WotC WotC's Chris Perkins On D&D's Inclusivity Processes Going Forward

Over on D&D Beyond, WotC's Chris Perkins has written a blog entry about how the company's processes have been changed to improve the way the D&D studio deals with harmful content and inclusivity. This follows recent issues with racist content in Spelljammer: Adventures in Space, and involves working with external cultural consultants.

The studio’s new process mandates that every word, illustration, and map must be reviewed by multiple outside cultural consultants prior to publication.

Leveling Up Our Creative Process: Learnings From Spelljammer

In this blog post, I'll talk about how we in the D&D Studio are changing our review process following the problematic content that appeared in Spell...

www.dndbeyond.com

 

[Dreamscape]

Man, I've never been exposed or thought I'd be interested to that part of our world's history but this thread...

Māori culture is indeed pretty cool from what little I was exposed to in NZ, though I believe there are quite a lot of differences even there and certainly across all the island communities so covering all those details in a sourcebook would be monumental (i.e. how could you decide what to leave out?). My interest and subsequent life in SE Asia originated in Western-produced media such as films, books, and TTRPGs. But that was then, and in practical terms it is not advisable now to write things based on a foreign culture. Yes, you could employ sensitivity readers, but that's just handing the say-so over the depiction of an entire culture to one or a few individuals which is just as problematic if not more so. Best to stay away from anything recognisably Real World.

 

[Zardnaar]

except selling 1 will spread, and plenty of people will just refuse to do business' with you, some because you are being too much this or that and other because your other book is 'kowtowing'

Well depends on the quality of the book, who it's aimed at and how whatever is depicted.

 

[Zardnaar]

Māori culture is indeed pretty cool from what little I was exposed to in NZ, though I believe there are quite a lot of differences even there and certainly across all the island communities so covering all those details in a sourcebook would be monumental (i.e. how could you decide what to leave out?). My interest and subsequent life in SE Asia originated in Western-produced media such as films, books, and TTRPGs. But that was then, and in practical terms it is not advisable now to write things based on a foreign culture. Yes, you could employ sensitivity readers, but that's just handing the say-so over the depiction of an entire culture to one or a few individuals which is just as problematic if not more so. Best to stay away from anything recognisably Real World.

Maori are not monolithic either. A member of Ngai Tahu can have a very different worldview than Nga Puhi.

One thingongoing atm is one tribe is wanting to burn DoC huts but I don't know enough (eg whose land) about it to comment further

 

[AnotherGuy]

Best to stay away from anything recognisably Real World.

But certainly you see the appeal to incorporate elements of RW into fantasy settings, even if it is just shorthand.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Best to stay away from anything recognisably Real World.

That is easier said than done!

 

[Micah Sweet]

That is easier said than done!

Impossible, really. The real world and things derived from it is all we know.

 

[Dreamscape]

Or each product could target different audiences with different expectations, set of values and cultural associations to things depicted.

Well, this already happens to some extent in China, for example with different endings to films to reiterate that crime never pays, the bad guys see the error of their ways, etc. That's easy to do because it's usually in the form of text after the movie finishes. Most of the time the main market is so big, however, that the cost of producing extra scenes that won't be shown there is not worth it, so smaller markets just get what the (usually more conservative) main market will allow.

Maori are not monolithic either. A member of Ngai Tahu can have a very different worldview than Nga Puhi.

Yes, I did say that in my post - "there are quite a lot of differences even there". Apologies if that wasn't clear.

But certainly you see the appeal to incorporate elements of RW into fantasy settings, even if it is just shorthand.

I can see the appeal, but not the commercial wisdom. Of course, everything we write is more or less inspired by the Real World, but in an RPG such elements are best left unrecognisable. Though I don't discount that there are authors who seem to be able to conjure stories from nothing but their imagination.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

That is easier said than done!

In this game, you're roleplaying covalent links and fighting the color blue using cosmic radiations.


Mmmm... not sure it will sell, tbh.

 

[Cruentus]

"Ish." The problem is that Oriental Adventures-esque settings are usually filled with blatant stereotypes based on Western misunderstandings of how various Asian cultures worked (and the assumption that they were all very similar), while the European-style settings aren't like that. They're like having a vaguely-European setting where everyone is a chivalric knight who engages in palace intrigue, wears liederhosen, and wields a rapier while throwing chicken bones on the rush-covered floors of a moat-surrounded, cannon-guarded longhouse. So, in my opinion (as a non-Asian), having a pan-Asian setting would be fine, as long as it wasn't filled with such a terrible mishmash of ideas and there was effort put into making them in a sensible setting.

IMO, everything you wrote that I underlined is exactly what DnD has become... Now, I'm not saying what is good for DnD is good for any setting, or using any cultural group. But what happens if you get a sensitivity reader, and they're not as sensitive as people would like? Is that sensitivity reader wrong? Who makes that call?

I think what many are saying, and I'd agree with, you have to be VERY careful if you're writing about a different culture, and make extra sure you're covering your bases. And if you are going to put things in front of millions of eyeballs, then you're best if you steer clear of obvious real world cultural refences.

 

[Zardnaar]

Well, this already happens to some extent in China, for example with different endings to films to reiterate that crime never pays, the bad guys see the error of their ways, etc. That's easy to do because it's usually in the form of text after the movie finishes. Most of the time the main market is so big, however, that the cost of producing extra scenes that won't be shown there is not worth it, so smaller markets just get what the (usually more conservative) main market will allow.


Yes, I did say that in my post - "there are quite a lot of differences even there". Apologies if that wasn't clear.


I can see the appeal, but not the commercial wisdom. Of course, everything we write is more or less inspired by the Real World, but in an RPG such elements are best left unrecognisable. Though I don't discount that there are authors who seem to be able to conjure stories from nothing but their imagination.

Mind me asking in how you do nd the differences here with the Maori culture and back home (USA?).

Outsiders perspective etc.