Feeling inspired by the Trump administration’s ongoing war in Iran and want to get bogged down in a quagmire of your very own? Now you can! A collective of activists and artists going by The Secret Handshake has introduced a video game called Operation Epic Furious: Strait to Hell and dropped arcade cabinets featuring the title outside of the District of Columbia War Memorial—but you can also play it in your browser if you don’t feel like putting a quarter in the cabinet and waiting your turn.
The three arcade machines will remain in place for the next few days for people to play in person, according to Wired. They are accompanied by a plaque that reads:
The Trump administration knows that the best way to sell combat is by making it a video game, that’s why they’ve been pumping out the ‘sickest’ Iran War video game hype reels. But why stop at clips when you could go full throttle? Introducing Operation Epic Furious: Strait to Hell, a high-octane, flag-waving, boots-on-the-ground simulator where freedom isn’t debated, it’s deployed. No briefings, no hesitation; just pure pixelated patriotism. Strap in and play hard, because this game may never end.
As the activists note, the Trump administration has made a habit of sharing video from its ongoing conflict by intersplicing real footage of missiles and explosions—the kinds that have outcomes like killing 168 people, including more than 100 children, at a school—with clips of video games like Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto. It’s a way of trivializing the ongoing damage and death being done by America’s unprovoked attacks on Iran.
Operation Epic Furious: Strait to Hell turns the whole situation into an actual video game, and a real farce of one where you’ll play as Donald Trump and get into fights with the Pope and New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani. The game opens with giving you (playing as the President) the choice of ordering a Diet Coke or invading Iran. You’ll run into all sorts of characters from the Trump Extended Universe, including Melania—but don’t ask to hold her hand or you’ll get hit with the “Game Over” screen. Sure, it’s a bit cringey at times, but the game does have some funny beats and some surprising depth to it.
The video game is just the latest stunt from The Secret Handshake designed to prod at the president. The group previously installed a gold statue of Trump and Jeffrey Epstein on the National Mall, in which the two are engaged in the Jack and Rose pose from Titanic. They aren’t changing the world, but at least they’re doing pretty decent bits.
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