The New York Times just released the best thing of the election
This one is for the olds.
The New York Times on Friday released a voting simulator in the style of the classic Oregon Trail video game.
The Times version, titled "The Voter Suppression Trail," puts users through an 8-bit version of going to the polls.
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The game changes depending on the character you choose at the beginning, effectively highlighting how different the voting experience can be for people of various classes and races.
For instance, choose the white programmer in California and you get to just stroll on in to your polling place with no wait or frustration.
When you play as a Latina nurse in Texas, it's not quite so easy.
The nurse has to take a bus across town to then wait in a long line. The game notes that "G.O.P. tactics that cut back on polling places and workers are causing huge lines!"
Then, you wait in line and encounter various difficulties, such as a sick son. In classic Oregon Trail style, he has dysentery.
Even if you stick it out, you might miss out on voting.
The game is under the Times' opinion section, making it one of the most ambitious non-reporting projects from the paper. The editors that worked on the piece noted that it is the first video game produced for the Times Op-Doc series, which usually produces "short, opinionated documentaries" from independent filmmakers.
The people behind the game, Chris Baker, Brian Moore and Mike Lacher, also produced GOP Arcade. The site has used basic games to draw attention to issues like the rising cost of EpiPens (EpiPen Tycoon) and the inaction regarding gun violence (Thoughts and Prayers).
Topics Elections
Jason Abbruzzese is a Business Reporter at Mashable. He covers the media and telecom industries with a particular focus on how the Internet is changing these markets and impacting consumers. Prior to working at Mashable, Jason served as Markets Reporter and Web Producer at the Financial Times. Jason holds a B.S. in Journalism from Boston University and an M.A. in International Affairs from Australian National University.
