In July, CGE announced Codenames: Back to Hogwarts, a new edition/skin of the popular Codenames game. We didn’t cover it and won’t be covering it due to its connection with Harry Potter whose creator is a TERF on a mission of what we see as hatred towards the trans community. We don’t cover Harry Potter in general (not like it’s a comic), and absolutely have not once her beliefs were clear.
The tabletop game community is one of general inclusion where everybody is welcome to sit at the table and enjoy a game. So, for a company to embrace a property so tied into exclusion and bigotry is a bit perplexing. The fact that J.K. Rowling uses her “Harry Potter wealth” to fund anti-transgender organizations, and she’d likely profit from the game’s licensing, is even more infuriating.
To say CGE’s statement in response lacks is an understatement.
When we embarked on creating the newly announced version of Codenames many years ago, it was a dream coming true for many of us at CGE. The vast world of magic featured in the upcoming Codenames has been a source of inspiration. It ignited a passion for learning English and exploring new worlds through reading. It shaped our childhoods, sparked imagination, or gave comfort in difficult times. We know many people around the world share the same sentiment about this universe, even among those who have been hurt by the public views and actions of its creator. Deciding whether those feelings should also transfer to the once-beloved world is up to everyone, and we fully respect and understand those who do not wish to engage with this game. We still believe in the magic of stories and the connection they create between people.
As this is an ongoing conversation, we encourage everyone to approach discussion with care, empathy, and respect—both online and in person.
It calls for “care, empathy, and respect,” though embraces a bigot for profit. They don’t respect their community as they have locked responses to social posts, clearly not wanting to hear the feedback from the community and it should be noted a community that helped make Codenames the success that it is.
WB Games, which has released has released multiple Harry Potter video games, is another example of a company seeing dollar signs, and that’s what it is all about. We have not covered them since 2022 (from what I can tell) for similar reasons. The upcoming Harry Potter television show on HBO has us rethinking any future coverage concerning HBO (though it’s limited as is, so not much of a loss).
We wear our beliefs on our sleeves here at Graphic Policy. Inclusion, treating others well, supporting diversity, those are things baked into the site. We’re not always perfect, but we try our best. There are times we don’t connect, or even know about issues, or slip ourselves. Our beliefs results in editorial decisions to not support and promote releases, companies, or creators that we feel are the antithesis of that.
We’re standing with other sites/influencers/tabletop games against CGE’s decision concerning this release. We won’t be covering CGE until they give a proper response and do what’s right, which is not release the game or donate its profits to charity benefiting the transgender community. We stand with the trans community which has seen hatred and vilification that’s unwarranted and only comes from a place of hate.
We speak with our coverage. We speak with our dollars. There are numerous wonderful organizations and companies that support the trans community. Let’s shine a light on them and lift them up and support them.
