By Cecilia D’Anastasio, Bloomberg News (TNS)
Fans of the popular video game Fortnite can enter a new virtual world as of Monday, Freedom Town, U.S.A., created by Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ campaign.
In Freedom Town, which is accessible through Epic Games Inc.’s Fortnite platform, there are campaign signs for Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz. Players take advantage of small-business tax breaks, collect construction supplies and build new homes to lower housing costs. They can also shoot exploding footballs at opponents, a reference to Walz’s time as a high school coach.
Video games are the latest battleground for candidates chasing young voters. It’s a particular focus for Harris, as recent polls suggest that young male voters, and young Black men in particular, are more likely to vote for Republicans and former President Donald Trump than in the past.
The Trump campaign has made its own pitch to gamers. In August, the former president appeared on a livestream with Adin Ross, who became famous playing Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.’s NBA 2K and Grand Theft Auto. Ross hosts his livestreams on Kick.com, which is operated by the owner of Australian crypto casino Stake. Some 564,000 people tuned in, according to the company, although analysts have questioned whether Kick’s metrics are accurate.
Trump spoke on the economy and immigration. A spokesperson for former Trump’s campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment.
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Over the weekend, Walz joined Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York to play Madden NFL 25 and Crazy Taxi on the game streaming platform Twitch.
While the two played, they discussed political topics from housing assistance for first-time home buyers to the Biden administration’s position on the war in Gaza. Walz waxed nostalgic for Sega’s 25-year-old Dreamcast video-game console.
Last week, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders appeared with several video-game influencers on Twitch and YouTube to promote the Harris campaign. Videos of the livestream were viewed nearly one million times after the event across YouTube and Twitch.
Harris’ YouTube channel released a trailer for Freedom Town on Monday backed by a song from rapper Megan Thee Stallion. The campaign is also working with gaming influencers, including Jordan “HusKerrs” Thomas and Morgan “Modelmorg” Pope, to get the word out about the new virtual world.
While Fortnite is run by Epic, that company wasn’t involved directly in the design of Freedom Town. Developers can make their own “maps” within the game using tools provided by Epic.
Whether it will pay off for Harris remains to be seen, as of midday Monday, Freedom Town had fewer than 150 active players.
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