We’ve known that Wizards of the Coast is creating a Magic: The Gathering Arena Steam edition for some months, alongside plans to bring its flagship digital trading card game to games consoles – and the wait is nearly over for MTG fans. Read on for the Steam release date, and everything else we know about MTG Arena’s next stage of expansion.
If you’re just dipping into Arena for the first time, check out our list of MTG Arena codes to scoop a pile of free cards and cosmetics – or, if you’re an old hand, stay up to date with our guide to the best MTG Arena decks right now. For now, though, here’s the latest steamy details.
MTG Arena Steam release date
MTG Arena is coming to Steam on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.
Publisher Wizards of the Coast announced the accelerated new release date during a presentation to fans at MagicCon in Minneapolis on Friday, May 5.
Chris Cocks – CEO of Wizards’ parent company Hasbro – had previously given a more conservative release window of Q3 (Fall) 2023 during an investor call in February.
How can I play MTG Arena on Steam?
After the May 23 release date, you’ll be able to add MTG Arena to your Steam library for free, then boot up the client from the Steam launcher like any other Steam game.
For existing MTG Arena players, it seems you’ll then log into your account as normal, accessing your collection, decks, and overall game state.
But, of course, the Steam release is mainly aimed at bringing new PC players into Magic – and Wizards has promised a new and improved onboarding, or tutorial experience to help teach these folks how to play Magic: The Gathering and how to build a MTG deck (though we’ve no idea what that is yet).
When is MTG Arena coming to consoles?
MTG Arena is likely to come out on consoles some time in 2024 at the earliest, based on statements by Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks.
While Wizards has brought forward MTG Arena’s Steam PC release, the latest info we have on the planned console editions is Cocks’ comment, in a February 2023 investors’ conference call, that the firm is now targeting a “2024 and beyond” release date for consoles including Xbox and Playstation.
For the latest spell-slinging news, check out our Magic: The Gathering and MTG Arena hub pages – or broaden your card gaming horizons with our guide to the best trading card games out there.