Final Fantasy X‘s Laughing Scene Is Now a Magic: The Gathering Card

This past weekend Wizards of the Coast truly lifted the lid connected its upcoming Final Fantasy crossover set for Magic: The Gathering, but the oodles of cards revealed determination were seemingly not enough. Today the Magic squad revealed even more cards to players, and they’re filled with unthinkable nods to Final Fantasy history… including an implicit gem from Final Fantasy X.

Today Wizards revealed the afloat paper lists for each of the four Final Fantasy preconstructed Commander Decks that volition motorboat alongside the enlargement adjacent month. The 4 decks are built astir 4 iconic entries from the mainline Final Fantasy series: Revival Trance, based on Final Fantasy VI; Limit Break, based connected Final Fantasy VII; Counter Blitz, based around Final Fantasy X; and Scions and Spellcraft, based astir Final Fantasy XIV. Each platform of 100 cards is wholly themed for the Final Fantasy set, from wholly caller cards to re-flavored takes connected already-existent Magic cards with caller thematically due art.

One specified re-flavor successful the Counter Blitz platform is Inspiring Call, a greenish mana instant that has been astir successful various Magic sets since it archetypal appeared successful 2015’s Dragons of Tarkir. It’s a elemental capable card, granting immoderate creatures you power that you’ve fixed +1/+1 counters to impermanent extortion portion besides drafting a fewer cards. But successful Counter Blitz, it becomes, well, much of an inspiring laugh:

© Francesca Resta/Wizards of the Coast

Yes, close down to the spirit text, we’re getting Yuna and Tidus’ infamous laughter country from Final Fantasy X successful paper form. An aboriginal infinitesimal successful the game, the country sees Yuna effort to cheer Tidus up arsenic the duo and the remainder of the enactment hole to transportation connected their pilgrimage to decision the monstrous entity known arsenic Sin, who Tidus has conscionable learned (spoilers for a 24-year-old PS2 game) is really seemingly a transformed corruption of his long-missing father, Jecht. Yuna, knowing her quest volition yet assertion her life, tries to get Tidus to larn however to fell his emotions and enactment connected a blessed face, archetypal virtually and past done comically forced laughter. The remainder is Final Fantasy meme history:

Although the intent of the country is that Tidus and Yuna’s laughter is meant to beryllium forced and awkward sounding (as you tin spot above, they interruption retired into genuine laughter instantly after), the clip of their barked laughs has spent the past 2 and a fractional decades taking connected a beingness of its ain arsenic a viral meme, from goofy euphony edits to dunks connected cringy video crippled dependable acting (X was the first Final Fantasy to diagnostic extended dependable acting). And now, its bequest is reclaimed in Magic.

It’s conscionable 1 of galore large small nods and references passim what we’ve seen of the Final Fantasy acceptable truthful far. The Commander Decks person revealed a ton of caller cards successful a akin vein that person large mechanical nods to their respective games—some of my favorites see Zack Fair in FFVII‘s, which lets you fundamentally replicate Cloud swiping Zack’s individuality aft his death, or Champions from Beyond in FFXIV‘s, a precise nifty motion to the MMORPG’s enactment finder mechanic (and one of the coolest moments successful its expansion Shadowbringers). Most of the nods are reverentially serious, befitting the passionateness that’s connected show for this gathering of fantastical titans. But it’s bully that successful cards similar Inspiring Call’s remixing, the Final Fantasy acceptable knows erstwhile to person a spot of forced laughter astatine itself too.

Magic: The Gathering – Final Fantasy hits shelves adjacent period connected June 13. Head connected implicit to Wizards’ paper representation gallery for the acceptable to spot adjacent much cards from the crossover!

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