Richard Garfield, the creator of collectible card game Magic: The Gathering, is designing a new game for the iPhone and iPad, and he's turning to Kickstarter to fund it. Map Monsters, described as a free-to-play location-based adventure game, centers around capturing monsters and uses real-world raw map data and your device's GPS to place you in a fantasy world. The developer, BodSix, is keen to point out that location is a secondary mechanic — although users will advance in the game faster if they do, it's not absolutely necessary to physically get out of the house to play the game.

Map Monsters has already been in development for over 12 months and the game engine, art assets, and core mechanics are all completed. Garfield says the development team needs $40,000 to add additional content, secondary mechanics, and social elements to the game. He's also planning to port the title to Android and says additional funds will go towards making that happen. As the final product will be free, contributors to the project are to receive their investment back in the form of in-game cash, with the higher tiers getting more and more elaborate gifts to go along with the credit. Funding will close on May 5th, and given the size of Garfield's fanbase we're pretty certain he'll reach his target.