I would be happy for them to rotate out core +/- Genesis today and release a new core on one condition:
They sell it in two levels.
A) starter edition (equivalent to how they do their cores now)
B) tournament edition (3x every card)
B would cost more than A, but not 3x more. It wouldn’t be like having to buy three cores just because you need playsets of Desperado and SSCG.
If they release a different Core, it’d probably be more like what aGoT 2.0 has. As in, lots of 1-ofs.
I’m completely done with buying new FFG LCGs if they keep up the buy three cores thing. I’ve moved onto PHG, where every card in their LCG has three copies.
I would absolutely rather buy a Core Set with ~200 singleton unique cards (Thrones) than with a full playset of ~80 unique cards (Ashes). I’d guess the “board game” out-of-the-box experience of a 200-card core is stronger than an 80-card one, and I think an overall meta gets more out of 200 unique cards than 80, assuming they’re well-designed and don’t represent a broken/imbalanced meta from the onset.
Netrunner split the difference with 100-odd unique cards, and I feel like it mostly succeeded, but having bought Thrones I have to say I like that model better.
FFG should really release a “Tournament Data Pack”, which would have 2x of every singleton and 1x of every card with 2 copies from the core. This would make it a bit easier for new players to jump on board.
I like that type of thinking. The game is not broken at all, and FFG should just make it easier for new people to pick it up at a reasonable price.
How about a series of standalone “versus” boxes (pitting a corp against a runner faction) - something like the deluxe packs, but with actually honestly playable decks (could include old cards that are good, y’know) and a slightly bigger card pool to allow for 2-3 different flavours of each faction, without going over the top and showcasing jank.
FFG is probably at a place where they can’t quite make money doing that, at least not without solid proof it will pay off. I say they should just make a sick digital version via kickstarter.