In a recent user study, we interviewed players to try to get a feel for how people use Magic Online, to help us hone in on the proper priority for issues we were already aware of, and to give us the opportunity to hear the thoughts and suggestions of these selected players in the hopes we might learn something new. One suggestion we saw time and again, alongside those about the client and gameplay, was for increased communication. Players told us that they want more transparency—they want to know what we're working on currently and what's coming up in the future.
Chris Kiritz has written some great update articles (like the one linked previously) that give players the latest on Magic Online development. Between articles, however, players find themselves wondering if anything has changed, and what progress we're making on goals set in the last update. That's where the new Known Issues List and this Bug Blog come in. We don't want players to be in the dark when it comes to issues we're aware of and what we're working to fix. The Known Issues List will be updated weekly to include issues that we feel players are likely to encounter, issues that are scheduled to be fixed soon, and issues that we've recently resolved. Again, this is not a comprehensive list of known issues, simply the ones that we feel players are most likely to run into. These issues are also not sorted in any particular order, aside from their category (scheduled, fixed, etc.). But while the Known Issues List is not sorted by priority or projected fix date, bugs and performance issues listed as "scheduled" have a fix scheduled for the near future.
While the Known Issues List is simply that—a running list of issues we expect players to encounter most often—this accompanying “Bug Blog” is the list’s companion. Here you’ll find updates regarding emergent new issues, details around issue statuses when applicable, known issue workarounds, and a running tally of Known Issues List updates. The Bug Blog will be updated each Thursday, in conjunction with the Known Issues List on the same day. In the event of especially time sensitive or urgent communication, however, we may post a Bug Blog on another day in order to reach you all in a timely manner. Like the Weekly Announcements, the Bug Blog will live on MTGO.com.