The Role of the Infinite Format for the Future of Star Wars: Destiny

Written by Sarah Evans

For the vast majority of veteran Star Wars: Destiny players, Infinite has rarely been the format of choice. It may even provide shuddering flashbacks to that Galactic Qualifier where you were milled in three rounds, or your opponent took 27 ambush actions before Hyperspace Jumping. I’m exaggerating, but you get my point.

With FFG’s Organised Play always being led by the Standard format, with a somewhat aggressive rotation structure in the past, there’s been a strong incentive to jump in with the newer sets.

Now with the cancellation of the game, no more official released sets on the (wild) horizon, and FFG’s Organised Play coming to a close, Infinite is becoming the entry point format.

This is partly down to the price drop of older set booster boxes. You’ve been able to pick up the 2 Player Starter set in the U.K. for under £6($7.49) since November 2019, and the Awakening block booster boxes for under £20($24.97); making the game an attractive impulse buy. This has led to a surge of new players we haven’t seen in some time.

No more will it be the job of the newest & shiniest set to bring in new faces. It’s now the role of the older boxes in the clearance section of your game store and online retailer.

Going back to my opening statement of many veteran players not exactly favoring the Infinite format, is it concerning that new players are entering into the game playing this ‘broken’ format?

I don’t think so. These players aren’t currently playing optimized decks, abusing broken combos and playing the best cards the game has to offer over its nine set life. They are building decks with their limited collections. Experiencing all ‘the feels’ when they put their favorite Star Wars character down on the table for the first time. These fresh-faced players are coming together forming their own communities online, allowing them to experiment and learn together. It’s a joy to witness.

How do we as a wider community help these fresh-faced Infinite players as they dive further into the game?

1. Give the Infinite Holocron more love than FFG did

This is a job for the continuing committee: A Renewed Hope. FFG simply didn’t do enough to balance this format to appeal to the active player base. A Renewed Hope have already indicated they won’t be abandoning the format by utilizing the Holocron document created by the Dice Commandos as a starting point. This is an encouraging early step.

2. Explore and promote alternative formats more

The 40/40 Highlander Infinite format in particular seems really accessible to a newer player. Being limited to one copy of any given card means you don’t have to splash out for two copies of that really expensive card. It reduces the potential of negative play experiences i.e only one Second Chance to get through! And the increase to a 40 card deck encourages you to explore the nine set pool. Compared to the regular Infinite format which will require balancing/errata/restriction documentation, 40/40 Infinite Highlander is much more straightforward to build a deck for.

3. Run casual Infinite events with a prizing structure that appeals to newer players

I’d like to see more Infinite events being run as FFGs OP concludes and the community takes the lead on event organization. I’ve often criticized FFG’s prizing structure for being too top-heavy. These Infinite events could be the perfect event choice to balance the scales to attract newer players over the regulars that make every top cut.

I also believe these types of events could bring previous players who fell away from playing a year or two ago back into the fold. The announcement of rotation for Destiny did a fair amount of damage in that regard. Give these lost players a reason to dust off their collections without feeling they need to own the latest and greatest.  

An injection of new players into our game is a great opportunity. Whether they continue to enjoy the Infinite format or decide to move to Standard, I really hope our community can welcome them and give them plenty of opportunities to keep playing.