White Wolf has been riding a rough PR storm of late. Problems started when they announced Zak Sabbath was a writer on Vampire: the Masquerade. Sabbath divides people; he has some very loyal fans (some of whom may have crossed lines while defending him) while others accuse him of manipulative and hateful harassment. It’s worth noting that controversial authors and consultants have been appointed by other RPG publishers, including Wizards of the Coast for Dungeons & Dragons, and that White Wolf subsequentially investigated Sabbath and did not conclude he should be removed from the project.
However, the spotlight was firmly on the company.
Some fans raised concerns based on some of the content in the free to download Vampire: tM 5e preview. These concerns ranged from the use of ‘Triggered’ to describe a Brujah discipline to suggestions that pro-Nazi symbols and other dog whistles had been hidden in plain sight in the book.
It won’t surprise you know that the debate got heated, quickly. I suspect it won’t surprise you to discover that in-game and out-of-game was sometimes getting blurred by some of the loudest voices in the debate. For example, a vampire who happens to be a Nazi is an in-game/in-world situation. Whereas, a publisher hiding pro-Nazi numbers in game mechanic examples in a real-world/out-of-game issue.
White Wolf, I think, did the right thing. First, they published a clear rebuttal that they have any neo-Nazi sympathies and then they ran an hour-long Twitch stream to take questions and answers from a concerned audience.
That Twitch stream has just finished. It is my hope that White Wolf and/or Paradox (their owners) will make the video public later. What follows is a brief write up of my hurried notes.
On camera was Jason Carl, the Producer of the 5th edition of Vampire: the Masquerade. He was taking questions in real time and, I think, answering them directly and clearly. He did well.
Fuck the alt-right
One fan, ‘vonigner’, put a blunt ultimatum to him.
Will you openly tell the “fuck SJWs sensitivities” alt-righters and neo-nazis who have been using RPGs as a recruiting grounds since Age of Conan that the WOD is NOT for them ?”
Jason Carl and White Wolf did so. He began by explaining that both vampires and Nazis are monsters. He noted that including some (brief) neo-Nazi references in the game are examples of types of vampires people might encounter and not endorsements.
In fact, he went further than that. If you’re part of a hate group like the neo-nazis then they don’t want your money. You’re not even welcome in the community.
But Carl admits they made mistakes.
The ‘1488’ example in the mechanics was a mistake which made them upset. The numbers have been changed and when the dog whistle was called out the preview was removed from their site.
Other mistakes include the use of ‘triggered’ with the Brujah. Carl says that it was an error, another one that made them feel bad, and they’ve learnt that some people use it a pejorative while others encounter it in very real and important mental health sessions. It has been removed.
What about the left?
Another user, BasileosAlexios, tried to flip the question, asking;
Jason will you disavoew Antifa and other segregationist left wing movements just the same as you disavoewed right wing hate movements or not, that’s a simple question
Carl disagreed it was a simple question and refused to tackle it as such. However, he was unequivocal in that White Wolf and the Vampire team would reject and oppose any group that used hate speech and promoted an agenda of hatred.
What will White Wolf do differently?
White Wolf via Carl has acknowledged that they want to be more global and representative. The strong suggestion was made that license partners might well be making global sourcebooks.
The company wants to be more aware and respectful of a diverse audience including transgender community.
In the future playtest periods will be longer and use a broader audience.
You can follow White Wolf and look for the video archive of this conversation at Twitch TV.
Update: White Wolf have released the video of the Q&A.
Image credit: Edouard-Georges Emonet of a Vampire: The Masquerade character called Ingrid Babelheinseil. Ingrid is the puppet Prince of a Nazi vampire. Emonet stresses how much he hates the Nazis. The picture is released under Creative Commons.
Take part in the community by leaving a thoughtful comment below.
So… clear statement against people from the far right. Good. No clear statement against people from the far left. Bad. But typical in these times.
Though I was a consultant on 5e and present in Stockholm at the beginning of the project, as a freelancer I don’t represent White Wolf in any capacity. Earlier I addressed the concerns of the author of the original article that started this controversy: Paradox is a big videogame company and has to act a certain way about public statements, I don’t. Here are the answers to the cartoon dog guy’s questions: Who is the target audience of the game? The target audience is both the existing fanbase (for RPGs in general and White Wolf) plus younger people who may… Read more »
There’s also a conspiracy theory about one of the two trans characters the Vampire mobile game that Sarah Horrocks and I created. We can address that here as well. Heres Sarah’s take–she’s trans, cowrote and co-drew the ap and I got her the job: ” http://mercurialblonde.tumblr.com/post/157525001658 Sarah Horrocks on avery / bailey jay It’s odd that I’m being lectured at to what the qualities of a transphobe may or may not be. Getting “actually’d” about transphobia or transmisogny is pretty surreal. It was put to me, whether I knew I had worked with a transphobe or not. Not someone who… Read more »
I don’t suppose we can remove the obvious and large picture of a swastika that is immediately previewed on all social media shares of this article? Kinda defeats the purpose…
There’s a big chunk of this article about how some evil vampires in the World of Darkness are Nazis. Also pointed out is the fact that in-game Nazis are not the same as publishers including dog whistle calls to Nazi causes — which this article does not contain. I mean, there are Nazis in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom but that doesn’t mean that movie is supporting the Nazi cause. Is it the case that you just don’t want to see the swastika? Not ever?
Zak S is a lousy human being and has been verbally harassing people in person and online (most notably the RPG subreddit) for years. His involvement with VtM 5th is enough for me to abstain from touching the product, because as much as I’ve enjoyed the games over the years, I refuse to see a penny go to him. Playing the fingerpointing game with the political spectrum (don’t care which end, not my horse, not my race) on the subject of tolerance while coddling someone so overtly toxic is blatantly hypocritical.
meanwhile CCP is happy to host neo nazis in their EVE online tournaments… what a world
There’s nothing wrong with being anti-fascist. Period.
That’s because far right is wrong.
I’m Vonigner. I asked some of the hard questions, including the W5 one about trans misfortune (from one of my followers). This came from my questioning about wtf was going on, which I posted about right here: http://secretsofthemasquerade.tumblr.com/post/175792930194/what-the-fuck-is-happening-with-v5-neonazis-and And while I honestly thought the WoD Preludes were bad games, mechanically, visually, and from the messages that they both had, I won’t let anyone attack Sarah for being Trans or misrepresent Zak (above) as gamer-gater or nazi (both of which he is not). Hopefully WWP will stop being “edgy for edge sake” and start consulting poli sci and sociologists for their… Read more »
I thought he wasn’t hired back for freelance work since the mobile game thing a year or two ago?
How is that bad?
It’s not bad at all, though some gamers are disappointed that they had to say it.
More that targets of hate want control of how and when they encounter hate speech and hate symbols. There are number of people in this world, particularly those descended from holocaust survivors, who don’t want to open Facebook or Twitter while taking a coffee break and work and find their feed unexpectedly filled with Nazi flags. So many people in my social circles have linked this article that when I scroll through Facebook, it’s swastika after swastika after swastika. Sitting down to watch Indiana Jones or Captain America or any other WWII movie is a different situation – you know… Read more »
Yeah, if you had any proof and not just accusations, that would be great. You’re just making empty statements here..
I’m not sure I agree or understand but I do concede that changing it would take very little effort and so I’ve tweaked the open graph meta tags to point to the picture of Jason Carl instead. I’m afraid I can’t even guess it/when FB’s cache for the article will update.
I am glad they made a blanket statement that was direct and not open for interpretation. I am also glad as a Trans player and author they apologized for the W5 content. While I don’t personally find it offensive the apology was appreciated. I do think the content was poorly worded in a few places and perhaps too simplified for a 1/4 panel on a single page, but as a Trans player who has pretty severe dysphoria – yeah being as Werewolf and unable to do anything about it would be a horror show. I think the various tribes responses,… Read more »
I thank you for asking and agree with you on this :)
I haven’t read the entire preview, are there far left/antifa references in there?
Who wrote the part with the 1488 reference?
Who wrote the 1488 reference?
And far right is … what?
Maybe it would be cool to talk to people who lived under far left systems and are still alive to talk about it? Would help to get a proper state of mind…
I consulted on 5e in Stockholm a week before the mobille game came out
BasileosAlexios here, wooho my question got featured on an article. So yeah Jason’s answer was that NO HATE of ANY group, left or right, has any space on the fandom, which I agree 100%. I mod the biggest Mage community of my home country and I’m tired of watching good threads derail into Left vs Right fights that have nothing to do with RPG, and since Jason had already said his piece on RW stupidity I needed something about LW stupidity (Antifas are considered a hate group according to the law there because they fly a flag responsible for the… Read more »
Over course this is first comment. If you think fighting hatred is the same is defending people from hatred, you’re either a brainwash fool or part of the problem.
Thanks. “I don’t quite understand but I’m listening anyway” marks you as one of the good guys. :)
RPG Voldemort raises his head and makes it about himself. Don’t bother. I saw you engage in harassment with my own two word on a few Google+ threads . One woman disagreed with you, and, BOOM! :”You antisex prude! How dare you attack me and my girlfriend! You ableist fuck!”
Your gaming material is on point, but your attitude is fucking horrible.
Yours isn’t the only feminism and sex positivity. Yours isn’t the only form of trans acceptance.
How trolling can you get seriously :’)
The holodomer is literally fascist propaganda. So cut that shit out.
That statement, in itself, is a fascist sentiment. You are a hypocrite.
Why are you defending nazis?
Clear statement against genicide supporters good.
No clear statement against genocide opponents. Also good.
Not this left equals right all over again.
https://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Poll-Most-Russians-Prefer-Return-of-Soviet-Union-and-Socialism-20160420-0051.html
Go ahead and ask em.
”
I saw you engage in harassment with my own two word on a few Google+ threads “”One woman disagreed with you, and, BOOM! :”You antisex prude! How dare you attack me and my girlfriend! You ableist fuck!””
”
Thank you for this example of what you mean when you say “harassment”. I am sure it is clarifying for audiences who still have questions.
If you have a link to the thread so we can confirm your story I’m sure that would help even more.
Jason Carl rejected the notion that these two things are equivalent, as do most people.
“Zak you can be very harsh with fans”
You mean these fans that pretend antifa is as bad as Nazis?
It may come as a surprise that the majority of players just don’t care. It is sad that a company that produces content has to defend it against a tiny minority of people and the rest of us shrug our shoulders and move on. If a picture triggers you can I suggest desensitivity training or just find something else to fill in your time. But for the rest of us most have had enough of this guff and wish that people would just grow up and not feel the need to drag it down to some left right argument that… Read more »
False equivalency also bad, or does Antifa have a body count yet?
You may be liberal, but you are one of the most vile, bigoted, entitled, internet trolls and bullies I have ever dealt with, and you false innocence of, “Who, me?,” when you instigate your knuckle dragging fan base into attacking people is nauseating. You’re a vapid, hollow egomaniac of Trump-like proportions, hiding behind a sex positive lifestyle, that’s only positive (for sex, or anything else) when it’s convenient for you. You are, quite literally, the worst the left has to offer, (I say this as a liberal) because you’re only liberal and tolerant when you feel proper reverence for the… Read more »
“The holodomer is literally fascist propaganda.”
Anyone want to play ‘pin the tail on the Tankie’?
…In other news… White Wolf still exists?
Because it’s a false equivalency and they know it.
Yeah, I’m sure the alt-right is devastated that a progressive publisher just apologized for using the word “Triggered” while refusing to condemn a domestic terrorist organization.
Really shook their convictions to the core with that one. That isn’t howling gales of laughter you hear.
False equivalence is false.
Centrism is literally saying ‘as long as Nazis don’t kill ALL the Jews it is ok”.
Except that the Left is anti-isreal and has been electing anti-semites of late. Also the nazi’s were were socialist. Hate is hate and can come from anywhere. I’m not left or right before you make an assumption.
A great way to undermine any comment you have on this hot topic is to say ‘the nazi’s were socialist’ as if you’ve only just discovered the full name of the political party. Do you know what; they lied.
Snopes has a good entry level article on it.
More importantly, can Wyrms get turned into lawn furniture again?
Signed,
And AK Bro.
The Far-Right want to rid the world of anyone who isn’t like them.
The Left just want to stop the Far-Right.
Sir. With all due respect, you have been a bit of an asshole on the net now and then. I think you should own up to that. I know at least two people engaged in White Wolf so I know the nazicharge is wrong, but at the same time, maybe you personally should take some selfcritiscism? iTS THE ADULT THING TO DO. Just saying. “1488”, “triggered” in conjunction witht he fight a few years ago?
That’s because there isn’t a global far-left resurgence attacking people and communities. There’s no far-left President of a major power openly endorsing and spreading racist propaganda. Far-left terrorists didn’t walk into mosques and night clubs to commit mass murder any time recently. And there damn well weren’t any “far-left” assholes visible in the White Wolf audience… unlike the commenters on their facebook page who quite clearly endorsed a far-right world view. The far left have been basically dead for forty years. Why the hell would White Wolf need to make a statement about them? (Unless you believe the American alt-rights… Read more »
That’s a fallacy, the far-left is still out there and is destroying countries, look at Venezuela or Nicaragua. so don’t come saying that in non-US countries far left= centre-right. and the actual left in the US of today with all his claims of post-modernism are really only rehashing marxism under the table… that’s why so many of the so called “liberals” are now calling themself Classic liberals and joinnig the movement #walkaway