The Wagadu Chronicles Taking Applications For Alpha 3, Set to Begin March 13th | MMORPG.com

System · March 2023

The Wagadu Chronicles Taking Applications For Alpha 3, Set to Begin March 13th | MMORPG.com

Alpha 3 is coming for The Wagadu Chronicles. Set to start on March 13th, the new alpha is still taking applications for the next round of testing.

Read the full story here

Slapshot1188 · March 2023

Gotta tell you, when the first question they ask is about whether I am a POC it kind of turns me off. I was gonna give it a look, but... bleh.
It's a RolePlayingGame right? I'm not a wizard in real life either... but I thought the setting seemed interesting. Oh well.

olepi · March 2023

To apply it says to sign in first. Use your google account to sign in.

Sorry, I have no google account.

Oh well.

Asm0deus · March 2023

Was interested but they are making applying far too annoying IMO but I think that is on purpose tbh.

Quizzical · March 2023

Slapshot1188 said:

Gotta tell you, when the first question they ask is about whether I am a POC it kind of turns me off. I was gonna give it a look, but... bleh.
It's a RolePlayingGame right? I'm not a wizard in real life either... but I thought the setting seemed interesting. Oh well.

Wait, they want to know your real-life race? That's not a good sign. Sometimes there are good reasons for developers to care what country you're from, but not race.

Slapshot1188 · March 2023

Quizzical said:

Slapshot1188 said:

Gotta tell you, when the first question they ask is about whether I am a POC it kind of turns me off. I was gonna give it a look, but... bleh.
It's a RolePlayingGame right? I'm not a wizard in real life either... but I thought the setting seemed interesting. Oh well.

Wait, they want to know your real-life race? That's not a good sign. Sometimes there are good reasons for developers to care what country you're from, but not race.

Yes. It is the first question they ask after you click the agreement stuff:

I could almost understand it if it asked if you had African decent or some historical connection but I see no merit in this question. After all, someone of Dominican, or American Indian or Asian has no more "connection" to the source material than I do.

It's a very troubling question and the more I think about it the angrier I get.

Perhaps @lotrlore can have MMORPG.COM reach out to the developers for the rationale behind this and why they lump all POC together and seperate non-poc?

Asm0deus · March 2023

Slapshot1188 said:

Quizzical said:

Slapshot1188 said:

Gotta tell you, when the first question they ask is about whether I am a POC it kind of turns me off. I was gonna give it a look, but... bleh.

It's a RolePlayingGame right? I'm not a wizard in real life either... but I thought the setting seemed interesting.

Oh well.

Wait, they want to know your real-life race? That's not a good sign. Sometimes there are good reasons for developers to care what country you're from, but not race.

Yes. It is the first question they ask after you click the agreement stuff:

I could almost understand it if it asked if you had African decent or some historical connection but I see no merit in this question. After all, someone of Dominican, or American Indian or Asian has no more "connection" to the source material than I do.

It's a very troubling question and the more I think about it the angrier I get.

Perhaps @lotrlore can have MMORPG.COM reach out to the developers for the rationale behind this and why they lump all POC together and seperate non-poc?

You also need to join their discord, and use your google account. I highly suspect they want to limit input from NON Black/POC players.

Raagnarz · March 2023

Slapshot1188 said:

Quizzical said:

Slapshot1188 said:

Gotta tell you, when the first question they ask is about whether I am a POC it kind of turns me off. I was gonna give it a look, but... bleh.

It's a RolePlayingGame right? I'm not a wizard in real life either... but I thought the setting seemed interesting.

Oh well.

Wait, they want to know your real-life race? That's not a good sign. Sometimes there are good reasons for developers to care what country you're from, but not race.

Yes. It is the first question they ask after you click the agreement stuff:

I could almost understand it if it asked if you had African decent or some historical connection but I see no merit in this question. After all, someone of Dominican, or American Indian or Asian has no more "connection" to the source material than I do.

It's a very troubling question and the more I think about it the angrier I get.

Perhaps @lotrlore can have MMORPG.COM reach out to the developers for the rationale behind this and why they lump all POC together and seperate non-poc?

Same here, I was excited someone was trying something new for an MMO. A setting and background we haven't seen before in a game like this or most any game. Yet the first thing I'm slammed with when going to sign up is that first question. Racist as fuck imo, and like others have mentioned, it seems they are making it blatantly obvious they don't want input/feedback from anyone that is white. Because as you mention POC covers Latin, Asian, native American, Inuit, and Aboriginal people who have no more a connection to African people/culture as white people do. It's now off my list forever regardless of whatever bullshit PR spins they spit out, if they even bother trying to explain this away which I doubt. The setting, and theme of the game is not a deterrent for people who are not black to play it, anymore than European or Asian themed MMO's should be a deterrent for people who are not white/asian to play. BUT the actions of a bigoted developer absolutely can be. Proof positive here, and I hope they think a lot of black people are going to play this, because apparently that's all they want playing it.

Arglebargle · March 2023

AS an aside, some parts of Latin America are heavily influenced by Africa. Some Cuban rhythms are found today in Nigeria, and Santeria chants still have Yoruban roots. Diaspora exists.

The Wagadu Chronicles may or may not include aspects of that. They definitely have an Afro worldview, but they've always worn that on their sleeves.

Angrakhan · March 2023

Arglebargle said:

AS an aside, some parts of Latin America are heavily influenced by Africa. Some Cuban rhythms are found today in Nigeria, and Santeria chants still have Yoruban roots. Diaspora exists.

The Wagadu Chronicles may or may not include aspects of that. They definitely have an Afro worldview, but they've always worn that on their sleeves.

Well, now they're also wearing their racism on their sleeve given the groupings. Since POC = Person of Color the question is literally "Are you brown, white or rather not say?". If I asked that question interviewing a person for a job I could easily be sued for discrimination. Yet I guess we're just supposed to be OK with that for a video game. Same ol hypocrisy on display. Unfortunate.

Tiller · March 2023

Angrakhan said:

Arglebargle said:

AS an aside, some parts of Latin America are heavily influenced by Africa. Some Cuban rhythms are found today in Nigeria, and Santeria chants still have Yoruban roots. Diaspora exists.

The Wagadu Chronicles may or may not include aspects of that. They definitely have an Afro worldview, but they've always worn that on their sleeves.

Well, now they're also wearing their racism on their sleeve given the groupings. Since POC = Person of Color the question is literally "Are you brown, white or rather not say?". If I asked that question interviewing a person for a job I could easily be sued for discrimination. Yet I guess we're just supposed to be OK with that for a video game. Same ol hypocrisy on display. Unfortunate.

I don't think it's all that or favoritism. That might be a legal pit no one wants to fall into and I can't see them going that route. I may be going out on a limb here but I think they just want to get an idea of the ethnicity of folks interested in their game that is based on African culture so they can get a better idea of how to tailor some of the experiences in the game. They never stated that all are not welcome.

Darkhawke · March 2023

Lol , Go Woke ,Go Broke , we hardly knew ye .

Asm0deus · March 2023

Tiller said:

...snip...

I don't think it's all that or favoritism. That might be a legal pit no one wants to fall into and I can't see them going that route. I may be going out on a limb here but I think they just want to get an idea of the ethnicity of folks interested in their game that is based on African culture so they can get a better idea of how to tailor some of the experiences in the game. They never stated that all are not welcome.

It may so be but I think they are going for a certain demographic or want to make a game that "represents" a certain demographic and as such maybe want feedback more from that demographic.

Like you say that doesn't mean all will not be welcome as I am sure all will be but maybe they want to give a more authentic experience so to speak and want feedback to what they think will allow such so that when the game does launch it actually catering to their targets.

I mean the game was marketed as a afro fantasy mmorpg based on african mythology which is why I find it could be quite interesting tbh.

I don't think its meant to be racist even if some will feel it comes across as such.

Slapshot1188 · March 2023

Tiller said:

Angrakhan said:

Arglebargle said:

AS an aside, some parts of Latin America are heavily influenced by Africa. Some Cuban rhythms are found today in Nigeria, and Santeria chants still have Yoruban roots. Diaspora exists.

The Wagadu Chronicles may or may not include aspects of that. They definitely have an Afro worldview, but they've always worn that on their sleeves.

Well, now they're also wearing their racism on their sleeve given the groupings. Since POC = Person of Color the question is literally "Are you brown, white or rather not say?". If I asked that question interviewing a person for a job I could easily be sued for discrimination. Yet I guess we're just supposed to be OK with that for a video game. Same ol hypocrisy on display. Unfortunate.

I don't think it's all that or favoritism. That might be a legal pit no one wants to fall into and I can't see them going that route. I may be going out on a limb here but I think they just want to get an idea of the ethnicity of folks interested in their game that is based on African culture so they can get a better idea of how to tailor some of the experiences in the game. They never stated that all are not welcome.

So, if that was the case.. what do you learn by having only 2 categories? Black/POC and Not POC? Is your suggestion that they will tailor their content based on how many white people (non POC) apply for their beta? That seems extraordinarily unlikely and would actually be a betrayal of what they claimed to be creating.

Lets take this in another light. If Triple Drum Gaming announced an Alpha for their upcoming Seamus Chronicles game. Set in ancient Ireland. And it was going to focus on traditional real world (low magic) Celtic mythology. And in that Alpha test application their first question (of just a few, maybe 3-4 total) was:

What demographic to you belong to:
White
Not white

I think people would righteously be outraged.

The more I think about this, the more I think they are intentionally making it provocative hoping that an argument goes viral and they get attention. No other reasoning makes any sense to me. So I am simply not going to comment on this any longer and feed their narrative. Its a RolePlayingGame. I'm not a wizard in real life, nor an Elf, nor a Vulcan but I have happily played all of those roles.

Whatever. I'm not going to give them their 2 minutes of fame.

Arglebargle · March 2023

Or say,
Celtic,
Germanic,
Not either.

Mendel · March 2023

I was afraid that this game would be highly impacted by racial bias and bigotry. I never expected that the developers would be the primary culprits. Their moment in the spotlight is fading fast.

Sarla · March 2023

Just to be honest, I don't want to play a game as an African person. You can call me a bigot if you want, I'm not woke or anything, so don't care or won't be offended.

Ginaz · March 2023

Sarla said:

Just to be honest, I don't want to play a game as an African person. You can call me a bigot if you want, I'm not woke or anything, so don't care or won't be offended.

Ok but why even say something like that? Weird flex, I guess.

Ginaz · March 2023

Slapshot1188 said:

Tiller said:

Angrakhan said:

Arglebargle said:

AS an aside, some parts of Latin America are heavily influenced by Africa. Some Cuban rhythms are found today in Nigeria, and Santeria chants still have Yoruban roots. Diaspora exists.

The Wagadu Chronicles may or may not include aspects of that. They definitely have an Afro worldview, but they've always worn that on their sleeves.

Well, now they're also wearing their racism on their sleeve given the groupings. Since POC = Person of Color the question is literally "Are you brown, white or rather not say?". If I asked that question interviewing a person for a job I could easily be sued for discrimination. Yet I guess we're just supposed to be OK with that for a video game. Same ol hypocrisy on display. Unfortunate.

I don't think it's all that or favoritism. That might be a legal pit no one wants to fall into and I can't see them going that route. I may be going out on a limb here but I think they just want to get an idea of the ethnicity of folks interested in their game that is based on African culture so they can get a better idea of how to tailor some of the experiences in the game. They never stated that all are not welcome.

So, if that was the case.. what do you learn by having only 2 categories? Black/POC and Not POC? Is your suggestion that they will tailor their content based on how many white people (non POC) apply for their beta? That seems extraordinarily unlikely and would actually be a betrayal of what they claimed to be creating.

Lets take this in another light. If Triple Drum Gaming announced an Alpha for their upcoming Seamus Chronicles game. Set in ancient Ireland. And it was going to focus on traditional real world (low magic) Celtic mythology. And in that Alpha test application their first question (of just a few, maybe 3-4 total) was:

What demographic to you belong to:
White
Not white

I think people would righteously be outraged.

The more I think about this, the more I think they are intentionally making it provocative hoping that an argument goes viral and they get attention. No other reasoning makes any sense to me. So I am simply not going to comment on this any longer and feed their narrative. Its a RolePlayingGame. I'm not a wizard in real life, nor an Elf, nor a Vulcan but I have happily played all of those roles.

Whatever. I'm not going to give them their 2 minutes of fame.

My guess is they will place much more value on the feedback provided from POC than...not people of colour. They don't want our input but I bet they want our money lol.

I was sort of interested in seeing how this went because it's nice to see a non European or Asian influenced type of fantasy game being made but I also was fairly confident it might turn into a racist shit show given the setting and the ethnicity of the developers. Kind of surprising to see some of that being projected by the developers themselves.

Probably only a matter of time before this thread gets locked.

Greatness · March 2023

Ginaz said:

Sarla said:

Just to be honest, I don't want to play a game as an African person. You can call me a bigot if you want, I'm not woke or anything, so don't care or won't be offended.

Ok but why even say something like that? Weird flex, I guess.

But he/she is ok playing an elf with pointy ears and a wizard hat? Agree what a misplaced comment for an actual discussion.

In any case, definitely weird question to start off sign ups for a play test - doesn’t seem to be malicious but also in this day and age, explanation by the developers would have been helpful right then to understand why it exactly matters? If the game is catering to everyone - that question shouldn’t matter. Agree with @Slapshot1188 - interview with a question to gain more understanding !

Valdheim · March 2023

Just disappointing and as others have already stated just image if it were the other way around. I also agree that it wouldn't be to far off to assume that they did this on purpose to go viral. What a shame.

samvenice · March 2023

I hear from one of my current employees (who worked in the US) that skin color question is present on many application forms over there - nobody in Europe would even conceive asking such horrifying question in any context, being it public administration, employment agencies or whatever: we have laws against it.

Then again, we all know which part of the world is making up non-existing issues and forcing them on other countries/continents as part of their "exporting democracy" efforts.

caalem · March 2023

samvenice said:

I hear from one of my current employees (who worked in the US) that skin color question is present on many application forms over there - nobody in Europe would even conceive asking such horrifying question in any context, being it public administration, employment agencies or whatever: we have laws against it.

Then again, we all know which part of the world is making up non-existing issues and forcing them on other countries/continents as part of their "exporting democracy" efforts.

The developer is based in Berlin.

https://twitter.com/twindrums

European and insufferable levels of smugness, name a more iconic duo.

Arglebargle · March 2023

Surely you have forgotten America and insufferable levels of smugness??

I've always said that the French and the Americans don't get along because each is absolutely convinced that they are the center of the Universe.

KnightFalz · March 2023

Sarla said:

Just to be honest, I don't want to play a game as an African person. You can call me a bigot if you want, I'm not woke or anything, so don't care or won't be offended.

To each their own. Why would the personal preference to not play an African character make you a bigot? I prefer not to make female characters. Does that make me a misogynist?

Such preferences are fine and do not speak of the holder's personal nature in any way.

KnightFalz · March 2023

Ginaz said:

Sarla said:

Just to be honest, I don't want to play a game as an African person. You can call me a bigot if you want, I'm not woke or anything, so don't care or won't be offended.

Ok but why even say something like that? Weird flex, I guess.

It's a bit unexpected, but more so due the openness about such in contemporary times than that said. I don't know how not wanting to play a character of particular race would be a flex more so than a statement of preference.

Why not say something like that? Outside of the inflamed sensitivities of today what is so wrong about such a preference that it be should remain unspoken?

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