For gamers with a retro bent and a taste for the political, the American centrist political group Unity08 has unveiled DemocracyLand, a Frogger-esque journey toward the Third Way.
Players stand on the far side of busy four-lane highway, looking across at DemocracyLand, a place where extreme partisan politics are set aside in favor of a centrist, effective government that cuts across political boundaries and focuses solely on responsible and honest leadership of the American people.
In the quest to reach DemocracyLand, players must avoid being run down by cars driven by Dick Cheney and Howard Dean, all to the accompaniment of a high-strung and entirely appropriate soundtrack. The web-based game is simple to play and will be immediately familiar to anyone who has played the arcade classic Frogger.
Fast-fingered gamers who manage to reach the gates of DemocracyLand are greeted with a message explaining the basic concept of the Unity08 movement, along with an invitation to join or receive more information.
Unity08 is a bipartisan political group that describes itself as “a group of citizens deeply concerned that the wheels have come off our political system, that the American Dream is slipping away, and that time is short to get things back on track.” On its website, the group says it intends to field third-party candidates for president and vice president during the 2008 U.S. election, who will focus on “the middle,” voters who are not deeply entrenched with either political party but instead are simply looking for good governance.
DemocracyLand may only be the beginning; according to the “Buzzworthy” section of the Unity08 site, more games and “fun stuff” are coming soon.
