Hey,
What is the difference between being out of play and being in play but protected unless it explicitly states it targets face down cards?
To game play, very very little. To the intuitiveness, system, and top-down-ness of the game, a whole lot.
Consider the following elements of the status quo...
Ambush says that the character enters battle face down. The face down rule says while it's face down it's out of play. So which is it, in battle or out of play, it can't be both?
Face down artifacts are out of play by the face down rule. The artifact pile is in play. So how do we explain that cards in one location (out of play) make up a pile that is in a different location (in play)?
Invisible Beings sets a character aside face down. Is the character out of play (set aside) or out of play (face down)?
Those three are much easier to explain under the system I proposed than they are under the system that is currently in place.
Tschow,
Tim "Sir Nobody" Maly