Devir to recall all copies of new release Ace of Spades after backlash over slavery depictions in artwork, apologises for causing harm
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Welcome to the latest BoardGameWire newsletter!
I’ll keep this intro brief as there’s a ton of interesting new to get to - but wanted to say up top that I’ll be away camping with the family next week, so BoardGameWire will be taking a short break while I’m off. Back on August 11!
The big, breaking news this week is that Devir has recalled all its copies of new release Ace of Spades, after being called out for using racist and culturally insensitive artwork in the game - calling it “a serious mistake that we recognize and deeply regret”. Most criticism was levelled at the ‘fugitive’ card, which depicts a half-naked black man in chains apparently drooling or foaming at the mouth, while other cards featured insensitive portrayals of indigenous people in the US, including showing respected leader Sitting Bull with glowing red eyes and horns.
The company has picked up a wave of support for the speed at which it both halted sales of the game and committed to concrete changes to avoid something similar happening in the future. But questions still remain about how the artwork passed through the entire development and publishing process without being flagged as problematic.
Devir has told BoardGameWire it "didn’t realize" the art was racist, adding: “What we tried to achieve here was to show a powerful man who managed to break the chains of slavery, and ended up falling under the influence of the evil adversary of the game. We obviously failed at pushing that concept.”
Our other stories this week include the news that two more long-serving senior execs have resigned from financially-troubled CMON, amid the company trying to fight back from heavy 2024 losses and a drastic downsizing spurred by US tariffs volatility.
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Have a great week!
Mike Didymus-True - Editor
Devir to recall all copies of new release Ace of Spades after backlash over slavery depictions in artwork, apologises for causing harm
Devir Games has halted sales of its new release Ace of Spades after being called out for using racist and culturally insensitive artwork in the game, calling it “a serious mistake that we recognize and deeply regret”. The publisher said it would recall all copies of the game sent to retailers and would review and replace any cards in the game “that may be hurtful or offensive”, with replacements made available free of charge to anyone who requests them.
The swift response from Devir came less than 24 hours after it began coming under fire online over some of the game’s artwork – most notably the ‘fugitive’ card, which depicts a half-naked black man in chains apparently drooling or foaming at the mouth.
CMON’s long-serving chief financial officer, company secretary latest to resign from financially-troubled business
Board game crowdfunding giant CMON has lost two more long-serving senior executives amid its attempt to fight back from heavy 2024 losses and a drastic downsizing spurred by US tariffs volatility. Chief financial officer Koh Zheng Kai and company secretary Ng Sau Mei have both handed in their resignations, five months after senior manager David Preti stepped down as chief operating officer of the business.
CMON revealed in April that it had slumped to a $3m loss for last year – almost double its total profits from the previous three years combined. Later that month the company announced it was laying off staff and halting new game development and campaign launches, citing the ongoing unpredictability around US tariffs
Gen Con exhibitor numbers rebound to record levels despite tariffs uncertainty, biggest-ever attendance reaches almost 72,000
North America’s biggest tabletop gaming convention, Gen Con, has scored another year of record attendance and exhibitor numbers, despite fears that ongoing US tariff volatility would see publishers and visitors choosing to skip the 2025 show. Almost 72,000 people flocked to Indianapolis for another sold-out event this year, while the number of exhibitors rebounded to a record of more than 575 – well up on the roughly 540 showcasing their games and services last year.
Those record numbers were not necessarily mirrored in sales at the booths, although the sentiment of staff at several larger publishers speaking after the show indicated that it was their best Gen Con yet. Several other mid-size publishers BoardGameWire spoke to after the event suggested sales had been “robust”, “solid”, and “better than expected”, without reaching record levels.
Financially-troubled Elf Creek Games brings in Genius Games founder to restructure business, says fulfilling overdue Kickstarters is ‘top priority’
Financially-struggling board game publisher Elf Creek Games has brought in Genius Games founder John Coveyou as executive director, as the company tries to “stabilise and restructure” in order to get its multiple unfulfilled Kickstarter campaigns out to backers. Coveyou, who will take over full operational control of the company, is also the founder and director of accounting and tax firm Simple Financials, which Elf Creek said specialises ” in helping small businesses recover from crises like ours”.
Elf Creek currently has almost $340,000 of entirely unfulfilled Kickstarter projects, including Secret Villages & Santa’s Workshop (+Related Story Puzzles!) and Paradox Initiative, while some backers of Atlantis Rising: Monstrosities campaign from 2020 are also still waiting for French and German language editions of the game.
“We felt like we’d made a profit. But we hadn’t. Not really”: Chroma Arcana creator Mo Shawwa on the financial wrinkles behind even a target-smashing crowdfund, and what tariffs mean for his next project
Soaring past the crowdfunding goal for your debut game might seem like a dream scenario for a first-time designer, but the financial realities of even a successful campaign can be far more complex than at first meets the eye. Roc Nest Games founder Mo Shawwa explains the lessons he learned from the Kickstarter success of his first game, Chroma Arcana last year - and how US tariffs are throwing a further spanner into the financial calculations for creators looking to crowdfund new games.
Africa’s longest-running board game convention hoping to double attendance this year after ongoing Kickstarter passes goal
Africa’s longest-running board games convention, AB Con in Nigeria, has set its sights on more than doubling attendance at this year’s event after pulling past its funding target for its latest Kickstarter campaign.
The African Boardgames Convention hopes to attract up to 3,000 people for the ninth edition of the event in November, with new features this year set to include a dedicated zone for deep strategy games and an almost 50% increase in the overall number of gaming tables, lead convenor Kenechukwu Ogbuagu – known as KC – told BoardGameWire.
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Job Watch
US - Program Manager, Commercialization, Wizards of the Coast
US - Associate Global Events Manager (Contract/Temporary), Wizards of the Coast
US - Freelance marketing (short term), Coyote & Crow Digital
Canada - Artistic Director, Plan B Games
UK - Marketing Assistant (Warmachine digital), Steamforged Games
Netherlands - Marketer, Asmodee
All these jobs are from the very excellent Tabletop Game Jobs Facebook Group - head there to take a look at all the latest listings
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