EA shuts down Donald Trump video that steals from Mass Effect universe

Earlier today a Twitter user posted a fan-made campaign video for US Republican candidate Donald Trump. A vague riff on the Mass Effect universe, it was a fairly amateuristic piece of Trump worship that no one would have paid much attention to, had Trump not retweeted it himself.

"I love the idea that Trump may think he's the Illusive Man, who is verifiably the bad guy in the game," Heir added later.

EA eventually intervened, and the offending tweet from Trump was removed (though it remains available on the creator's account). In a statement sent to Game Informer, the publisher was curt. "The video was an unauthorized use of our IP," a rep told the website. "We do not support our assets being used in political campaigns."

It's well within EA's rights: the video heavily featured music from the series, as well as voice work contributed by Martin Sheen to Mass Effect 2. There's no proof that Trump or his people had any hand in the creation of the video either. Indeed, it's highly unlikely given its content.

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.