Marvel Snap

Fixing trust: A Message to Second Dinner

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Fixing trust: A Message to Second Dinner

Marvel Snap faces several critical issues that need urgent attention. Two major problems stand out:

  1. Card Acquisition
  2. Series Drops

In February 2024, I shared my concerns about series drops on my blog and Reddit. At the time, I didn’t fully grasp the broader challenges the game was facing. Since then, my understanding of these issues—and how they might be fixed—has deepened.

Here’s my message to Second Dinner: you’ve lost my trust. I no longer believe you’re acting in the players’ best interests to resolve these problems. What I want is simple: regular communication about these issues and a discussion of potential solutions. A bi-weekly or monthly update would demonstrate that you’re listening and working towards fixes.

I’m not asking for a detailed timetable—software development timelines can and do slip. But if you continue down this path, you risk killing your game. Many games have followed similar trajectories, and the results are rarely good. You’ve already had months to address these concerns, and the patience of many players, including myself, is running thin.

Addressing the Core Problems

1. Card Acquisition

The current card acquisition system is slow, frustrating, and heavily skewed against players—especially newer ones. With five new cards released each month (one season pass card and four spotlight cards), resources like spotlight caches and the token shop are stretched thin by design. This creates several issues:

  • Spotlight System Lockouts: Some cards, like Baron Zemo (released in April 2024), remain inaccessible for months. Zemo has not appeared in a single spotlight cache and costs a staggering 6,000 tokens—resources that take weeks or months to collect. Even then, players must wait for his occasional appearance in the token shop.Marvel Snap decks are small and highly optimized, so many cards don’t have equivalent substitutes. Without access to key cards like Zemo, players are locked out of entire archetypes. If they finally acquire the card months later, the meta may have shifted, making their effort feel wasted.
  • Resource Scarcity: The game’s limited token acquisition and spotlight cache availability worsen the issue. Players are forced to make tough choices that often feel unrewarding, especially when meta-defining cards are out of reach.
  • New Player Turnoff: Snap does a great job onboarding players in Series 1 and 2, but Series 3 (with 109 cards and growing) throws them into a chaotic grind. Without clear paths to unlock archetype-defining cards, new players quickly become frustrated and disengaged.
Suggested Fixes for Card Acquisition
  1. Curated Unlocks in Series 3: Once a player enters Series 3, every level could provide a curated card, giving them control and direction over their collection.
  2. Catch-Up Bundles: Introduce affordable bundles for specific archetypes to help new and returning players catch up.
  3. Resource Improvements: Increase token rewards and spotlight cache availability to make the system more player-friendly.

2. Series Drops

The series drop system is another source of frustration. While Snap does a great job onboarding new players with curated card pools in Series 1 and 2, Series 3, Series 4 (27 cards), and Series 5 (73 cards) create an unmanageable bottleneck. Players face daunting odds when trying to acquire specific cards, leaving many unable to build competitive decks.

Key Problems with Series Drops
  1. Inconsistent and Bloated Drops: Series 3 has 109 cards (soon to be 112), making it nearly impossible to acquire specific cards in a timely fashion.
  2. Unclear Schedule: Players have no visibility into when cards will drop or why certain cards are chosen.
  3. Poor Value: Recent series drops often include underwhelming cards, offering little to address the core accessibility issues.
Proposed Fixes for Series Drops
  1. Predictable Schedule: Establish a regular, transparent schedule for series drops.
  2. Cap Series Sizes: Limit Series 4 and 5 to a maximum of 20 cards each, with older cards moving down more consistently.
  3. Lower Token Costs: Reduce the cost of Series 4 cards to 1,000 tokens and Series 5 cards to 2,000 tokens to improve accessibility.
  4. Remove Duplicate Spotlight Cache Cards: Ensure players don’t waste resources on cards they already own.

Moving Forward

Second Dinner, the time to act is now. Your players need regular communication to rebuild trust and stay engaged. Developer blogs, forums, or live updates would provide much-needed transparency and show players you’re serious about addressing their concerns.

Take inspiration from Warframe’s developers, who host weekly and monthly update streams to discuss progress and engage with their community. While your monthly season updates are appreciated, they feel more like marketing tools than meaningful communication.

We’re not asking for miracles, but we do expect accountability and meaningful progress. The longer these issues go unaddressed, the harder it will be to retain your player base. Listen to the community, address these problems, and show us that you’re committed to making Marvel Snap the best game it can be.

Final Thoughts

I know these aren’t perfect, catch-all solutions, but they’re a starting point for dialogue. What do you think, fellow players? Are these issues affecting your experience? Let’s discuss.