MTG’s Spider-Man Survey: The “Catch” is WotC’s Influence “Witch Hunt”

Wizards of the Coast (WotC) has issued a community survey seeking feedback on the widely controversial Magic: The Gathering | Marvel’s Spider-Man set. While standard post-release surveys are common, this one has ignited fresh outrage due to a highly contentious “catch”—a question that appears to lay the groundwork for blaming negative reception on content creators and MTG influencers.

The Spider-Man set, a major entry in the non-canonical Universes Beyond (UB) line, has been a lightning rod for community dissent, criticized for everything from the generic card art and “filler” cards (like a ‘Hot Dog Cart’) to what many see as a general decline in the quality and focus of core Magic products.

The Question That Sparked the Backlash

The problematic element of the survey appears after a participant indicates that they sourced their information about the set from a content creator or streamer. The follow-up question asks participants to rate the degree to which negative influencer commentary impacted their perceptions of the set, with a scale ranging from “Greatly worsened my perception” to “Greatly improved my perception.”

This phrasing has been widely condemned by both players and creators, with many prominent figures calling it a “witch hunt.”

• Accusations of Blame-Shifting: Critics argue that instead of taking full responsibility for the set’s perceived design and quality failures, WotC is attempting to gather data to pin the blame on creators who were critical of the product.
• Influencer Worry: The survey also asks participants to name the streamers they follow, fueling concern among content creators that negative feedback could lead to WotC retaliating by limiting card previews, sponsorships, or partnership opportunities.

WotC Responds to the Controversy

Following the significant and immediate negative reaction on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit, WotC staff, including Magic’s head designer Mark Rosewater and a communication lead, addressed the issue.

A WotC representative reportedly admitted that the question’s unusually negative focus “sucks” and was a mistake, assuring the community that the survey was not intended to be malicious or to be used to target the creator community. They stated the aim was simply to gather feedback on how players perceived the product and its various information sources.

The Context: The Universes Beyond Divide

The survey controversy is a symptom of a larger, ongoing rift within the Magic: The Gathering community regarding the Universes Beyond line, which brings characters and settings from other IPs (like Marvel, Lord of the Rings, and Warhammer 40,000) into the game.

While WotC maintains that the line is incredibly successful and is bringing an unprecedented number of new players to the game (citing internal metrics), a vocal portion of the veteran player base fears the “Fortnite-ification” of Magic, believing the constant influx of non-canonical IP is diluting the game’s core fantasy setting and increasing product fatigue.

The fact that a high-profile set like Spider-Man was not a home-run—despite the immense popularity of the Marvel IP—highlights the commercial risk and artistic difficulty of these crossovers, which WotC is betting heavily on, even going so far as to announce that more Universes Beyond sets than in-universe sets will release in 2026. The backlash suggests that even a powerhouse like Spider-Man cannot overcome fundamental issues with set design and execution.