Trump’s White House releases deportation video games

The White House has launched a collection of online arcade-style video games promoting President Donald Trump’s policies, including his campaign to deport undocumented migrants and strengthen the US-Mexico border.

The games were unveiled on Thursday on a new section of the White House website called Arcade, featuring five games inspired by popular classic video games.

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One of the games, ‘Rio Run’, is based on the classic Snake game. It features a digital character representing Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar, chasing migrants along the Rio Grande near the US-Mexico border.

Another game, ‘Build the Wall’, is modelled after Tetris, with players stacking sections of a border wall. Its instructions tell players to protect the border from what it describes as a “coming horde”.

The other three games focus on different parts of Trump’s agenda.

‘Supply Line’ is based on the arcade game Tapper and requires players to sort food according to standards linked to the administration’s ‘Make America Healthy Again’ campaign.

‘Flappy Bill’, inspired by Flappy Bird, features an eagle carrying legislation across Washington, while ‘Trump Savings Tycoon’ asks players to collect money for Trump Accounts, a government savings programme that provides a $1,000 deposit for eligible children born during Trump’s second term.

The White House promoted the games on social media using animations inspired by classic gaming brands. Its post carried the message: “CAN’T STOP WINNING. Build the wall. Deport. Fill a Trump Account.”

The White House said the games were designed to present the president’s achievements and policies in a way that would connect with Americans.

However, rights groups strongly criticised the initiative, particularly the games dealing with migrants.

Amerika Garcia Grewal, co-director of the Frontera Federation in Texas, said the games were disturbing because they turned real people’s lives into entertainment. Another border worker, Adriana Jasso, described them as showing a lack of seriousness about the consequences of immigration enforcement.

The launch comes as the Trump administration continues its campaign of mass arrests and deportations of undocumented migrants, one of the central policies of Trump’s presidency.