With the recent patch set to significantly alter the game and player strategies, at least temporarily, we thought it would be interesting to revisit "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" to discuss these changes after they've had some time to settle in. Before we dive in, I want to express my appreciation for this type of over-the-air (OTA) or drastic change to the game. It aims to refresh and diversify the gameplay, rather than allowing the same archetypes to dominate the meta. This patch has tried to straighten things up until now, but it hasn't achieved its goal yet. Regardless, a few days have passed since its release, so let's explore the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
The Good
Shang-Chi has been one of the most popular cards in Snap since its introduction. The threat of being countered by him is always present in almost every game. However, with this recent change, the potential impact of Shang-Chi has decreased slightly without rendering him completely ineffective. While the altered stats may initially appear unfavorable due to the significant differences, I believe this change is not necessarily a bad one. There are now more opportunities in the game to deal with big cards with other tech-type cards that previously saw little to no play because Shang-Chi was such an easy option.
A few seasons ago, I might have been more frustrated by this change, as it could enable certain decks to operate without restraint most of the time. However, Shang-Chi isn't gone; he is simply less effective. Realistically, he will often perform the same function since there is typically only one card with more than 10 power in a lane. Does losing 1 power significantly diminish his effectiveness in those scenarios? Probably not. I wouldn’t be surprised if this change remains in place longer than others.
As someone who loves Alioth and has included him in several decks where he might not typically fit because I find him hilarious, dropping his power to 6 is a positive change. Alioth should always be viewed as a last resort against powerful combo decks and other specific strategies, rather than a card that also provides a significant power boost. I understand that he consumes all 6 energy on the final turn, but that’s actually ideal for his intended use. He is a card chosen for specific reasons, and the more we refine cards to have this specific role, the more diversity we'll see in deck building, rather than everyone just using the same universally strong cards.
For me, this makes the change to Alioth a good one. While statistics suggest that his recent adjustment has had a slight negative impact, with Alioth now having a negative cube rate and a win rate of just under 50%, he still ranks in the top 15 for wins when played. This indicates that he is effectively fulfilling his intended role. Overall, this change is perfectly fine.
The statistics for this card are actually quite decent. The change to Enchantress becoming a 5-cost card hasn’t significantly affected her playability. Since she is universal to both sides of the board, I believe she could benefit from an additional point of power. This could be viewed as a downside, but overall, being a 5-cost card is advantageous because it allows her to be played later in the game. This delay enables players to better assess the board before deploying her, making her more effective.
Additionally, increased power would be beneficial, especially considering that recent ongoing cards like Moonstone and changes to Onslaught have raised the base power of certain lanes in Ongoing strategies. Even without some ongoing abilities, competition for those lanes remains fierce.
In my opinion, this card actually needed a nerf, and I don’t believe this change is a bad one. The most significant alteration is that it reduces the number of cards that can be played alongside her on the final turn of the game. You can no longer play an NTW with a Gladiator on the last turn to secure wins in two lanes. Additionally, turn three is often crucial, especially with cards like Invisible Woman First Steps, Werewolf by Night, or Mr. Fantastic. Previously, having one of these cards sniped and destroyed by a strategically placed NTW on turn three was common in the first half of the game. Delaying this interaction to the later turns is a positive change in my opinion. However, the statistics on this change do not look very promising, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she is reverted to her original state.
The Bad
While Cosmo was effective as a tech card, I believe he is not as impactful as other tech cards, and the adjustments made to him have overall negative consequences. Is he still being played as a 4-cost card? Yes, but he no longer fulfills his intended role effectively. Although this might also apply to other tech card changes, I feel that Cosmo is a crucial card for maintaining balance in the game, more so than the other cards.
As a 4-cost card, he has become significantly too slow and does not make for an effective late-game play when paired with other cards. His stats are currently quite poor, and even before the changes, they were not impressive, especially since On-Reveal strategies are not the main issue in the game right now. This change has essentially downgraded Cosmo from a useful card to an ineffective one, and I hope they consider reverting the changes.
In my opinion, Shadow King has always been the king of tech cards due to his low cost and ability to inflict significant damage across various strategies. However, he has often been overlooked by many players for different reasons. Although the recent change increasing his cost to 3 hasn't significantly harmed his popularity, it does make him feel more awkward to use.
As a result of this change, he can no longer be paired with a variety of 4-cost cards during the final turn; instead, he must be paired with cards of 3-cost or lower. This limitation reduces his usability during crucial late-game scenarios. Currently, Move is one of the most played and effective decks in the format. Shadow King would typically excel against that deck, but in his current state, he isn’t making much of an impact. I understand that these changes may be temporary, but if they become permanent, I believe it could be detrimental to the entire game. Shadow King risks losing his crown far too easily.
The Ugly
Good old Skillmonger. While I believe Killmonger has been overpowered for quite some time and needs a nerf, I don't think this is the right direction for the game. Essentially, he is just a higher-priced version of Elektra. Although he effectively destroys all one-cost cards at a location and works well in decks that aim to destroy their own cards, he is not very effective as a tech card. Killmonger used to be a solid counter for clog decks, as cards like Debrii, Kate Bishop, Titania, and The Hood are primarily used to obstruct lanes.
However, if you can't even reach the lane, he becomes useless. As someone who enjoys playing clog decks with my Selene builds, I still find clog strategies frustrating and believe they shouldn't dominate the game. Killmonger provided a decent check against that strategy, and now he's gone. Additionally, he didn’t receive any boost in power to make up for the change in his ability. He now has the same cost and power but a less effective effect. I would have preferred a better update, and I hope that this change gets reverted to something more reasonable.
Lastly, we have Red Guardian. To be honest, he was treated poorly in this OTA. While he hasn't been very popular recently, he could still be an annoying tech card. However, he already had a set of limitations that restricted his potential, and now, with this change, he is practically useless. The statistics back this up, showing he has nearly a -0.1 cube rate and only a 45% win rate, which is quite bad. A more reasonable and balanced nerf might be to reduce his power by just one. I hope this is the adjustment they consider when making further changes, especially if they still want him to maintain a slightly nerfed state.
Overall Effect and Conclusion
It may still be a bit early to fully see the effects of the recent changes, but after at least one weekend of play, some general observations can be made. First, I don’t believe that they need to revert as many changes as people initially thought. The temporary absence of Tech Cards is actually healthy for the game. We still have cards like Mobius M. Mobius and Stardust to prevent the meta from becoming dominated by Hela and Negative, which is a positive development.
Additionally, these changes allow players to enjoy the decks they want to use more frequently without having their strategies disrupted every other game. Second, these changes encourage interaction at different levels than we typically expect. What I mean is that options that were previously less efficient than the Tech Cards can now be played or considered because there isn’t a dominating card occupying that spot. For example, instead of playing Killmonger, players might choose Elektra, or instead of Enchantress, they might opt for Red Guardian or Echo. This shift should lead to more experimentation now that the most efficient options are less prevalent.
Lastly, the developers should implement changes like this more often and keep them in place. Though Marvel Snap has competitive elements, it’s primarily a casual game, so mixing things up for some fun and unpredictability now and then is a great idea. What do you think of the changes? Let me know in the comments below!