The Division 2 and the Severing of Politics from Video Games

In February, the French video-game publisher Ubisoft sent an e-mail to its company mailing list with the subject "Come see what a real government shutdown looks like in the Private Beta." The message came just after President Trump's thirty-five-day closure of the U.S. government and was intended to promote The Division 2, the latest video game to emerge from the Tom Clancy-industrial complex. In it, players join a peacekeeping force that's sent to Washington, D.C., after a terrorist attack incites anarchy and closes the government. Four hours after the initial e-mail, Ubisoft sent a second message apologizing for the first. "We recognize the very real impact of the United States government shut down on thousands of people and did not intend to make light of the situation," it read.