I remember getting the heads up that Topps was going to be releasing an app that had no gameplay component. It was quite jarring to think that a digital app could prevail without some sort of reason to come back every day, and I had no idea it would turn into what it did. In fact, I would go as far as saying Topps Digital may never have survived without SWCT’s boom in March 2015, but you never know.

Now that we have seen the roller coaster ride reach two years, I find myself continuing to look back on the beginning with a longing desire for a simpler time, but I know that I have similar feelings about physical cards in some ways too. Its a natural evolution in a lot of ways, and I can guarantee that these ups and downs are not going to stop any time soon.

I do have to give a lot of compliments to the staff, both on design and production this time for doing whatthey can to reclaim some of the glory that was lost during the dark times of 2016. We have seen a much more cohesive way that the app has come together, and the birthday celebration is a perfect example of how far things have come in a short amount of time. Although clear that the app still has a long, long way to go, I am confident that this bump in quality overall should eventually get back on a track where there is a future for the long term plan.

I absolutely love that they brought back the original base design for Rogue One and that the favorite sets of the original run were highlighted too. It really served as a reminder of why the app was so much fun, and I hope that this isnt the last time we have an opportunity to celebrate in this fashion.

At some point we do have an overall question that needs answering, and it has to do with how the team plans to keep things interesting. We are now almost six months into Rogue One content, and its clear that Episode VIII will have a similarly long road map. It gets to be long in the tooth at this point, where people are just sick of another set.

Im constantly curious how the entire scope of digital cards continues to evolve and improve, because it isnt going to be infinitely fun to chase the same cards, with the same set formats, in the same app. There has to be a change on the horizon or this long term plan cannot be as long term. I have to believe the team has had a ton of conversations over where to go next, but we havent really seen much product development during the last year. Smuggler’s Den is now a distant memory, and there has really been no commitment to making that type of feature work.

Right now, I get they are in the middle of a reclamation project, but I cant continue to call for new game features and updates without feeling like they arent listening. Something as simple as adding a showcase has been promised for almost 18 months, and yet, here we are. I get that Topps needs to deliver content regularly to keep the lights on, but the team needs to dedicate resources to improving both user experience and features, and not just for SWCT.

Things have gotten better since Rogue One really started ramping up, and the change in direction has felt very good overall. I just want this celebration of a huge landmark to renew the commitment to making things better over the next two years as well.