Despite objections from some game developers and much of the public at large, the US Department of Homeland Security says it will continue to use videogame-related materials to promote itself and its work, and it doesn't seem too concerned about whether it has legal permission to do so.
Earlier this week, DHS posted an image from Microsoft's Halo game series, emblazoned with the words "Fight the Flood," a reference to the ongoing anti-immigration efforts being carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) across the US. Dehumanizing people by equating them to a parasitic alien life form is overtly grotesque, yes, but the message also invoked a more mundane question: Did DHS have Microsoft's permission to use the image in its message?
Microsoft—one of the many corporate donors supporting the construction of the ballroom that will replace the now-demolished White House East Wing—refused to comment on the use of one of its most popular games in a dangerously racist message.
To their credit, Halo veterans Marcus Lehto and Jaime Griesemer—neither of whom are now with the company and are thus able to speak their minds—weren't afraid to call it what it is: "Despicable," as Griesemer put it, and "absolutely abhorrent" in Lehto's words.
DHS doesn't seem to care. "We will reach people where they are with content they can relate to and understand, whether that be Halo, Pokémon, Lord of The Rings, or any other medium," a DHS spokesperson said in a statement provided to independent journalist Alyssa Mercante and confirmed by PC Gamer. "DHS remains laser focused on bringing awareness to the flood of crime that criminal illegal aliens have inflicted on our country. We aren’t slowing down."
The "Fight the Flood" message—which came in the wake of a very silly White House post featuring an AI-generated image of US president Donald Trump dressed as Master Chief—isn't the first time US government agencies have used game imagery to promote its activities on social media. In September, DHS used Pokémon content and a "Gotta catch 'em all" message to promote violent raids on people's homes, while Customs and Border Protection posted an image of Pikachu as its "newest recruit."
In that case, The Pokémon Company International at least confirmed that the US government did not have permission to use the material, although it took no action against it. DHS indicated a similar disregard for intellectual property rights in that case, saying, "To arrest them is our real test. To deport them is our cause," a play on the lyrics to the Pokémon theme song.
The newer Halo post, a clear call for the dehumanization and destruction of immigrants, is definitely an escalation over the insulting but otherwise relatively innocuous Pokémon post, and at this point it seems like US agencies are literally daring game companies to do something about it. It sure doesn't seem like they will. Having now stared down Nintendo and Microsoft, I imagine we'll be seeing more of this sort of messaging from the DHS and ICE in the future.
