Joe Biden Unveils His Own ‘Animal Crossing’ Island
Former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign is attempting to reach everyone, including Isabelle and Blathers of the best-selling “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” game.
Premiering today on the Kinda Funny Games Twitch channel, the island is appropriately named Biden HQ. The island features ice cream stands, model trains, and exclusive in-game campaign merchandise. Joe Biden himself even walks around the island for players to take selfies with. Talk to him and he says, “No malarkey!”
❗️BIG NEWS❗️
We’ve partnered with @JoeBiden‘s campaign to be the first to show off the official Biden Island in #AnimalCrossingNewHorizons, and we’re doing it live Friday morning on https://t.co/tYCVQTyye0!#BidenHarris2020 #TomorrowIs16not15lol pic.twitter.com/Ew3iCjGTHy
— Greg Miller (@GameOverGreggy) October 15, 2020
There are two main areas on the island. First is the Biden campaign’s “house.” Upon entering, the office looks exactly how you’d imagine it would weeks ahead of an election: coffee mugs are laid out across desks with laptop computers and boxes of flyers. One of the rooms is decorated as a merchandise store, another is named “Joe’s Train Town,” which displays dozens of model trains, representing Biden’s favorite mode of transportation. The upstairs is sectioned off into two offices — one for Biden and another for vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris. There are posters of a young Biden and even the Howard University logo, Harris’ alma mater.
The second area is staged to look like a polling location with booths strategically placed outside. As you walk into the area, there’s a massive ad for the Democratic National Committee’s “I Will Vote” website, which provides voting information to people who access it online. The area also provides an Election Day checklist, instructing players to decide whether they’re voting by mail or in person.
#VOTE #VoteBidenHarris2020 #BidenHarris2020 #nomalarkey #TeamJoe #acnh #AnimalCrossingNewHorizons #bidenhq @JoeBiden @KamalaHarris pic.twitter.com/7IytMSdta7
— Amanda (@ARogers913) October 16, 2020
“We are continuing to reach out to voters across the country wherever they are — including on Animal Crossing,” Christian Tom, director of digital partnerships for the Biden-Harris campaign, told The Verge in a statement. “We are launching Biden HQ, an entire island on the platform where supporters can further connect with the campaign.”
Biden is not the first celebrity to use the popular Nintendo Switch game to promote themselves. Singer Selena Gomez had a virtual concert for players. Other celebrities who are known to play include Brie Larson, Maisie Williams, Elijah Wood, Danny Trejo, Stephen Fry, and chef Guy Fieri. Even congressional representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has an island.
“Animal Crossing: New Horizons” allows the player to build an island and live among animal villagers. It has been one of Nintendo’s best-selling games since its debut in March. Millions of players stream their daily routines on their islands for others to watch.
To visit Biden’s island, go to sleep in your bed and enter the Dream code DA-7286-5710-7478.
While this is a light-hearted way to promote the Biden campaign, it is crucial to remember to vote by mail or in-person.
