Blake Rasmussen Interview - Magic: The Gathering's 2023 Plans & Pro Tours

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is poised to experience a colossal 2023. The long-time tabletop juggernaut has continued to bolster its digital offerings with support, while this year marks the long-awaited return of paper Pro Tours, with the first having just taken place in Philadelphia. There's a strong combination of interesting elements for both casual players and those who are much more invested.

At the center of this exciting year is Wizards of the Coast Senior Communications Manager Blake Rasmussen. Rasmussen is perhaps best known for his role in the recurring WeeklyMTG broadcast, where he's joined by guests to discuss information ranging from the next updates on pro play to a new Secret Lair release.

Rasmussen's role is significantly larger than that forward-facing delivery, however — he's a leader in the voice of and how the brand communicates with its players. Screen Rant sat down with Rasmussen during MagicCon Philadelphia to discuss his always evolving role, how to talk to players, and his love of Canadian Highlander.

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Screen Rant: I feel like your role at Wizards of the Coast, while doing my research, changed quite a lot. From Editor-in-Chief to Senior Communications Manager, the thing that seems to be linking it together is direct dialogue with the players. What do you think is key to having a successful and healthy dialogue with the players?

Blake Rasmussen: It is continuously a challenge, because what you said is really key: it's the dialogue. It's having that back and forth, both getting feedback and responding to players and fans. That is just straight up a challenge when you have a community as as big and varied as Magic is.

If you want to see what the