Is MTG Festival in a Box from MagicCon Minneapolis worth the money?

Wizards of the Coast is selling a Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair bundle for MagicCon at Minneapolis, containing three booster boxes and more. 

The return of tabletop Magic and the Pro Tour has revived MagicCon events. Players and fans from around the globe gathered in Philadelphia during the month of Feb. for the Phyrexia: All Will Be One Pro Tour and the various events that also take place at a MagicCon festival. A Festival in the Box Secret Lair drop was offered to fans who attended the festival and to those who couldn’t.

The overall reception to the first Festival in a Box for MagicCon Philadelphia was that it was fine, but the contents that were included were a tad shy in value compared to the asking price. But that might not be the case with the second MTG Festival in a Box getting offered for the Minneapolis MagicCon, as the contents already have an established value on the secondary market. 

What is in the MTG Festival in a Box Secret Lair?

WotC has upgraded the Festival in a Box bundle that players can preorder now on the Secret Lair website for MagicCon Minneapolis. Priced at $269.99 with free shipping to most, the bundle contains three booster boxes, four unique alternative art Legendary Flyers foil cards, and one traditional foil Arcane Signet. 

• One Mystery booster convention box
• One Phyrexia: All Will Be One Draft booster box
• One The Brothers’ War Draft booster box
• The Secret Lair Legendary Flyers foil edition
• One Traditional foil Arcane Signet

Is the Secret Lair Festival in a Box worth the $269.99 price tag?

The best way to determine if a bundle like the Secret Lair Festival in a Box is worth its price tag is to separate out the items according to market value and determine if the product has any personal value to the buyer. 

Draft booster boxes are less valuable than set booster boxes, but players can still pull some ONE and BRO cards worth money while having the opportunity to play Draft with friends, either at a physical or digital gathering. 

• BRO Draft booster box: Estimated value sealed is around $90 to $100
• ONE Draft booster box: Estimated value sealed is around $95 to $110

The Mystery booster convention box, however, is a very different product. Designed for Choas Drafts, the Mystery booster box was first introduced in 2020. Convention Mystery booster boxes are typically worth more than retail store ones. The average price of a Mystery booster box sealed from 2020 to 2022 ranges from $200 to $340. 

Contents of what might be in the 2023 Mystery booster box haven’t been revealed by WotC at time of writing. But even if the box is worth half the value of previous versions, fans who purchase the Minneapolis Festival in a Box Secret Lair bundle are getting products that are worth more on the secondary market when sold individually, and that doesn’t include the Legendary Flyers or the foil Arcane Signet card. 

From a personal investment standpoint, the Mystery convention booster box is the icing on the cake, as it has the potential to cover most of the $269.99 price tag. Fans who enjoy playing Draft with friends, whether at home or through digital programs like Spelltable, can enjoy multiple drafts with the two Draft booster boxes while potentially cracking a pack with a card that’s worth money on the secondary market. 

Purchasing the Secret Lair box just for the Legendary Flyer cards with no intention of selling or using the booster boxes isn’t typically worth the money, though.

How to buy the MTG Minneapolis MagicCon Festival in a Box

Unlike other Secret Lair drops, the Minneapolis Festival in a Box product is not a timed-boxed-to-demand item. The quantity of the MTG box is limited. Fans can purchase the box at the Secret Lair website, with the Festival in a Box releasing on April 7.