Hobby Leagues help bring in more casual players which is what will keep the game thriving. Hobby Leagues are there to bring new players to the game and give casual players a chance to play against some new people. Anything that makes Hobby Leagues better, will in turn be beneficial to the game.