MTG Survey on Spider-Man Backlash Reveals a Scapegoat: The Influencer Catch

Wizards of the Coast (WotC) has circulated a survey to gather feedback on the controversial Magic: The Gathering | Marvel’s Spider-Man “Universes Beyond” set, which faced significant community backlash over its grounded aesthetic, uninspired design, and perception as a rushed product. While seemingly a direct attempt to address player concerns, the survey itself has sparked a new wave of outrage due to a highly contentious question.

The Catch: A Question Pointing Fingers at Content Creators

The core of the new controversy lies in a specific question posed to players who indicated they received information about the set from content creators. This question asks participants to what degree “negative influencer commentary impacted your perceptions of Magic: The Gathering | Marvel’s Spider-Man before the set released,” with a scale ranging from “Greatly worsened my perception” to “Greatly improved my perception.”

This phrasing has led to widespread accusations from players and content creators alike that WotC is attempting to shift the blame for the set’s poor reception away from internal design and marketing decisions and onto the very MTG influencers who are critical voices in the community.

• The Core Issue: The survey appears to seek a narrative that negative external commentary—rather than the quality of the product itself—was the primary driver of the set’s failure.
• “Witch Hunt” Concerns: The survey also asks players to name the streamers and content creators they engage with, which has intensified concerns among influencers who fear professional retaliation from the publisher.

Wizards of the Coast Responds to the Controversy

Following the significant and immediate backlash on social media, WotC representatives, including a senior communications figure, publicly addressed the contentious question. They acknowledged that the question was “not a good question” and expressed regret over the negative focus and implications it carried.

The company stated that the flawed phrasing was a mistake and assured the community that it was not an attempt to malign or “attack” the content creator community. Despite this retraction and apology for the wording, the damage appears to be done, with many players interpreting the incident as a sign that WotC is more interested in controlling the public narrative than in taking accountability for the set’s perceived flaws.

Why the Spider-Man Set Was So Divisive

The Spider-Man set’s reception has been a notable low point for the otherwise commercially successful “Universes Beyond” line, which features crossovers with properties like The Lord of the Rings and Warhammer 40k. The primary criticisms include:

• Grounded Aesthetic: Many players felt the heavy focus on a grounded, modern-day New York City setting clashed uncomfortably with Magic’s established high-fantasy visual style.
• Repetitive Design: The set was criticized for weak, uninspired Limited mechanics and a lack of competitive impact, with many seeing it as a poorly constructed product rushed to market.

While the set’s internal performance figures remain undisclosed, the quick and targeted nature of the survey, alongside the inflammatory question, confirms that Wizards is acutely aware of the widespread negative sentiment surrounding the Spider-Man release.