MTG’s Controversial Survey on Spider-Man Backlash: Wizards of the Coast Asks if Influencers are to Blame

The Magic: The Gathering community is currently embroiled in a fresh wave of controversy surrounding the recent player feedback survey for the much-maligned Universes Beyond: Marvel’s Spider-Man set. While publisher Wizards of the Coast (WotC) is doing what seems right—soliciting feedback on the set’s poor reception—the specific questions being asked have sparked outrage, with many accusing WotC of attempting to deflect blame for the set’s failures onto independent content creators and streamers.

The Spider-Man set has been widely criticized by players for a number of reasons: a perceived lack of mechanical innovation, a rushed “Pick Two” Limited format, a high price point, and the general over-saturation of the Universes Beyond crossover line, despite the line’s overall commercial success (such as with the Final Fantasy set).

The Catch: A Direct Question on Influencer Impact

The highly contentious element of the survey is a question that directly asks participants, particularly those who cited content creators as a source of set news, to what degree “negative influencer commentary” impacted their perception of the set before its release. The scale allows for a response ranging from “Greatly worsened my perception” to “Greatly improved my perception.”

This line of questioning has been met with immediate and vocal backlash from the community and the creators themselves. Many prominent figures in the MTG space have labelled the query a “witch hunt,” suggesting WotC is attempting to quantify and subsequently pin the blame for the set’s poor critical and player reception on the influencers who reported on or criticized the product.

• What WotC is Asking: “To what degree did negative influencer commentary impact your perceptions of Magic: The Gathering | Marvel’s Spider-Man before the set released?”
• The Community Response: Accusations of deflection, attempting to silence critical voices, and ignoring the core issues of product design, quality, and aggressive release cadence.

WotC’s Response and The Bigger Picture

Following the online furor, a WotC representative, Blake, addressed the issue, acknowledging that the specific question on influencers was “not a good question.” However, he insisted that the data would be interpreted “holistically” and that WotC would not retaliate against or “punish creators for having negative opinions of a set.”

Despite this assurance, the damage has been done. The controversy highlights a growing tension between the publisher and the content ecosystem that drives much of the trading card game’s engagement. As the market for Collectible Card Games (CCGs) expands (with the TCG market expected to continue its growth trend through 2026), the relationship between brand, content creators, and the consumer base is increasingly critical. For a game like MTG, where secondary market value and community discussion are key to its longevity, alienating the very voices that drive organic engagement is a significant risk.

In short, while the survey is a positive step toward acknowledging and addressing player discontent, the decision to specifically question the role of negative influencer commentary has overshadowed any genuine attempt to gather constructive feedback, leading many to believe the company is searching for an external scapegoat rather than taking full responsibility for the set’s widely perceived flaws.