I. Introduction
Collectible card games (CCGs), also called trading card games (TCGs), are played using specially designed sets of cards. While trading cards have been around for longer, CCGs combine the appeal of collecting and strategic gameplay.
The first collectible card game was The Base Ball Card Game produced by The Allegheny Card Co. and registered on April 5, 1904.[1][2] The modern concept of TCG games was first presented in Magic: The Gathering, designed by Richard Garfield and published by Wizards of the Coast in 1993.
Each TCG system has a fundamental set of rules that describes the players' objectives, the categories of cards used in the game, and the basic rules by which the cards interact. Each card will have additional text explaining that specific card's effect on the game. They also generally represent some specific element derived from the game's genre, setting, or source material. The cards are illustrated and named for these source elements, and the card's game function may relate to the subject. For example, Magic is based on the fantasy genre, so many of the cards represent creatures and magical spells from that setting. In the game, a dragon is illustrated as a reptilian beast, may have the flying ability, and have formidable game statistics compared to smaller creatures.
Most TCGs are designed around a resource system by which the pace of each game is generally controlled. Frequently, the cards which comprise a player's deck are also in and of themselves a resource, with the frequency of cards moving from the deck to the play area or player's hand being tightly controlled. Relative card strength is often balanced by the number or type of basic resources needed in order to play the card, and pacing after that may be determined by t ...