Have a long summer on your Animal Crossing Island. You have shaken a lot of trees and caught a lot of cicadas. You have cornered the stalk market with more turnips than anyone has possible. You’ve bought more furniture from Knox than your house holds.
But only B Diden’s campaign thinks it’s reminiscent of real-world news: a virtual campaign icon for your virtual yard.
The campaign said it made four signals available on the platform on Tuesday, beginning the fall of the day in the Nintendo Switch game. One symbol bears the Biden-Harris logo; Others say “Team J” and “J” with “E” presented in pride. The fourth has a stylized image of Mr. Biden’s signed aviator sunglasses.
This is not the first time a political campaign has tried to make a popular video game. But this may be the first attempt to cut wood, catch a bug, and buy kitchen appliances from Reckon.
President Trump’s campaign rejected the stunt. “All this explains: JB Biden thinks he’s campaigning for the president of Animal Crossing from his basement,” Samantha Zagre, the campaign’s deputy national press secretary, said in an email.
“The Trump campaign will continue to spend its resources in the real world campaign with real Americans,” he said. “And there is still no biden boat parade.”
Christian Tom, director of digital partnerships for the Biden-Harris campaign, said Animal Crossing is a dynamic, diverse and powerful platform that brings communities around the world together. He called it an exciting new opportunity for our campaign to join supporters, “as they build and decorate their island.”
“We are already looking forward to planning more digital swags, voter education tools and efforts on animal crossings and other platforms.”
So far, it looks like Dodo Airlines doesn’t get the code to fly to Campaign Island (it doesn’t have an island), which is fine. The game slows down when more than a few visitors commute.
Biden-Harris said in the campaign that he would present hints with some gamer influencers who would share their gameplay with their audience. Players can download the QR code on the mobile device and the hints through the Nintendo Switch app online app.
Animal Crossing, an eccentric life-simulation game that became a phenomenon on the switch during the coronavirus epidemic, has been around since 2001. In August, Nintendo reported more than 22 million sales of Animal Crossing: New Horizon, making it the most popular version of the game yet. Its players are essentially rulers of their own world, customizing the landscape by changing it, their homes and other villagers as they see fit (or allowed by Tom Nook’s rules, which pay off loans and charge hefty construction fees).
The appeal of the game is seldom adorned with beautiful, catchphrase-spotting animals and a variety of fashions as well as the constant cheerful illusion that there is nothing going on, no reason to run, no crisis, no news.
Political communication is not new in this version of the game, which was released on March 20, days after the epidemic was announced.
During a protest in Hong Kong earlier this year, activists went to their Animal Crossing Islands to share virtual slogans. People for the ethical treatment of animals in the month of May Opposed a fish museum In the game. More recently, Black Lives Matter activists used it to raise awareness, even making appearances in the game.
Nintendo did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
Not all political efforts to appeal to gamers have been good. The mobile Pokemon Go game peaked in 2016 when Hillary Clinton was told to “go to the Pokemon poll!” Made a joke at the rally to urge people.
In 2007 and 2008, Mrs. Clinton, Barack Obama, John Edwards and John McCain were involved in presidential campaigns with players from Second Life, the virtual online virtual world. But not much is known about whether those efforts have been successful, said Daniel Kraes, a professor of political communications at Chapel Hill University of North Carolina.
With fewer television viewers, “the traditional 30-second ad pitch is much less relevant than before,” said Dennis Plane, a professor of politics at Penn’s Huntington’s Junior College College Ledge, especially when ads can be easily skipped.
“Campaigns in video games are a bit weird because they target a small market, but people can vote at the age of 18,” he said. Voters with the same party for their entire lives. “
Professor Plane said the rollout of the Virtual L Signs in Animal Crossing campaign probably won’t move many people, but it could create excitement and excitement among gamers and their friends who support Biden, Professor Plane said.
“In the coronavirus era when you can’t knock on doors very easily, it’s a new technology, a new trick.” “We don’t know if it will work; The proof will be in the puddle. ”
According to Anila Bertozi, professor of game design and development at Quinnipiac University, Animal Crossing: New Horizons was “liberated in this new environment where everyone plays games at home,” and her audience included “many unconventional gamers.”
“Animal Crossing is a pro-social game where players write letters to each other and interact in a way that creates a community.” “It’s a good cultural match for Biden’s message.”
“When you know the demographic position you’re trying to reach all play a certain game,” he said, “leaving your message in that game can be a smart tactical move.”
