I just watched a video where FFG reps announced the new format based rules. So they are going to cycle out older sets as they release new ones.

I am sure this was bound to happen the more they release cards, however, I just got into the game about 5 months ago, and only get to play monthly if I am lucky. I have spent $350 on this game so far and have about 90% of what is currently available, and now half of what I purchased will cycle out of play in 2016. That's disappointing. Hope they have "legacy" formats where everything released is legal.

Can you link to the video? When they first made that announcement over a year ago, they had said it wouldn't happen until they had completed 8 cycles. They just finished the SanSan Cycle which is the fourth one. At the rate they release them it will be about two years before we get to eight cycles and then only the Genesis and Spin cycles will go away. Then, after two more cycles bring them back up to eight, the Lunar and SanSan cycles phase out. The core set and deluxe expansions will never phase out. Your collection will last you a good long while.

Sorry, small correction. When the first pack of the 8th cycle is released, then Genesis and Spin will rotate out. So it's more like a year and a half before it starts. Unless new information has come out since this press release.

https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2014/11/5/a-new-stage-of-growth/

Even if they released one pack a month without any delays or interruptions from here on out, we still wouldn't hit rotation until well into 2017. Also, they are very unlikely to actually manage one pack a month with no interruptions.

It is still quite a lot less than a standard CCG even with only a little over a year to go before the rotation. I have had a few friends who have started after the announcement and they always say they are going to not pick up the first two cycles that will cycle out. All of them have caved. It is harder playing without all the options for the year and a half or more before those cycles rotate out than it is dealing with their limited lifespan. Ultimately you will get your money's worth in play out of them long before the rotation actually hits. I have played myself a little over a year and a half and in that time I feel I have played my money's worth out of those first two cycle. The fact that I have that much time left to use them is just bonus.

Just go with the big boxes. Now that every faction has an expansion and the runner mini-factions are out you have enough cards to play what ever faction you want.

As of the rotation isn't Game of Thrones the only LCG that has been out long enough to start this rotation? Considering they did a 2nd edition right now that is the only LCG that should be worried about their collection being outdated.

A Game of Thrones actually has the least to worry about right now. Since second edition is out soon, their countdown to rotation is starting over. None of the previously released stuff will count since the two editions are not compatible.

Basically, for all the LCGs, the first two Chapter/Data/War/Force pack cycles rotate out after the 8th cycle starts, then 3, 4 go out when the 10th cycle starts, and 5, 6 go out when the 12th cycle starts.

So, basically, as soon as the rotation was announced, AGOT would have lost 4 Chapter Pack cycles and two more imminent, and the impact to the card pool would have been devastating. Several core mechanics would have dropped out of the game, leaving swathes of the remaining card pool unplayable.

It would have taken a couple of years for the meta to recover, and the value of the packs remaining in print would be diminished by the dead weight of invalidated cards. Plus the rules were awkward, there were some mechanics that never quite worked as intended, and they figured the game would probably languish if they didn't take a new tactic.

So, here we are. New game. Better game.

A Game of Thrones actually has the least to worry about right now. Since second edition is out soon, their countdown to rotation is starting over. None of the previously released stuff will count since the two editions are not compatible.

Well that is a double edge sword. I know if I collected every GoT pack and this happened then I would probably be quitting that card game. Hopefully we don't see this in Netrunner. Cycling sets I can understand but invalidating a whole collection is frustrating.

A Game of Thrones actually has the least to worry about right now. Since second edition is out soon, their countdown to rotation is starting over. None of the previously released stuff will count since the two editions are not compatible.

Well that is a double edge sword. I know if I collected every GoT pack and this happened then I would probably be quitting that card game. Hopefully we don't see this in Netrunner. Cycling sets I can understand but invalidating a whole collection is frustrating.

From what I understand, the majority of the community see the upside of it.

Yes. The rules were in such a bad state and so many cards broken that a full reset and starting over actually made the most sense, even to the majority of the player base.