All FFG had to do was print 'NEXT Opal gains "-> The Corp gains 1$" for each rezzed piece of NEXT ice.' but instead they gave us this shit; it'll only encourage asset spam, which I think we all agree sucks. Why the f*ck did they think this was okay? Talk about turning my favorite suite of ice into a joke. Thanks, FFG. Thank you for understanding.

It's cool that they are printing more NEXT ice, especially because NEXT Bronze and NEXT Silver are rotating soon. However, this ice does not seem very good as printed. Without a "May" in front of install, this ice would require you to dump your entire hand if there are a few NEXT ices installed. Maybe Cerebral Imaging: Infinite Frontiers will like this? I can't think of any other ID that would use it as is.

TL;DR it's bad.

With errata, this card is now playable. For the cost of 4, you get a for installing things for each NEXT ice in play. So let's say it's the dream and you have 2 other NEXT ice in play when the runner facechecks this. You gained ! #ValueTown

But if you're installing more ice, you're paying the costs of installing - which in this example is probably 3-4 more. The best value is probably installing lots of assets or upgrades.

Also, you're only installing stuff from hand. I think you need to build your deck around it so you have a high number of installables (AAL instead of IPO, for example). And if this is on R&D and I'm the runner about to make lots of Equivocation runs, I'll just let it fire every time. You'll get some free installs but you'll run out of cards in hand.

I think the comparison here is Architect, which gives you the same numbers but for a sentry (usually more expensive to break), lets you draw a card from your deck and install it, gives you info about whats on top of your deck, and gives you the option of installing something from archives. Plus it can't be trashed.

This needed some tweaks, either waving install costs, letting you install from archives (Crick costs 1), or being half the cost to rez. :-/

The sad thing is the NEXT suite of ice will be dragged down in power level until like 2021 when this thing rotates out.

This is quite possibly the most poorly designed card in the game so far, all because the words “The Corp may” are missing from the subroutine. Because it’s not optional, the corp will be forced to install at least 1 card from HQ each time it fires. The card seems to favour an asset spam style, and the last thing FFG should be encouraging is more asset spam.

It’s a piece of NEXT ice that you never want to play alongside other NEXT ice because it’s too risky (unless asset spam), completely negating the point of NEXT ice. It also appears to have no synergy with NEXT Design: Guarding the Net, which generally favours massing lots of ice over as few servers as possible. So, either the corp has to install cards in useless remote servers, trash stuff already installed to make space, or pay a big install cost if it’s a piece of ice.

But worst of all, the corp can lie by saying they don’t have anything in hand they can install, and the only way the runner can try to keep them honest is through access or expose effects. If it does see play in its current form, eventually someone at a tournament will be caught cheating, or be falsely accused of cheating, and NEXT Opal will have enabled that. It's unacceptable and unhealthy for the game and perversely its only saving grace is that it might be to poor to see play.

Could this install an Asset replacing the current root being run? If it can, this lets you dump an Agenda you're about to lose into Archives, mid-run. Which is kind of cool, and better than the runner scoring it...you could also swap it with a trap? The flavour text seems to hint at this: "I passed through the opalescent curtain only to find a suddenly empty server..."

I don't think this card is as bad as people here have been saying. Yes it makes subroutines that if they fire force the Corp to install 1 card from HQ. Okay I can see how you may not want to do that, but the only way a Corp may not have the ability to install something and pay for it's install cost is if it is installing ICE farther out on a server. Because unless something has changed, installing a card in a server or in the root of a server or installing any ICE in the first position doesn't cost credits to do. REZZING a card costs credits but this card doesn't say install and rez paying all costs. It just says Install 1 card paying all costs.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the Corp player gets to choose which cards to install and where. If you have a hand full of ICE....this could let you throw up new ICE without wasting clicks. It also would help with asset spam.

A third thing to keep in mind, should this fire and you have agendas in hand. You can put them in a server with ICE protecting it. Or if you really want to protect things you could install an agenda. Then install over it. Then install over that. Nothing on the card says you can't.

Personally I think this piece of ICE is useful in a NEXT Level Design deck or any deck that runs a lot of ICE. If nothing else as the flavor text on the card suggests. Stick this in front of HQ only and if they run you can make sure they don't get access to anything good by installing it first if they let it fire.

All in all I think this card definitely has a place.