Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes
Briefing
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast / Hasbro
Game / Set: Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes
Territory: Germany
Release Date: June 26th, 2026
Social Platforms: YouTube, Instagram, TikTok
Goal: Launch the Marvel Super Heroes crossover under the theme “Assemble”. Welcome Marvel fans, reignite lapsed Magic players, and give collectors something worth chasing, without losing what makes Magic work for its core community.
Approach
Marvel Super Heroes brought two fanbases with two very different expectations into one set: Marvel audiences who come for story and spectacle, and Magic players who come for depth and mechanical integrity.
We therefore centered the campaign around German creators who genuinely enjoy Magic, and merged their passion for the game with widespread appeal strong enough to cut through the noise while staying true to the Magic underneath it.
The campaign was split into two phases: a hero content piece to launch the crossover and drive reach, and an offline event in Berlin to convert that attention into hands-on play and community engagement.
Phase 1: Hero Content Piece
Goal: Launch the crossover with a piece of content strong enough to resonate with both Marvel and Magic audiences internationally, built around a talent with credibility in both worlds.
Territory: Germany, extending internationally
Platform: YouTube, Instagram, IGN (paid media push across all relevant GSA websites)
Campaign Approach
The centerpiece was a hero video built around Daniel Brühl, one of Germany's most successful international actors, known for playing Baron Zemo in the MCU. With Zemo confirmed to have his own card in the Marvel Super Heroes set, we decided to bring the character back to the screen, casting Brühl as the antagonist, and a team of German content creators as the heroes.
Creator casting focused on gaming and culture talent who could properly carry the story alongside Daniel. We landed on Mango (RvNxMango), Mahluna, and Leon from Bonjwa, a cast that balanced genuine love for the game with relevant reach. The piece lived on Mango's channel as well as both the Magic The Gathering and IGN YouTube channel, so it could reach the wider gaming audience in addition to the core Magic community.
Content Strategy
The deliverable set included:
A hero content piece, roughly 5 minutes long, hosted on Mango's channel, IGN, and with English subtitles carried on the official Magic: The Gathering YouTube channel.
Trailers for social media and an exclusive behind the scenes article on IGN.
15–30 second cutdowns for paid media across GSA, with an endcard promoting the offline event in Berlin.
Results (earned)
Total views: 865,000
Average engagement rate: 2.86% (industry standard: 0.5–1.5%)
The video became the most-watched post on the Magic DE Instagram channel and ranked top 3 on the UK/European channel. Despite the German channel's much smaller following than the US channel, it outperformed it on average views. International audiences responded just as strongly, engaging with the subtitled version despite the language barrier and celebrating the creative choice to involve Daniel Brühl.
Content Highlights
Phase 2: Offline Event “HELDEN GESUCHT”
Goal: For this phase the goal was to turn the launch moment into a hands-on cultural event in Berlin, giving Marvel and Magic audiences a place to meet, and inviting both newcomers and experienced players to play the new set.
Territory: Germany (Berlin)
Platform: On-site activation, amplified via Instagram and relevant social media through creator meet and greets.
Campaign Approach
For two days (July 10–11th), we had Magic The Gathering take over The Playce at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin, with large-scale advertisement banners hanging from the ceiling, plus physical and digital assets throughout the mall. Two retail partners, The Upside Down café and the DUO Flagship store were also integrated into the activation, whilst Gamegenic supplied playmats, sleeves and deckboxes.
The ground floor held a play area hosting over 60 simultaneous players (expanded to 76 on the second day to meet demand), with 30 additional seats in the café. The lovely Magic staff from Black Fire ran demo sessions and taught new players how to play the game, and every participant took home at least one Welcome Deck.
We also put up various activation stations spread across the shopping mall, with an accompanying stamp card to guide visitors through the different stations, each awarding an oversized Fantastic Four card. The stations included Superhero Training Parkour, the play area, a themed photobooth, and finally the DUO Lounge where visitors inserted their favorite new cards into comic templates and created their own short stories to share. Clearing all four stations unlocked a spin on the Fortune Wheel for additional prizes. A crane game, playable once per visitor per day and stocked with eye-catching prizes like Collector's Boosters and Beginner Boxes, and two Magic themed vending machines placed at opposite ends of the mall rounded out the activation and drew in passersbys.
Over 15 creators and celebrities of all sizes attended, celebrating the launch with their communities on top of the on-site turnout.
Results (earned)
Total views: 1,401,000+
Average engagement rate: 3.58%
Visitors to The Playce during the marketing period: 222,326
Visitors during the event itself: 56,176
Active MTG demos: 969
Draft participants: 64 players
Visitors who completed all challenges: 700
Superhero Training Parkour plays: 745
Photobooth uses: 800+
Claw Game plays: 2,500+
72% of visitors who took part in a demo session went on to complete the full stamp rally, a strong signal that the activation kept participants engaged from first touchpoint through to the end. The event drew a notably high, steady stream of demo participants compared to a typical convention setting, and the activation resonated across generations: several groups of children returned to clear stations multiple times, including repeat runs of the Superhero Training Parkour.
Content Highlights
IN SUMMARY
Marvel Super Heroes delivered a launch moment that resonated with a large audience and generated clear visibility for Magic: The Gathering in the German market. Players and longtime fans felt seen and represented, while the campaign also reached a non-Magic audience, including a younger generation of potential players discovering the game for the first time.
By going local-first, casting a talent and creator lineup that carried genuine credibility within both the Marvel and Magic communities, and building a two-phase structure that turned a hero content moment into a hands-on, community-facing event, Black Soup delivered a crossover that leaned fully into “Assemble” without losing the Magic underneath it.
