An Iranian video game based on the murder of George Floyd faces backlash online.
The game called Save the Freedom was developed by Iran’s Basij paramilitary force, an arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
According to Kayhan Life, the idea of the game was first launched at a Basij digital conference in September 2020, where players can save “this black citizen from American police.”
The game features recreations of the events that unfolded in May 2020 in Minnesota, which saw George Floyd killed by police officer Derek Chauvin, after he knelt on his neck.
At the time, Floyd’s murder subsequently sparked a series of protests worldwide.
According to Beirut-based journalist Seamus Malekafzali, Floyd’s death also inspired Iran’s Basij paramilitary forces to start developing the mobile game.
Players must work their way through 30 levels that ramp up in difficulty, facing waves of enemies who are presumably trying to kill Floyd, Malekafzali said.
Moreover, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naghdi prompted the Basij to develop the game in September of 2020 as an entry for the “Nationwide Event for the production of Basij Digital Content,” Kayhan Life reported.
“The first challenge for this competition is to design a game for mobile phones and computers titled Rescuing George Floyd,” General Naghdi told members of the Basij.
“Rescuing this black citizen from American police should be the aim of this computer game,” he added. “Nowadays, the only place left for America to turn its defeats into victories is the internet.”
“MOSSAD, the CIA, and intelligence services are behind these psychological games, not people,” he said. “People inside the US shout death to America”and burn the American flag.”
“The U.S. domestic and foreign policies have failed,” he said. “The public is increasingly becoming polarized in that country.”
Meanwhile, the Iranian game sparked fierce outrage on social media, with critics calling the game “sick” and “disgusting.”
“What the hell,” one commenter said. “Why are they making his murder seem like a game and as a way to make money. Disgusting.”
“This is a joke right, can someone confirm that for me?” wrote another.
“Is there anything people won’t try and profit from?” another has added.
“So are they giving the profits to his family or are they making money off a murder?” a person tweeted.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time someone has attempted to cash in on George Floyd’s murder.
In June 2020, Amazon pulled a posting for a controversial children’s T-shirt that depicted Derek Chauvin kneeling on the neck of George Floyd.