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Fighting Twitter zombies with toilet paper: Chanhee Choi and her game, "Pandemic 2020"

caption: In "Pandemic 2020," an art-driven video game, your character is a literal molecule of the COVID-19 virus.
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In "Pandemic 2020," an art-driven video game, your character is a literal molecule of the COVID-19 virus.

The usual video game plot features a generic hero venturing to a stronghold to defeat a recurring villain and rid the land of evil. Very rarely do you see racism as the primary enemy in a video game. But that is the villain at the center of a new game from University of Washington Graduate Student Chahnee Choi.

The concept of "Pandemic 2020" can feel simple at first.

Like many 3D video games, you control a central character navigating a series of shifting levels, each rising in difficulty the farther you progress. But at the start, players will notice that the game is unlike anything they've played before.

For one, the main character is a literal COVID-19 virus, a choice that makes the player feel what it's like to be personally called "a virus." Second, the enemies the player faces off against are 3D renderings of viral and racist memes, including an army of zombies wearing suits made of racist tweets. To defeat these terrifying foes, the player must collect and utilize the most essential of pandemic supplies.

"The main character has to throw toilet paper, hand sanitizer, or masks. Like Super Mario collecting mushrooms," says the game's developer, Chanhee Choi.

While the gameplay can feel familiar to any gamer, "Pandemic 2020" isn't really a video game per se -- it's an "art game," which Choi describes as an experience centered around the mechanics of a video game, but with a larger, more experiential message the player is meant to take away.

In the case of "Pandemic 2020," that message is about what it's like to be at the center of anti-Asian racism.

"I feel like people don't recognize it. And even when I bring it up now, people feel that I'm just being sensitive about it," says Choi.

The inspiration for the game comes from a traumatic encounter Choi experienced early on the pandemic. On a return trip from her native country, South Korea, Choi was confronted by a man in downtown Seattle, who swore at her, called her "Chinese", and blamed her for the coronavirus. He looked to Choi like he was going to hit her, at which point, she froze.

"I felt like living in the United States was getting more familiar, like a place I wanted to live. Even more than my home in South Korea. But when that happened, I felt even more isolated."

Choi's fear turned to anger, especially as anti-Asian hate speech proliferated online and real-world attacks against Asian people and those of Asian descent drastically increased throughout the pandemic. She took note of the videos, memes, and tweets she came across, compiling and rendering them for the world of "Pandemic 2020." She wanted people to not just confront racism, but be forced to interact with it.

"I think it's the most immersive way to get a message across. Watching a video or watching animations is simple. You can just decide to watch, or pause, or stop it. You don't need to watch them."

At the conclusion of the game, where one might expect a fade to black and congratulations, the character remains in the world. The metaphor is clear: racism, xenophobia, and hate speech aren't defeated in seven easy stages. The only thing left for the player to do is go back to the beginning and begin the battles all over again.

Choi hopes the game will bring awareness to the experiences of racism, from viral memes and tweets to the violence of their real-world manifestations.

"Games allow people to think of themselves in unfamiliar ways. To play a game, people have to engage," says Choi. "I'd like to give people the experience of being a minority in America. And media has incredible influence over the tides of racism that ebb and flow in our culture."

Choi is still working on finishing the game, but when it is live, it can be found at her website: chaneec.com.

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