Call it the age of PlayStation politics.

Where Bill Clinton went on MTV and Barack Obama seized on social media, modern-day Democrats see online video gaming as the next high-tech frontier for reaching young voters.

And a Canadian company is helping to lead the virtual charge.

Toronto-based Enthusiast Gaming was at the cusp of the presidential effort last year, helping to stitch Joe BidenB次元官网网址檚 brand and message into a customized map for the wildly popular game B次元官网网址淔ortnite.B次元官网网址�

Prior to the election, fans of NintendoB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址淎nimal Crossing: New HorizonsB次元官网网址� downloaded Biden and Kamala Harris avatars and decorated their islands with Biden-Harris lawn signs.

And two weeks out from election day, New York rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and fellow progressive Rep. Ilhan Omar attracted nearly 440,000 viewers B次元官网网址� unheard of for political figures B次元官网网址� when they played B次元官网网址淎mong UsB次元官网网址� live on the streaming site Twitch.

The AOC livestream was so popular, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh quickly jumped at the opportunity to engage the popular progressive firebrand in a cross-border rematch B次元官网网址� an event that raised more than US$200,000 for anti-poverty endeavours in the U.S.

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For Adrian Montgomery, Enthusiast GamingB次元官网网址檚 40-something CEO, the intersection of video games and political campaigns in 2020 has been nothing short of seminal.

B次元官网网址淭his was such an interesting moment thatB次元官网网址檚 going to change political discourse, and it was pretty cool to be a part of it,B次元官网网址� Montgomery said in an interview.

He likened it to ClintonB次元官网网址檚 famous sunglasses-and-saxophone appearance on the Arsenio Hall show in 1992, or a Playboy interview in 1976 that nearly ended Jimmy CarterB次元官网网址檚 career.

B次元官网网址淚 see the Joe Biden campaign using video games and AOC and B次元官网网址楩ortniteB次元官网网址� takeovers as similarily transformational, and I think itB次元官网网址檚 going to change how young people are treated in future elections,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淭hey certainly have proven that they do come out and vote and they can make a difference. And so I think thatB次元官网网址檚 going to put wind in our sails.B次元官网网址�

There was more to the Biden-Harris B次元官网网址淔ortniteB次元官网网址� map than just campaign billboards and B次元官网网址淏uild Back BetterB次元官网网址� sloganeering.

Gamers who took on the map were confronted with six unique challenges to complete, all of them steeped not only in the lore of the former Delaware senator, but also his campaign goals and messages.

Players were tasked with gathering industrial waste from B次元官网网址淎viator River,B次元官网网址� retrofitting an auto factory to build electric cars with solar power; and installing 5G towers throughout the map B次元官网网址渢o ensure every American has access to broadband.B次元官网网址�

Along the way, they were exhorted to send text messages or visit websites in order to receive detailed instructions on how to obtain mail-in ballots or vote in person on election day.

Montgomery will take part in a panel at the Canadian Club in Toronto on Tuesday, talking gaming and politics with Allison Stern, who headed up the digital partnerships project for the Biden campaign. TheyB次元官网网址檒l also be joined by Heidi Browning, the chief marketing officer for the National Hockey League.

B次元官网网址 games, already a US$150-billion colossus that dwarfs both the music and film industries, represent an untapped resource that found an even firmer footing in a year when people around the world were forced to stay in their homes.

Online games, which can provide players with a unique sense of connection and community even from a distance, were made for the moment, Montgomery said.

And with speculation already rampant about the possibility of an election in Canada this year, he sounds excited about the prospects.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 very rare when you can reach young people at scale, and you can do it in a way that theyB次元官网网址檇 be receptive to,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e not currently engaged, but I think we obviously have the track record. And it would be interesting to extrapolate that into other endeavours and other campaigns.B次元官网网址�

James McCarten, The Canadian Press

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