When choosing a trading-card game, the biggest name, and the one that will always stand out, is undoubtedly Magic: The Gathering. However, since its debut in 1993, and several thousand cards later, the game has expanded far beyond its humble beginnings. On paper, it may seem as though Magic is easy to access, particularly because of its free-to-play digital alternatives like Magic: The Gathering Online and Magic: The Gathering Arena. However, with three decades of history and an ever-growing list of card mechanics, abilities, and rules behind it, Magic is far from simple for a new trading card game player to understand. (Not to mention the shockingly high-price of many cards that are considered staples of the game.)

It’s this type of intimidating learning curve into Magic that Danny Schaefer, lead designer for Star Wars: Unlimited, wants his team to completely avoid as they look to the future of Fantasy Flight Games' two-year-old TCG.

Unlimited, a trading card game where all your Star Wars favorites — and even more niche characters and ships from media like Legends and The Acolyte — battle to defeat the opponent’s base, debuted in 2024. Its first set, Spark of Rebellion, focused on the original trilogy era and featured characters like Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Han Solo, and the Star Wars icon, Darth Vader. Since then, Fantasy Flight Games has released eight sets, with its ninth, Homeworlds, planned for Oct. 9.

Although Star Wars Unlimited lacks the long history of Magic, it features various mechanics, aspects, and keywords (Grit, Saboteur, Advantage, to name a few) that players often need to experience firsthand to fully grasp. Speaking to Polygon at the Galactic Championship in Las Vegas, Schaefer explained how the team never wants to compromise the vision of Unlimited being accessible and easy to jump into, whether you start now or years down the line.

“Our guiding light when we first started designing the game was we want a game that's easy to learn, easy to get into, but difficult to master,” Schaefer said. “It's something that we want to make sure remains true, even as we are eight, nine, 10 sets into the game's life. Rotation is part of that. Making sure that people getting into the game now in 2026 are not locked out of getting certain cards because they came out two years ago, and they're out of print.”

Schaefer also wants to ensure that Unlimited doesn’t end up swinging to being overtly complex with every set, as that could end up spiraling out of control and causing the game to fundamentally move away from their vision of a game that anyone and everyone can play.

It’s a noble goal, though it’s still early in Unlimited’s lifespan compared with Magic’s decades. Even so, speaking as someone who tried to get into Magic and failed because of the costs necessary to get into the competitive side of things, but fell right into Unlimited because it was so much cheaper to get into — and as an overall lover of Star Wars — it seems to me that Schaefer and his team are on the right track, for now. It's uncertain whether FFG will maintain its current goal, especially since the publisher considers Unlimited its “forever game” with “no end in sight” planned. However, for now, it’s an exciting time for players—new and seasoned alike—to dive into a Star Wars TCG as broad and approachable as Unlimited.

Fantasy Flight Games covered the travel expenses for Polygon to attend the Galactic Championship event in Las Vegas and interview the game's designers in person.