RPGHQ: Academia's favorite RPG site!

[rusty_shackleford]

We did it again, boys.
https://orbi.uliege.be/bitstream/2268/3 ... ettoyé.pdf

backup: https://f.rpghq.org/87ExvhTPlpr6.pdf?n= ... ettoyé.pdf

Can't read whatever ******** illegal alien language this is so whatever

[rusty_shackleford]

@DemoGraph I hope you realize you got cited by libtards as a libtard

[Bertram_Tung]

Haven't read through it all yet, but here's a quick rough translation via CuckGPT:

Unilateral Co-construction of Wokism in the Steam Group “Woke Content Detector”

François-Xavier Surinx, PhD candidate FNRS-FRESH (University of Liège)
TRIGGER WARNING

This research deals in part with hate speech targeting various individuals and communities.
The following slides include offensive language and images.
TRIGGER WARNING 2: Personal Positioning / Disclaimer / Transparency Statement

I am not a specialist in issues related to wokism and initially considered myself not particularly affected by the phenomenon.
➔ My understanding of the term was initially naïve.
The research began out of personal interest: to observe how a small online community takes hold of and defines a problematic label.

Woke: A Problematic and Unstable Label

• Difficult to define

• Hard to stabilize in meaning or usage

• Raises ethical/moral concerns

Woke Content Detector (WCD): A Problematic Group

• Built around ethically questionable ideals

• Hosted on a platform ill-suited to expressing certain views

• Operates through opaque mechanisms

Initial Research Objectives

• Observe what elements define "wokism" and on what basis (formal, contextual, subjective, etc.)—and determine what counts as a “woke game” for a community trying to define the concept.

• Determine where interpretive authority lies within the WCD community and how that authority is regulated (democracy, autocracy, oligarchy, etc.).

Sampling Method

• First phase: Random sampling — collecting and analyzing discussions on WCD (especially those with at least 5 comments), until reaching a saturation point.

• Second phase: Snowball method — discovering other groups on Steam and beyond during the course of the research.

Final Objectives

• Same as above: understand how wokism and “woke games” are defined and on what basis.

• Analyze authority structures and their regulation within WCD.

• Plus: Analyze how platforms influence the discourses produced by certain communities.

Methodology

• Grounded in semiotics, rhetoric, and discourse analysis: examining arguments while placing them in their media and cultural contexts.

➔ Analyzing accepted, rejected, and debated semantic elements of the term (and idea of) “woke game.”
➔ Analyzing co-utterances and interactions between participants.

Formal Characteristics and Functioning of WCD

• Founded: March 16, 2024, in the USA by Furin (disappeared mysteriously in May 2025).
  
  • Currently led by: Wizard Lizard, a.k.a. Rusty D Shackleford.
  • Over 3,500 members and ~10,000 followers.
  • Over 500 discussion threads on Steam (ranging from 0 to 200+ replies).
  • Central link to a Google Sheet cataloging evaluated games.
  Founder's Claimed Methodology
  • • Any member may propose games for evaluation (woke or not).
    • The list is updated only by Furin.
    • Supposed room for debate on both the label “woke” and individual game rankings.
    • Politeness is always required.
    Evaluation Criteria
    
    • Analyses must be objective:
    ➔ Must be justified by the content of the game or statements from developers.
    ➔ “Scientific” justification often requested, especially on DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance).
    
    • Focus solely on content, not on creators or quality.
    • Aim is to inform users so they can choose games with full awareness.
    Problematic Use of Sources
    
    • Example: Attempt to link mental illness to leftist political leanings using multiple quotes.
    ➔ First source: a pseudo-academic journal run by a white supremacist.
    ➔ Other sources are legitimate but interpreted in highly dubious ways.
    Defining a “Woke Game”
    
    • Furin proposes a list of “woke” themes.
    • From the outset, the definition is not fixed—new semantic elements are constantly added.
    ➔ Floating concept
    ➔ Therefore, subject to ongoing contestation and reinterpretation
    
    Expanding the Concept
    
    Other discussions suggest a broad view of wokism:
    
    • In terms of themes
    • In terms of the “intensity” or “degree” within those themes
    Examples of associated adversaries:
    
    • The Left, liberals (seen as pushing a political agenda)
    • Communists and Marxists
    • BlackRock
    • Sweet Baby Inc and other “woke” studios (Ubisoft, Square Enix)
    • Tencent and China
    • The pharmaceutical industry and, paradoxically, science in general
    Victimization Rhetoric
    
    • Many engaged members present themselves as victims of a dominant narrative.
    ➔ Notion that showing diversity or mental illness = "woke propaganda"
    • Boundary Expansion Through Negation
    Something is called woke if it doesn't conform to a restrictive and homogeneous social vision.
    Moderate Views Exist—but Marginalized
    
    • Some question whether game elements reflect tokenism or are justified by the lore.
    • Examples like Dave the Diver and Omori show nuance in interpretation.
    • Games like Geometry Dash are flagged preemptively based on user-generated content.
    Instability of the Label
    
    Unlike other generic tags, “woke” is actively discussed and contested, yet…
    ➔ It remains unstable, and
    ➔ There is little agreement on which games should be labeled as such.
    • Who Defines Wokism on WCD?
      
      Despite claims of democratic discussion, Furin ultimately controls definitions and the list.
      
      • Messages contradicting the group’s aim (even mildly) are often deleted.
      • Trolls and dissenters are sanctioned or excluded.
      • Moderate voices are often ignored or dismissed.
      ➔ Furin acts as leader, gatekeeper, and arbiter.
      
      First Conclusion: A Unilateral Definition and List
      
      The group's method of discussion and defining wokism and “woke games” resembles two political systems:
      
      • Theocracy: devotion to an untouchable, sacred, and ineffable idea
      • Enlightened Despotism: power concentrated in one individual, echoed by powerless deputies, with absolute trust in the leader (or exclusion upon dissent)
      • [McCarthyism]: witch-hunt mentality, absolute suspicion of divergent ideas, and silencing/exclusion of opponents
      A Facade of Civility
      
      • Group enforces strict discussion rules:
      ➔ No insults or ad hominem attacks
      ➔ Trolls are banned and messages deleted
      
      • Yet:
      ➔ Civility seems performative, largely motivated by fear of platform sanctions
      
      Networked Ideological Ecosystem
      
      WCD is self-sufficient, but heavily connected to other groups with shared ideology:
      
      • Sweet Baby Inc Detected (Steam & Discord):
      ➔ Frequently referenced, framed as key to a “Gamergate 2.0”
      
      Kabrutus: YouTube figure, spreads hate speech with less fear of censorship
      
      RPGHQ: run by Wizard Lizard, hosts discussions and mods banned elsewhere
      ➔ WCD-related thread has over 1,000 posts
      ➔ Tone is harsher and more violent
      
      ➔ Forms a constellation of groups:
      
      • With shared themes
      • Common members
      • Extreme and visible leaders
      • Varying discourse styles by platform
      (Discord servers, subreddits, YouTube channels, mod-sharing sites, Steam groups)
      
      Final Summary / Conclusion
      
      • The label “woke” remains unstable, as individuals hold different and often vague understandings of it. On WCD, however, it becomes radicalized and fixed under the influence of a few “zealous preachers.”
      • Discussions are not truly democratic, filtering only discourses that conform to an extreme view of wokism.
      • Anti-woke communities are interconnected, hostile to satire, and resilient against incursions from pro-woke or moderate voices. Users adapt to platform constraints while navigating this ecosystem.
      Thank you for your attention!

[Oyster Sauce]

Reminds me of how I'd end my school PowerPoint presentations with the Looney Tunes "that's all, folks!" image. Sure hope this wasn't done for a university or job.

[rusty_shackleford]

Reminds me of how I'd end my school PowerPoint presentations with the Looney Tunes "that's all, folks!" image. Sure hope this wasn't done for a university or job.

lecturer/PhD(? student?)
https://www.uliege.be/cms/c_9054334/en/ ... id=u232123

[Oyster Sauce]

Rusty D Shackleford

[Bertram_Tung]

Founded: March 16, 2024, in the USA by Furin (disappeared mysteriously in May 2025).

[Acrux]

@DemoGraph I hope you realize you got cited by libtards as a libtard

I'm going to use their citation of me professionally! Time to add it to my ResearchGate profile.

[Bertram_Tung]

Whoever this Wizard Lizard fellow is, he sounds extremely based.

[Statesman]

They even end up with a nihilistic meme...



Is depression the default mental state for Europeansthe French?

[Stack of Turtles]

They even end up with a nihilistic meme...



Is depression the default mental state for Europeansthe French?

He's Belgian, which is like being French, but gayer.

[rusty_shackleford]

email:

[email protected]

fxsurinx

furin

@Furin
I invited you into my home… I treated you like a brother…

[rusty_shackleford]

(to be clear, I have no idea if it is furin.)

[Stack of Turtles]

(to be clear, I have no idea if it is furin.)

In your heart, you know. You've always known.

[Bertram_Tung]

He's Belgian, which is like being French, but gayer.

Poirot is based

[Oyster Sauce]

(to be clear, I have no idea if it is furin.)

It's him

[rusty_shackleford]

(to be clear, I have no idea if it is furin.)

In your heart, you know. You've always known.

(I didn't care)

[rusty_shackleford]

I sent an email inviting him here

[logincrash]

He's Belgian, which is like being French, but gayer.

Poirot is based

Do what you want 'cause a poirot is free! You are a poirot!

[UltraFan123]

Hosted on a platform ill-suited to expressing certain views

This line here was when I stopped reading the garbage, because in this site you're even allowed to have the most negative IQ subtarded takes without being banned or censored.

I guess leftards are used to censoring anything they disagree with as the norm and so any true free speech place is considered "ill-suited for conversation".

[rusty_shackleford]

My position on whether it's Furin is: no.

Why?
French people are major ESLs. They all have tells a mile off, I can detect every single French speaker on this forum without even trying(easiest way is they put a space between the end of a sentence and punctuation)
Never saw Furin make a single ESL mistake. Either he wasn't born in whatever frogland that is, or it's not him.

The name alone is suspicious, but it's just too much effort for a powerpoint slide.

[rusty_shackleford]

OTOH, if it was him…
Thanks for the traffic and new members?

It would be like making a documentary about a group you hate then showing it off to the exact people they want to attract to their group.

[Oyster Sauce]

The list is still valid and correct btw

[Acrux]

OTOH, if it was him…
Thanks for the traffic and new members?

It would be like making a documentary about a group you hate then showing it off to the exact people they want to attract to their group.

I don't think this guy is Furin. If he were, he would have an academic responsibility to disclose that he was "undercover" in his methodology section. And surely a libtard wouldn't lie or omit such an important part of his research!

Seriously, though, I really don't think it's Furin. If he was Furin I think there would be more about the ingroup/outgroup hazing he got here initially.

Furin is probably just dead.

[logincrash]

Furiously masturbatin

[Oyster Sauce]

(to be clear, I have no idea if it is furin.)

It's him

It's not him

[rusty_shackleford]

Selection_038.webp

It's gay race communism, fwiw.

[Tweed]

Whoever this Wizard Lizard fellow is, he sounds extremely based.

Sounds like a scalie.

Also, this is what passes for academia now?

[gerey]

a specialist in issues related to wokism

How is this a real thing?

Moderate Views Exist

Okay, fess up who you are. We're not going to kink-shame you.

Fellas, I... I finally made it. Please don't be jealous.

[Tweed]

How is this a real thing?

It's real the same way gender studies are real.