Disney has today requested that Pixleborn, a super popular fan-made digital Lorcana site, be shut down and the creator is complying.
The launch of Disney Lorcana TCG was anything but smooth, with Ravensburger facing major product shortages for The First Chapter. But that was in 2023 and product issues are no longer an issue today. And card prices are holding their value on the secondary market. On May 29 the creator of the digital Lorcana site called Pixleborn posted a message on Reddit from Disney, with the organization essentially asking Pavel to shut it down since “Disney has intellectual property rights in the Disney Lorcana cards and that Disney has requested Pixelborn to respect these rights by not copying the cards.”
Pavel is respecting Disney’s wishes and will permanently shut Pixleborn down on June 16. For many seeking to competitively play Lorcana, this is a huge blow. Some feel Disney is missing out on a huge opportunity to purchase Pixleborn, and as cool as it would be, a digital version of Lorcana isn’t in TCG’s future.
“Ravensburger told retailers at the game’s debut that they have no intention of creating a digital version of the game because those are different rights than the ones they license from Disney, said a Reddit user. “Ravensburger has changed their minds on a lot of things, of course, but I think it’s important to note that Pavel received this request from Disney, not Ravensburger. I wouldn’t hold my breath for an official online game.”
The timing of the request seems to fit with the idea that Ravensburger is pushing tabletop over digital as was given around the same time as the first Lorcana Regional tournament where Hall of Fame MTG Frank Karsten overcame a field of 2,000 players to win.
Pixleborn shutting down is a very sad day for many eager Disney Lorcana TCG players but we all suspected it was inevitable. Players can still visit local stores or gather around an empty spot on the floor or a kitchen table (if they still exist) and play the popular Disney card game. And maybe that’s not the most horrible thing.
