Russia is utilising games like Minecraft to instill pro-Kremlin beliefs in the minds of unknowing players while at war with Ukraine.
Nearly the entire video game industry unequivocally declared support for Ukraine when the Russia-Ukraine war broke out. Russian teams were removed from EA’s sports games, and major publishers like Sony and Nintendo completely shut down their operations there.
President Vladimir Putin is promoting Russia’s own “cyberchampionship” gaming competition as a result of the country’s attempt to develop its own gaming sector.
According to reports, Russia is reportedly using video games, particularly Minecraft and Roblox, to disseminate information on its invasion of Ukraine.
Both games allow players to produce and edit their own content, making them undoubtedly the best options for guaranteeing that pro-Russian messaging can be spread to a large audience.
Not to mention, young kids who are perhaps less conversant with the specifics of the conflict are particularly fond of Minecraft and Roblox.
According to The New York Times, user-made environments like Roblox and Minecraft show Russian parades and have Russian flags flying over Ukrainian territory.
Even a Russian government official whose mother is a close ally of Putin sponsored and streamed one in-game Minecraft performance held to commemorate Russia Day.
Video games can be used to promote education, according to Putin, “within the framework of universal human values and within the framework of patriotism.”
A 2021 report by Wired claims that Roblox in particular has grown immensely popular in Russia in recent years, maybe as a result of the exodus of so many other games, and that it has turned into a haven for racists and anti-Semites.
Both Roblox Corporation and Microsoft, the company that owns Minecraft, have made no comments regarding the propagandistic usage of their products.