Several characters from the franchise Magic: The Gathering will soon be in the multiplayer online battle arena Smite, most notably Chandra Nalar and Jace Beleren. These will be joined by the popular characters Ajani Goldmane, Liliana Vess, and Garruk Wildspeaker.“The Gods have faced many threats across the Battleground, but nothing can prepare them to face the dangers of the Multiverse,” the developer behind Smite, Titan Forge Games, announced earlier today on the social media platform Twitter. “Fight back against Nicol Bolas as some of the most iconic characters in Magic: The Gathering when Wizards of the Coast joins forces with Smite!”Smite is described as a “free-to-play action MOBA featuring legendary mythological icons. Wield Thor’s hammer, turn your foes to stone as Medusa, or flex your divine power as one of several hundred playable Gods.” Titan Forge Games calls on potential contestants to “join over 35 million players in celebrating our community. What are you waiting for? Go Ahead. Play God!”
This comes hot on the heels of a recent controversy surrounding Wizards of the Coast. The backlash regarding some proposed changes to the Open Gaming License for Dungeons & Dragons remains ongoing, homebrew creators and small studios both expressing concerns about the possibility of losing control over their creations to the intellectual property rights holder, Wizards of the Coast. "It was never our intent to impact the vast majority of the community," the company recently said in a statement. "However, it’s clear from the reaction that we rolled a one."
Wizards of the Coast has been walking back its earlier plans for the OGL. “What it will not contain is any royalty structure," the publisher tried to reassure fans of the franchise. "It also will not include the license back provision that some people were afraid was a means for us to steal work. That thought never crossed our minds. Under any new OGL, you will own the content you create. We won’t.”