Afrofantasy Roleplaying MMO ‘The Wagadu Chronicles’ Is Now Live On Kickstarter
European medieval fantasy has been the go-to setting for MMO developers for decades. While there are a few development studios who have tried different routes, most studios still resort to this tried-and-tested, and oftentimes overly-used theme in their games. German developer Twin Drums is looking to move away from this trope with a new African tribal fantasy-themed MMORPG with a strong emphasis on roleplaying, called The Wagadu Chronicles.
“Imagine a videogame where everyone around you is role-playing. The noble Emere with whom you are travelling does not want to desecrate any tombs and ignores the loot; the Swala hunter you just met chants a ritual prayer before every hunt and the Asiman merchant never attacks or kills anyone because she believes her goddess wants peace to rule in Wagadu.”
Twin Drums says they’re working together with experts to make sure that players will get a truly-African vibe with the game’s lore, biomes, and music. The game is currently in pre-alpha state with more features to be added in the future including multiple skills such as archery and cartography, a player-focused crafting system, farming, player housing, customizable gear, full corpse loot on death, and daily experience bundles to cut down on grinding.
“We believe that role-playing isn't always just about about grinding and growing stats,” says the devs.” It's the embodying of a role; the presence of a backstory and all of the quirks and details that define your unique character.”
Twin Drums has just launched a Kickstarter campaign to secure additional funds for the game’s development. The studio is seeking $117,000 and have managed to rake in nearly $60,000 with 38 days to go in the campaign. According to the studio, they’re also being backed by a big developer, more specifically, Riot Games. “The Wagadu Chronicles is happening. The reason why we are here is because your support can help us improve the game by increasing our development budget and by joining us in this development journey with your feedback and participation.”
Twin Drums is made up of a mostly female, black, and queer core team that takes harassment very seriously. “We intend to keep the space safe from harassment and trolls who want to disrupt other people’s story and role-play; we are spending a lot of energy into this and we will have a number of moderation tools both for ourselves and for the community.”
You can find out more about The Wagadu Chronicles on the game’s Kickstarter page. You'll also find the official teaser trailer below.
