Magic: The Gathering announces crossover event with Assassin's Creed and Final Fantasy - Possible release date, what to expect, and more

Magic: The Gathering’s “Universes Beyond” line is all set to get a serious pair of collaborations in 2024. According to Hasbro Investor Day 2022’s presentation, Wizards of the Coast is looking towards Ubisoft and Square Enix. In 2024, both the Final Fantasy and Assassin’s Creed franchises are confirmed to be joining Magic: The Gathering in some format or fashion.

While 2023 has already been confirmed for Lord of the Rings and Dr. Who, 2024 is shaping up to be a huge year for the Wizards of the Coast’s legendary card game.

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Universes Beyond will add Final Fantasy and Assassin’s Creed to Magic: The Gathering

Universes Beyond is Magic: The Gathering’s way of collaborating with a number of IPs that could not possibly exist in the card game created by Richard Garfield. Fans have already seen several Universes Beyond expansions, typically in the form of Secret Lair drops.

These collaborations have been financially successful for the company, bolstering the various expansions to the Standard card game throughout the year. While players cannot use these Universes Beyond cards in the most competitive settings, they are popular and often quickly sell out.

These Secret Lair drops contain four cards featuring art and lore from other IPs. Previously, there have been Secret Lair drops from Street Fighter, Fortnite, The Walking Dead, and several other IPs. Then there is the upcoming Warhammer 40K partnership, which features four Commander decks.

In 2023, fans can look forward to a full set called The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-Earth, as well as a Universes Beyond collaboration with Dr. Who. Not one to rest on their laurels, WOTC revealed that in 2024, fans would be able to see how Final Fantasy and Assassin’s Creed fit into the Magic universe.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much in the way of information yet, but Wizards of the Coast will likely give fans more as 2023 rolls on. What could fans possibly expect, though? The problem with these IPs is that there is so much possible lore to draw from. When it comes to Assassin’s Creed, it is likely that Magic: The Gathering will draw from its most famous character, Ezio Auditore.

The Assassin’s Creed franchise would benefit nicely from a set of Commander Decks or perhaps a Secret Lair drop, with each card in the set starring a popular assassin. Another route could be to use the collaboration to promote another upcoming title.

Assassin’s Creed will no doubt be releasing a major title in 2024, and a great way to hype up a release is to schedule an MTG crossover around that same time.

Final Fantasy is a much more challenging set to nail down. There are decades of potential ideas to utilize with 15 mainline entries, multiple sequels, remakes, side games, and more. This is why, unlike Assassin’s Creed, Magic: The Gathering + Final Fantasy would feel better as a fully fleshed-out expansion, similar to the upcoming LOTR set.

It would be a terrific way to highlight the many years of famous characters, monsters, weapons, and more from Square-Enix’s hit franchise. It would be a great chance to make cards out of Cecil Harvey, Yuna, Kefka Palazzo, and other popular characters.

Another idea is to focus it around a particular entry in the franchise. While everyone has their own favorite Final Fantasy game, one of the most widely known games is Final Fantasy VII. FFVII Rebirth is dropping around late 2023/early 2024. It would be the perfect manner to keep the hype alive for the next entry in the remake series.

Unfortunately, this is all speculation about Universes Beyond. What we do know is that Magic: The Gathering will feature both of those IPs sometime in 2024, unlikely at the same time. They will probably be spread far apart and potentially around a new game release.