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Wizards of the Coast Files Lawsuit to Stop Publication of Tabletop Game, Alleging Trademark Violatio

Accepted submission by upstart at 2022-09-15 13:27:21
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Wizards of the Coast files lawsuit to stop publication of tabletop game, alleging trademark violation and ‘reprehensible content’ [geekwire.com]:

Renton, Wash.-based gaming company Wizards of the Coast filed a preliminary injunction in Seattle last week that seeks to prevent the release of a Wisconsin company’s upcoming tabletop game, citing conflicts over both intellectual property rights and allegedly “racist and transphobic content.”

Wizards of the Coast, owned by conglomerate Hasbro, is the current publisher of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, the audience for which has been growing steadily over the course of the last several years [geekwire.com].

The company’s injunction [scribd.com], filed on Sept. 8 in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Washington, aims to stop the publication of Star Frontiers: New Genesis, a tabletop space opera role-playing game that’s currently under development at TSR LLC [tsr-hobbies.com], headquartered in Lake Geneva, Wisc.

TSR LLC (a.k.a. “TSR3.5” or “NuTSR”) is the latest company to lay claim to the name and legacy of the defunct TSR Inc., which is best known for publishing the original version of Dungeons & Dragons in 1973 and was acquired by Wizards in 1997.

TSR LLC was founded in June 2021 by Ernie Gygax, son of late D&D creator Gary Gygax; Stephen Dinehart; and Justin LaNasa, the owner and operator of the Dungeon Hobby Shop Museum [tsrmuseum.com] in Lake Geneva. The Museum is located on the site of the first office that Gary Gygax opened for TSR Inc. in 1976.

New Genesis, by TSR LLC, is an attempt to revive the original Star Frontiers, which TSR Inc. published from 1980 to 1986. While Star Frontiers never found the success that D&D did, it’s maintained a cult fanbase up to the present day. Several features of its universe were later recycled into the D&D spacefaring setting Spelljammer [geekwire.com].

In July, a preview copy of New Genesis leaked online and was met with immediate controversy due to allegedly containing explicitly racist and transphobic content [techraptor.net]. “A ‘negro’ race is described as a ‘Subrace’ in the game and as having ‘average’ intelligence with a maximum intelligence rating of 9, while the ‘norse’ race has a minimum intelligence rating of 13,” the preliminary injunction notes, citing an example from the New Genesis playtest.

Washington state-based watchdog group No Hate in Gaming [nohateingaming.com], cited in Wizards’ preliminary injunction exhibits, subsequently documented “hate messages” allegedly posted to social media by New Genesis author Dave Johnson.

In the injunction, Wizards’ counsel writes that it “would be irreparably harmed by the publication and distribution of the game using its trademarks because consumers may mistakenly associate Wizards with the reprehensible content of the game, damaging its reputation and goodwill and undermining its efforts to foster a culture that embraces diversity.”

Those efforts include adjusting the in-game lore [geekwire.com] to move away from specific fantasy races being treated as plug-and-play villains, and publications such as this year’s Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel [wizards.com], an anthology of adventures that are inspired by world mythologies other than post-Tolkien Western fantasy.

The Sept. 8 injunction marks the latest step in an ongoing legal fight between TSR LLC and Wizards. They had previously filed suit against one another in December over the rights to the TSR name and to Star Frontiers.

TSR LLC claims Wizards had allowed both trademarks to expire at an undisclosed point in the early 2000s, which rendered the trademarks eligible for their use.

It also seeks the removal of a content disclaimer that Wizards has added to digital versions of older TSR products, such as the original [drivethrurpg.com] Keep on the Borderlands [drivethrurpg.com] module [drivethrurpg.com].

“This disclaimer attempts to make a statement of fact argument, and therefore paints all of the writers, editors, artists and consumers of those products as supporting those alleged prejudices, stereotypes and bigotry, wrongfully claimed to be part of those products,” TSR LLC wrote online, as part of a now-cancelled Indiegogo campaign [indiegogo.com] to raise legal fees.

Wizards counterfiled to seek the cancellation of TSR LLC’s trademark registration, alleging that TSR LLC had filed a fraudulent claim with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in order to lay claim to the original TSR’s name and intellectual property.

Wizards also notes in its injunction that it acquired the right to both TSR’s name, its unique logo (referred to in the injunction as a “design mark”), and its intellectual properties, including Star Frontiers, when it purchased TSR in 1997.

“In particular,” Wizards’ filing states, “Wizards has licensed the TSR Mark and related Dungeons & Dragons intellectual property to OneBookShelf, Inc., which sells older editions of Dungeons & Dragons products bearing TSR Mark. OneBookShelf has sold products bearing the TSR Mark continuously since December 2012.” This includes, at time of writing, Star Frontiers itself [drivethrurpg.com].

A representative of Wizards of the Coast said “Wizards of the Coast doesn’t comment on pending litigation.” GeekWire has reached out to TSR LLC for comment.

[Errata, 9/14: Added Stephen Rinehart as a co-founder of “TSR3.”]

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Renton, Wash.-based gaming company Wizards of the Coast filed a preliminary injunction in Seattle last week that seeks to prevent the release of a Wisconsin company’s upcoming tabletop game, citing conflicts over both intellectual property rights and allegedly “racist and transphobic content.”

Wizards of the Coast, owned by conglomerate Hasbro, is the current publisher of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, the audience for which has been growing steadily over the course of the last several years [geekwire.com].

The company’s injunction [scribd.com], filed on Sept. 8 in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Washington, aims to stop the publication of Star Frontiers: New Genesis, a tabletop space opera role-playing game that’s currently under development at TSR LLC [tsr-hobbies.com], headquartered in Lake Geneva, Wisc.

TSR LLC (a.k.a. “TSR3.5” or “NuTSR”) is the latest company to lay claim to the name and legacy of the defunct TSR Inc., which is best known for publishing the original version of Dungeons & Dragons in 1973 and was acquired by Wizards in 1997.

TSR LLC was founded in June 2021 by Ernie Gygax, son of late D&D creator Gary Gygax; Stephen Dinehart; and Justin LaNasa, the owner and operator of the Dungeon Hobby Shop Museum [tsrmuseum.com] in Lake Geneva. The Museum is located on the site of the first office that Gary Gygax opened for TSR Inc. in 1976.

New Genesis, by TSR LLC, is an attempt to revive the original Star Frontiers, which TSR Inc. published from 1980 to 1986. While Star Frontiers never found the success that D&D did, it’s maintained a cult fanbase up to the present day. Several features of its universe were later recycled into the D&D spacefaring setting Spelljammer [geekwire.com].

In July, a preview copy of New Genesis leaked online and was met with immediate controversy due to allegedly containing explicitly racist and transphobic content [techraptor.net]. “A ‘negro’ race is described as a ‘Subrace’ in the game and as having ‘average’ intelligence with a maximum intelligence rating of 9, while the ‘norse’ race has a minimum intelligence rating of 13,” the preliminary injunction notes, citing an example from the New Genesis playtest.

Washington state-based watchdog group No Hate in Gaming [nohateingaming.com], cited in Wizards’ preliminary injunction exhibits, subsequently documented “hate messages” allegedly posted to social media by New Genesis author Dave Johnson.

In the injunction, Wizards’ counsel writes that it “would be irreparably harmed by the publication and distribution of the game using its trademarks because consumers may mistakenly associate Wizards with the reprehensible content of the game, damaging its reputation and goodwill and undermining its efforts to foster a culture that embraces diversity.”

Those efforts include adjusting the in-game lore [geekwire.com] to move away from specific fantasy races being treated as plug-and-play villains, and publications such as this year’s Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel [wizards.com], an anthology of adventures that are inspired by world mythologies other than post-Tolkien Western fantasy.

The Sept. 8 injunction marks the latest step in an ongoing legal fight between TSR LLC and Wizards. They had previously filed suit against one another in December over the rights to the TSR name and to Star Frontiers.

TSR LLC claims Wizards had allowed both trademarks to expire at an undisclosed point in the early 2000s, which rendered the trademarks eligible for their use.

It also seeks the removal of a content disclaimer that Wizards has added to digital versions of older TSR products, such as the original [drivethrurpg.com] Keep on the Borderlands [drivethrurpg.com] module [drivethrurpg.com].

“This disclaimer attempts to make a statement of fact argument, and therefore paints all of the writers, editors, artists and consumers of those products as supporting those alleged prejudices, stereotypes and bigotry, wrongfully claimed to be part of those products,” TSR LLC wrote online, as part of a now-cancelled Indiegogo campaign [indiegogo.com] to raise legal fees.

Wizards counterfiled to seek the cancellation of TSR LLC’s trademark registration, alleging that TSR LLC had filed a fraudulent claim with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in order to lay claim to the original TSR’s name and intellectual property.

Wizards also notes in its injunction that it acquired the right to both TSR’s name, its unique logo (referred to in the injunction as a “design mark”), and its intellectual properties, including Star Frontiers, when it purchased TSR in 1997.

“In particular,” Wizards’ filing states, “Wizards has licensed the TSR Mark and related Dungeons & Dragons intellectual property to OneBookShelf, Inc., which sells older editions of Dungeons & Dragons products bearing TSR Mark. OneBookShelf has sold products bearing the TSR Mark continuously since December 2012.” This includes, at time of writing, Star Frontiers itself [drivethrurpg.com].

A representative of Wizards of the Coast said “Wizards of the Coast doesn’t comment on pending litigation.” GeekWire has reached out to TSR LLC for comment.

[Errata, 9/14: Added Stephen Rinehart as a co-founder of “TSR3.”]

GeekWire Newsletters

Subscribe to GeekWire's free newsletters to catch every headline

Email addressSubscribeGeekWire Daily - Top headlines daily GeekWire Weekly - Most-read stories of the week, delivered Sunday Breaking News Alerts - Important news as it happens GeekWire Startups - News, analysis, insights from the Pacific Northwest startup ecosystem, delivered Friday GeekWire Mid-week Update — Most-read stories so far this week, delivered Wednesday GeekWire Local Deals — Special offers for Pacific Northwest area readers Send Us a Tip

Have a scoop that you'd like GeekWire to cover? Let us know.

Send Us a Tip [geekwire.com]See More [geekwire.com]GeekWire Events

D&D Beyond will officially join Wizards of the Coast in $146.3M acquisition [geekwire.com]

Wizards of the Coast taps former Microsoft and Amazon leader Cynthia Williams as president [geekwire.com]

Wizards of the Coast unveils new studio, Skeleton Key, for new AAA video game project [geekwire.com]

Hasbro shareholder launches campaign to spin off Wizards of the Coast business, a ‘hidden gem’ [geekwire.com]

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to GeekWire's free newsletters to catch every headlineEmail addressSubscribeGeekWire Daily - Top headlines daily GeekWire Weekly - Most-read stories of the week, delivered Sunday Breaking News Alerts - Important news as it happens GeekWire Startups - News, analysis, insights from the Pacific Northwest startup ecosystem, delivered Friday GeekWire Mid-week Update — Most-read stories so far this week, delivered Wednesday GeekWire Local Deals — Special offers for Pacific Northwest area readers

Sr. DevOps Engineer [geekwire.com]Resolution Bioscience, a part of AgilentWeb Analyst [geekwire.com]San Jose State UniversityComputer Science Support Group Manager [geekwire.com]Western Washington University - Computer Science DepartmentSoftware Engineer III (Front end) [geekwire.com]MedBridgeSoftware Engineer III (Back end) [geekwire.com]MedBridgeWeb Developer & UX Strategist [geekwire.com]United Way of King CountyFind more jobs on GeekWork [geekwire.com]. Employers, post a job here [geekwire.com].About

Follow

GeekWire Newsletters

Catch every headline in your inbox

Email addressSubscribeGeekWire Daily - Top headlines daily GeekWire Weekly - Most-read stories of the week, delivered Sunday Breaking News Alerts - Important news as it happens GeekWire Startups - News, analysis, insights from the Pacific Northwest startup ecosystem, delivered Friday GeekWire Mid-week Update — Most-read stories so far this week, delivered Wednesday GeekWire Local Deals — Special offers for Pacific Northwest area readers Read GeekWire

Return to Top of PagePrivacy Policy [geekwire.com] | Terms of Use [geekwire.com]© 2011-2022 GeekWire, LLC×Get smart with GeekWire. Sign up for our new daily newsletter. Sign UpDo not show again.

I didn't know TSR had been revived!


Original Submission