Trouble in (online) Paradise: Animal Crossing and the protestors of Hong Kong

May 1

May 1 Trouble in (online) Paradise: Animal Crossing and the protestors of Hong Kong

As of early April, the government of China reportedly removed the Nintendo Switch game 'Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ from sale within
its territory. The surprising, albeit yet unproven, reason for this attempted ban: revolutionary activity. In a time where in-person gatherings are forbidden
in efforts to combat the coronavirus, the game had come under scrutiny as protestors in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement used it to move their protests
to the virtual realm. Known as a ‘social simulation’ game, Animal Crossing enables players to create their own habitat on an idyllic tropical island including
interacting with avatars of other players. With its latest version released in March, it has become enormously popular; frequently touted as the perfect escape
from the ongoing stresses of the current world. In this particular scenario, the game didn’t only substitute for everyday life. As popular social and
political movements worldwide were forced indoors, Animal Crossing’s expansive user base, virtually unlimited freedom and features enabling collaboration made it an innovative and quarantine-abiding alternative.

The controversial initiative gained international awareness when activist Joshua Wong shared screenshots of his own Animal Crossing island on Twitter;
showcasing gatherings of people with posters bearing slogans like “Free Hong Kong, Revolution Now” along with placards of Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Wong,
23, is an accomplished lobbyist and Secretary-General of the pro-Democracy party Demosistō. Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017 and in possession of a large youth following, his influence spans both the governmental and popular spheres. As a result, his actions and those of his supporters quickly attracted the attention of the foreign and domestic press. The Chinese government has not explicitly named them a cause, but the timeline of events strong suggests that their activities contributed to the almost overnight removal of the game from availability on the Chinese web.

China’s government is notoriously strict regarding which foreign video games are permitted within the country. At the time of its removal, Animal Crossing had not yet been officially approved. Despite this hurdle, the game was reportedly ‘extremely popular,' with foreign versions available on smaller retail sites and through roundabout means like changing one’s Nintendo e-shop location. It is these measures on which the government has cracked down; beginning with the abrupt removal one Friday morning of unofficial sales on e-commerce platforms. Most notably, vendors on Taobao, the Chinese equivalent of eBay, found that their listings had disappeared from their online stores and no longer appeared in keyword searches. Tech specialists and activists with a stake in the issue have argued that the game will still be available through more ingenuous methods. That said, the government’s actions still constitute a powerful gesture that renders the game even less accessible to the general public.

Wong and his movement have faced criticism for depriving their countrymen of much-needed fun by ‘politicising’ a toy meant to provide an escape from real life. However, even as parts of society are put on hold, their cause is not. In this fashion, the case of Wong and his supporters speaks to a larger problem and an often-unappreciated consequence of the coronavirus pandemic. Hong Kong’s virtual protesters have not been alone in their struggle. With most countries steeped in quarantine measures, countless non-violent movements have also been interrupted. Algeria, for example, saw its weekly anti-government
protests called off for the first time in more than a year as regulations combatting the virus closed down the country’s streets. In Venezuela,
opposition leader Juan Guaido also called for mass demonstrations against leader Nicolás Maduro to be put on hold in respect for similar measures. The global
climate movement, led by Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg, has also been forced into hiatus, with large scale demonstrations called off and Thunberg’s
‘Skolstrejk för Klimatet’ taking the form of Instagram posts instead of in-person demonstration. This change is particularly stark when compared with
2019; dubbed ‘the year of street protests.’

Even in comparison to plummeting gas prices and material shortages, the loss of democratic opportunity should still be taken seriously as a repercussion of the pandemic. In particular, the events surrounding the Hong Kong democracy movement illuminate the fact that the crisis has had disproportionate effects
on people whose states face problems, as it makes it even more difficult for them to advocate for their objectives. For some, like Thunberg’s climate movement,
moving online has been comparatively seamless. However, as demonstrated by Hong Kong, the move to the virtual leaves other movements subject to even stronger censorship as they are left vulnerable to governments who exert tighter control over their data and internet realms. In the face of global anti-pandemic measures, it is important to acknowledge that the socio-political sphere has not disappeared. In many ways, the crisis has provided an opportunity for popular movements to showcase their ingenuity in the face of adversity. That said, the actions of the Chinese government in response to Hong Kong and the role played by Animal Crossing shows that despite the most creative of efforts, these movements are more vulnerable than ever.