Upper Deck levied allegations of plagiarism on June 7 against Ravensburger, the developer of Lorcana, Disney’s new trading card game.
Upper Deck accused Ravensburger and a previously employed designer of “stealing and copying Upper Deck’s original game,” according to a press release. Company president Jason Masherah said Upper Deck is serious about the lawsuit and claimed “significant time and resources” went into developing a new trading card game.
The lawsuit hasn’t been publicly released at the time of writing, but if the allegations of stolen intellectual property are related to major mechanics, like card types and how to win a game, then it’s possible Disney Lorcana‘s official release may not drop into local game stores on Aug. 18.
Ravensburger senior communications director Lisa Krueger told Dot Esports that no lawsuit has been served and that the organization “stands behind the integrity of [its] team and the originality of [its] products.”
“The baseless claims filed this week are entirely without merit, and we look forward to proving this in due time,” Krueger told Dot Esports on June 9. “In the meantime, our focus continues to be on developing and launching a fantastic game in August.”
The Disney Lorcana trading card game contains interesting gameplay mechanics that have excited many within the TCG space. From using cards with an Ink cost to cast characters and spells to gathering Lore counters to win a game, the overall design taps into popular TCG mechanics with a healthy splash of originality and creativity.
Depending on the Upper Deck lawsuit, the Disney Lorcana TCG First Chapter is slated to release through local game stores first on Aug. 18, followed by a major distribution launch on Sept. 1. And The Second Chapter of Lorcana is slated to release shortly afterward.
Update June 9 10am CT: Additional follow-up comments to Dot Esports from Ravensburger senior communications director Lisa Krueger were added.
