First, the miniatures are pre-painted and the game system is simple enough that it can be played right out of the box. The major innovation in Mage Knight is found in the base for each figure, which contains all the power ratings, magical abilities and other statistics for that figure along with a moveable dial and a display slot. This means that an eleven-page rulebook is all that is necessary to play this game. The final element in the rising popularity of this game is provided by the insertion of one rare figure in each starter set and booster pack. Each booster pack includes five randomly packed, pre-painted figures.
Players can augment their forces by purchasing additional starters and booster packs.
While Mage Knight has not come close to generating the mass market appeal of Magic , this product has the potential to appeal to a much wider audience than any miniature-based gaming system. Little or no mass market distribution at this time.