The upcoming launch of Ravensburger’s Disney Lorcana trading card game is now threatened by an explosive new lawsuit issued by The Upper Deck Company. In the 19-page suit, filed today in a California court, the rival publisher alleges that co-designer Ryan Miller previously made a similar game that is “nearly identical” to Disney Lorcana while under contract with Upper Deck. Among other requests for exemption, Upper Deck is asking a judge for an injunction that would stop the release of Disney Lorcanacurrently expected at this year’s Gen Con convention in August.
The game Upper Deck says it paid Miller to design Rush from Ikorr. It hasn’t been released yet. Players are said to take on the role of gods, as once worshiped by ancient Greeks and native Mesoamericans. The complaint goes into great detail to prove its claims Disney Lorcana And Rush from Ikorr have the same or similar mechanics. It also questions Miller and Ravensburger’s intent with regard to seeking the rules for their own game. From the complaint:
During Miller’s time as Rush of Ikorr’s lead game designer, Miller had direct access to Upper Deck’s confidential, proprietary information, including but not limited to Rush of Ikorr design rules, concepts, components, designs, marketing strategies, and implementation plans. Based on information and belief, Miller maintained access to these things even after he ended his relationship with Upper Deck and used, referenced and/or otherwise relied on to make Lorcana into Ravensburger. […]
Rather than allow Miller to honor the agreements and their terms, Upper Deck is informed and believes that Ravensburger incited and intended Miller to default on his obligations so that it could take advantage of Miller’s knowledge of the elements of the Rush of Ikorr game so he could make an almost identical game for it. This allowed Ravensburger to gain a competitive advantage, accelerated launch, and market an almost identical TCG under a different brand.
The complaint goes on to seek damages, restitution, “court injunctions directing Ravensburger to release Lorcana publicly,” and more. The company also filed a patent application for it in April Rush from Ikorr.
“We have invested a lot of time and resources to develop a fresh and new trading card game,” said Upper Deck President Jason Masherah in a press release shared with Polygon. “Our current leadership appreciates the importance of protecting the intellectual property of both Upper Deck and its licensors.”
“We encourage competition in the industry,” continued Masherah, “but also strongly believe in playing by the rules to ensure the gaming community benefits from each manufacturer’s diverse creative choices.”
Polygon has reached out to Ravensburger and Miller for comment.
Disney Lorcana was announced in August 2022. The family-friendly TCG is aiming for a fairly broad audience, and the relatively bloodless gameplay is a stark contrast to the product described by Upper Deck. The first set of Disney Lorcana cards was released on the D23 fan convention in September, which almost immediately sparked an explosion of speculation in the secondary market. Only later, in April 2023, were the rules made public through an accidental leak in a trade journal. Polygon later covered those lines in detail, along with an interview with Miller. A public demo of Disney Lorcana was recently performed at the British Games Expo 2023.
We’ve included a copy of the full complaint below as an inclusion.