The anti-vaxxer movement has been a big focus in the news recently and the whole matter has managed to spread into the sphere of video games with Plague, Inc.
Plague, Inc. is a strategy game where you must end the human race with your pathogen. There are different plague types and traits you can give your virus in order to accomplish this goal. A petition to include anti-vaxxers in the game was started by Eduard Gabrian on Change.org last week, and gained thousands of followers in just a few days.
Plague Inc. developer Ndemic Creations promised to include anti-vaxxers in the game on the condition that the petition reached 10 thousand signers, they would honor it. In just a few days it reached that amount, and at the time of this writing, the petition has almost 21 thousand signers.
https://twitter.com/NdemicCreations/status/1100351526395088896
The developers said they would include an anti-vaxxer scenario. Scenarios have you play with either pre-set pathogens or conditions with a specific story behind them.
We can expect to see one for anti-vaxxers at some point, but since the petition is very recent it will still take some time. You can also purchase Plague, Inc. on Steam and mobile devices now.
Quick Take
I think that this DLC will be a fun little inclusion in the game. More importantly, however, I think this is a positive and effective way to spread awareness for a very real and dangerous issue in the world. Video games are a powerful medium with millions of players worldwide. Although anti-vaxxers are included in Plague, Inc, it's not a joke. I hope that this can make a positive impact on somebody's life. In the meantime, it's a nice little thing for the developers to do for the community.What do you think this scenario will include? Did you sign the petition? Let us know in the comments below!
