MetaZoo Games LLC will host a two-day “Water Tower” regional trading card game tournament this weekend at Great Wolf Lodge in Mason. To date, there has not been an entry fee, but contenders must have previously played at qualifying events within a certain timeframe to be eligible for one of the 160 player spots. Spectators are welcome to attend.
“This will be our first regional event. Our regional events are called towers, and this is going to be our ‘Water Tower’ event. We are having one of those each month, which will lead up to our main event, Caster’s Cup 2023, which is going to be held at New York Comic Con in October, and we’re having even more considerable cash prizing for that one as well,” Evans said.
More than 500 players have signed up to be considered for the Mason tournament. The first-place prize promises a $20,000 cash prize, $30,000 in MetaZoo product and all-expense paid travel to the tournament. Plus, the winner will receive exclusive promos, play mats and trophies. More details on the tournament and prizes are available at https://play.metazoogames.com.
“We have a cash prize pool of over $50,000, and we have over $75,000 in MetaZoo product that we are offering as well,” Evans said.
Loveland’s Frogman Festival will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday at Great Wolf Lodge Conference Center. Tickets for the Frogman Festival are $10.
MetaZoo’s “Water Tower” tournament play will be 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday (for the main event with eight rounds of play) and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Sunday’s event will be the top cut of 32-players from Day 1. Registration will open at 9 a.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. on Sunday. Players have signed up in advance.
The event will also be live-streamed on Twitch.tv/metazoogames.
MetaZoo is a collectable card game whose products have been compared to Pokémon, but with cryptids, which are mythical creatures that have never been proven to exist. An example of a cryptid would be Mothman or Bigfoot, and Loveland Frogman, which is local to Ohio.
The goal of the game is to reduce your opponent’s life points from 1,000 to zero, with a combination of creatures, spells, and magic potions. Players can also use the real-world environment such as the weather, or clothing they’re wearing to influence how the cards play. The game can be played casually or competitively.
“The thing that sets us apart from every other trading card game is that we have something that’s called ‘fourth walls.’ The real world that you play in actually influences how the cards interact with one another,” Evans said. “… So, it’s much less about sitting at a table and playing a game, it’s actually having the surroundings change how the cards play, which is interesting.”
Founded by Dr. Michael Waddell, MetaZoo was founded in Aug. 2020 with a Kickstarter campaign. The first, official set “Cryptid Nation,” first edition, launched in July 2021. MetaZoo’s latest Kickstarter campaign, launched late last year, raised more than $1.8 million with more than 5,300 backers. MetaZoo cards can be found in major retailers like Walmart, Target, Barnes & Noble as well as at local game stores.
Several members of MetaZoo’s art team will be at the tournament and Waddell will also make an appearance.
“We’re hoping to have people come by, talk with them, and get some signatures and doodles, and that kind of thing,” said Evans.
There are about 14,483 members on MetaZoo’s official Discord, where members share about new releases and play live games. Additionally, there are the in-person MetaZoo tournaments, like the regional event coming to Mason, which are largely organized through the MetaZoo Play Network.
In October 2022, MetaZoo Games released the “Séance” spirit set. The next set, “Native” will release in April. Evans also said there are plans for video games this year, animated shorts and a book.
For more information about MetaZoo Games, go online to metazoogames.com and for more on the Loveland Frogman Festival, visit frogmanfestival.com.
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