Border Patrol Game

The patently offensive Border Patrol Game has been getting a lot of play on local news broadcasts this week, but it also got some thoughtful analysis (followed by a barrage of vitriolic comments) on Water Cooler Games. This first-person shooter features three "Mexican" caricatures: a "Mexican nationalist," a "drug smuggler," and a "breeder." You must first fire on the "breeder," who is pregnant with two children in tow, and splatter her into Flash-animated gore, in order to take aim at the "drug smuggler" or the "Mexican nationalist" who appear. I played the game September 12th-style, without firing, and discovered that the woman slows down and gets closer and closer to your screen, if you don't pull the trigger.

The websites of Neo-Nazi and White Power ideologues are showcasing several such racist videogames, which include a homophobic French-language third-person shooter. There are also inverse role-playing games that don't involve adopting the id of a white authority figure like a hunter or immigration agent. These games encourage racist players to take the stereotype-confirming position of the racial Other, be it suicide bomber or gangland drive-by shooter.

For those who want to follow this regrettable story further, an article in Wired provides details about other racist games.