Spider-Man lovers and Marvel fans, rejoice! The world’s favorite web slinger is coming to Magic: The Gathering. The new MTG release is slated for September 26, 2025. The newest Universes Beyond set aims to make waves and once again shake up the MTG world.
The set blends the unique art and storytelling of Spider-Man franchises with the rich gameplay of MTG. Veteran planeswalkers will have a great time exploring new cards and content.
Meanwhile, new-player-friendly cards and decks will welcome the fandom to the world of MTG.
The New Set
Hot on the heels of the massively successful Final Fantasy set, Magic: The Gathering is once again expanding Universes Beyond content. This new, ambitious card list takes on one of the most popular franchises of all time: Marvel’s Spider-Man.
Players can enjoy nostalgic storylines, favorite characters, and fun new interactions as the MTG Spider-Man release immediately integrates with multiple formats.
Legality and Game Updates
The bulk of the MTG Marvel release is designed to be Standard-legal from day one. Cards with the SPM (Spider-Man Main Set) code will be legal in Standard play.
Additional codes include SPE (Spider-Man Extended) and MAR (Multiverse Additional Rares), which are legal in Commander, Legacy, and Vintage. SPM and MAR will also both be coded for Draft and Sealed play.
Making a new Universes Beyond set Standard-legal reflects major design changes from Wizards of the Coast. Long citing a goal to simplify the game (at least in terms of infrastructure-level mechanics and design), Universes Beyond MTG releases are expected to be Standard-legal at launch.
A new visual policy helps to clarify this. The inverted triangle rarity stamp, long associated with Universes Beyond, will no longer appear on Standard cards. This begins with SPM-coded cards in the Spider-Man set and will apply to future Universes releases.
Content
The full MTG release includes Play Boosters, Collector Boosters, and Bundles, as one might expect. Spidey’s Spectacular Showdown Scene Box looks to be a heavily featured bit of content with borderless cards and an easel for display.
Perhaps most conspicuous is the lack of preconstructed Commander decks. Instead, Spider-Man content caters to new players with five new Welcome Decks.
In all, the set promises a wide range of vibrant art, interesting new cards, and fun mechanics to expand Universes Beyond.
Play Boosters
Individual Play Booster packs still include 14 cards. All of the cards in Play Boosters are coded as SPM 1-231 or MAR 1-40.
Rarity distributions follow MTG tradition. Each Play Booster includes between one and four cards that are Rare or higher. Packs include three to five Uncommons, six to nine Commons, and one Land.
Collector Boosters
For rarity chasers, the Collector Boosters offer additional content. Cards in Collector Boosters are coded as SPM 1-193, 199-283; SPE 1-26; or MAR 1-40. Each pack contains 11 to 13 Traditional Foil cards, with 5 being Rare or higher.
Bundles
Bundles for the MTG release include 9 Play Boosters with 15 Traditional Foil basic lands and 15 nonfoil basic lands. The bundles also come with a Spindown life counter, two reference cards, and one deck box.
Scene Box
Scenes are made from six Borderless Scene Cards — piecing together to create a full story. In addition to the Scene Cards, each Scene Box comes with three Play Boosters and a Display Easel. You will also find six Traditional Foil Scene Cards and six Art-Only Scene Cards for your collecting pleasure.
Prerelease Pack
Rounding out the new content in this MTG release, the Prerelease Pack puts six Play Boosters in your hand with a guaranteed Traditional Foil Rare or Mythic with a year stamp. The packs also include the Spindown life counter.
A Departure from Commander
Another notable announcement is that this MTG release does not include any preconstructed Commander decks. Shifting from Universes Beyond trends, the Spidey set is taking a stronger focus on new players and a streamlined experience, with an extra emphasis on the starter decks.
As mentioned before, Collector Boosters and Welcome Decks do include Commander-legal cards, allowing fans of the format to thoroughly enjoy the new set whichever way suits them best.
How Does Spider-Man Compare to Other Universes Beyond Sets?
So far, the first MTG Marvel release looks to bring fewer new mechanics to the game, instead mixing more seamlessly into existing formats. To compensate, an even greater emphasis is placed on unique art, doubling down on scene cards.
While Spider-Man is not the first set to use scene cards, it offers even more expansive panoramas with six-card visuals and a display easel that makes it easier to admire the ambitious art.
Seamless integration also means that Spider-Man cards will be easier to play across formats, with cards coded for all of the most popular ways to play MTG. In all, it looks like a set that will feel very much like the Magic we all know and love while still bringing the distinct atmosphere of Marvel and Spider-Man.
Perhaps the clearest example of this direction shift is seen in the tighter IP focus. All of Middle-earth and all of Doctor Who represented overwhelmingly expansive IPs. While Spider-Man is still a large IP, it’s a distinct sector of the larger Marvel brand. Honing the focus allows Wizards to dial in the player experience with this MTG release.
Final Thoughts
Marvel’s Spider-Man is heralding more big changes for Magic: The Gathering. Dropping straight to Standard will certainly shake things up — possibly reframing the competitive atmosphere. Moving forward, Wizards aims to blend new IPs into gameplay more easily, and the hype between each incorporated IP only seems to grow.
This set promises to bring accessibility to new players as much as it injects new art and excitement to long-time veterans. It will be fun to watch the community grow!
