Africa Is a Country

'Slavery, The Game'

'Slavery, The Game'

By
Sean Jacobs

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJMzeQicAh8&w=600&=369]

While watching out for Fifa 12, I got distracted by this Youtube “commercial” for  another video game, “Slavery: The Game.”  Within days it had half a million views. Watch the trailer above. It just seemed to absurd to be true. There was a a website, with a video, ways for you to share it on social media and a phone number. A few websites checked the phone number and the company listed as developer and found it did not exist. They also reasoned retailers here wouldn’t carry it because of its offensive nature. But some commenters on Youtube were actually excited by the prospect of capturing, torturing and making profits off slaves. I suspected if it was the work of Adbusters or The Yes Men.

 It turned out it was a viral campaign for a Dutch TV series about slavery. Clever.

Further Reading

No one should be surprised we exist

The documentary film, ‘Rolé—Histórias dos Rolezinhos’ by Afro-Brazilian filmmaker Vladimir Seixas uses sharp commentary to expose social, political, and cultural inequalities within Brazilian society.

Kenya’s stalemate

A fundamental contest between two orders is taking place in Kenya. Will its progressives seize the moment to catalyze a vision for social, economic, and political change?

More than a building

The film ‘No Place But Here’ uses VR or 360 media to immerse a viewer inside a housing occupation in Cape Town. In the process, it wants to challenge gentrification and the capitalist logic of home ownership.