Upper Deck, the publisher of the Legendary series of deck-building board games, has been urged not to create a Harry Potter-based tabletop title amid ongoing anti-trans campaigning from the character’s creator, JK Rowling.
Professional organisation The Tabletop Game Designers Association made the plea in the wake of Upper Deck announcing a deal for the “coveted” Harry Potter licence earlier this month, calling on the publisher to “help keep gaming a welcoming environment”.
Rowling – a dollar billionaire thanks to Harry Potter – has used financial proceeds from her creation to directly fund organisations attempting to strip trans people of their rights, and has spent the last several years making anti-trans statements.
Upper Deck said on January 7 that it would begin creating collectibles for the Harry Potter franchise, starting with two sets of trading cards due for release later this year, adding that it was “excited to bring its iconic brands and flagship products to the world of Harry Potter”.
The company’s previous collaboration with Warner Bros Discovery Global Consumer Products saw it launch a DC trading card set in March last year, which was followed in October with the announcement of Legendary: A DC Deckbuilding Game.
Following the TTGDA plea and rising numbers of comments across Upper Deck’s social media calling out the decision, the publisher yesterday made a single-sentence response on BlueSky and a BGG thread saying “Upper Deck has no plans to produce Harry Potter games at this time”.
But that response has not allayed the fears of board game designer Marceline Leiman, a TTGDA board member and founder of the Block collective – a group of board gamers she says “share the goal of sharing resources and information, disrupting bigoted spaces, and engaging in serious conversations on the topic of trans rights”.
Marceline Leiman
Leiman said on BlueSky, “Precisely the problem. You can and likely will in the future. WE DON’T WANT THIS. And this isn’t just about concerns of a game coming out from you. Please cancel any and all products that use JKR’s blood money.
“Please respond directly to the issues your community are flagging for you all across your social media that you keep erasing and blocking. It’s undeniable that every company that supports this IP plays an economic function connected to this transphobic death cult machine.
“Making this decision isn’t just a business decision. It’s a value based decision. This could all be connected to ignorance or misunderstanding – and if it is, PLEASE COMMUNICATE AND WORK WITH US. We actively want to work with you and help you learn and grow based on your failure to support us.
“You’re saying you’re transphobic without saying you’re transphobic. You’re telling us to get bent. You’re telling us you don’t care. If you want to be better than your actions have been so far, speak up. Because so far… this non-response has been unacceptable.
“I insist any and all readers following this story continue with the boycott of Upper Deck products. No purchase, promotional video, post, or ANYTHING that can trade them attention for the algorithms. Don’t give them an inch. Not until they give us a proper response and a plan to move forward.”
BoardGameWire contacted Upper Deck several days ago with questions about its plans for the Harry Potter licence and the pushback it had received so far, but no one at the company has responded.
Last year Codenames publisher Czech Games Edition faced a boycott from some of board gaming’s biggest and most influential reviewers, including Shut Up & Sit Down and No Pun Included, after deciding to release a new Harry Potter-themed version of the title.
Immediate online criticism of the move intensified two days later when CGE released a short statement attempting to justify its decision to release the game – which was panned for going out of its way to avoid mentioning Harry Potter or JK Rowling by name.
TTGDA was among the critical voices of CGE’s decision, saying at the time, “Author JK Rowling’s extreme anti-trans rhetoric has caused physical and emotional harm to a particularly vulnerable group, and the licensing fees she receives from the game will be used to support these attacks.
“CGE released a statement about the controversy around their decision, but it fell far short of anything meaningful.
“TTGDA is dedicated to fostering diversity in designers and diversity in viewpoints. However we do not accept intolerance and demonization of a specific group as an acceptable viewpoint. This is particularly true as anti-trans rhetoric and action has been increasing in many countries around the world, including the United Kingdom and United States.”
In a follow-up response two weeks later CGE apologised “unreservedly” for failing to take into account how “the harmful views of the story’s creator have escalated into harmful actions”.
The publisher committed to donating 100% of the game’s profits to appropriate charities, and said an amount equal to or greater than the fee paid to license the product would go directly to organisations that provide support for the trans community.
It said at the time, “Many of you have expressed your understandable anger, pain, and disappointment through a variety of platforms. Frankly, we were not prepared for the volume of the response. As a result, multiple accounts and comments were blocked or muted that should not have been.
“We would never want anyone experiencing the pain this situation has caused to then feel like they are being silenced. So for that, too, we want to sincerely apologize.
“Like the world we live in, CGE is made up of individuals with various backgrounds, gender identities, sexual orientations, and belief systems. None of us would ever want to take actions that would hurt or restrict the rights of another human being.
“We commit to remaining supportive of an inclusive and welcoming community of gamers. We believe in the rights of all people to have their own identity, and we reject hate and bigotry in all their forms. Trans rights are human rights.”
Last year Upper Deck lost a long-running legal battle with Ravensburger, which it had accused of stealing the design of its trading card game Rush of Ikorr in order to create the hugely successful Disney Lorcana TCG.
