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The videogame's images allude to the figure of its protagonist, the black dog Matapacos - one of the main icons of the Chilean revolt - and requires players to activate the animal to « protect people who manifest themselves peacefully ».
«Touch the screen to run to that point. Stand next to a policeman to bark and scare him, ”adds the creation tutorial sponsored by Ricardo Concha, 38 years old.
Players can grant more speed to the pooch, reduce that of the agents who arrest the protesters or increase the size of the pet. All this enlivened by the sound of the typical caceroladas that resonate every day in the streets of Santiago de Chile.
The author of the virtual game acknowledges that he has repeatedly participated in the popular mobilizations that shake his country since October, but the idea of "supporting" the protesters' claims with one of their productions came from a friend who told him: « What if we make a game of Black Matapacos?
Specialized in the commercialization of the typical videogames inspired by pirates, monsters or aerial combats, Concha accepted the challenge enthusiastically under a premise: «I wanted to support the cause, I am 100% with the social demands of the people », he says in a Skype conversation.
Although under normal conditions, the development of such a videogame may take weeks, Concha acknowledges that "motivation", large doses of mate (the equivalent of coffee in many regions of South America) and giving up many hours of sleep They allowed him to finish the design on a weekend.
«El Negro Matapacos is already a worldwide symbol. It was also about paying homage to the dog, ”he adds.
The appearance of the videogame Negro Matapacos - which exceeded 10,000 downloads only in the first week of its appearance - confirms the particular imprint that Chile has suffered from the social outbreak since October, where street art and many other elements of pop culture more Recent comics or viral performances distributed through YouTube have joined the trenches of the protesters , but also those of their adversaries.
The social outbreak that shakes that Latin American nation is becoming as iconic as the one that has plagued the Chinese city of Hong Kong since last summer. The symbology of both revolts and even the tactics used by the protesters maintain a parallel meaning that is not based on personal ties but on the strong influence that social networks have among the youngest sectors of any location, call Chile or Hong Kong.
Like the use of superheroes , comic books or graffiti have also been a constant in the rampage of the Asian metropolis, where amateur poets and philosophers multiplied their ideas on the city walls, the streets of many cities of that Latin American nation "have become the canvas of those who want to say something," in the words of Chilean street artist Claudio Caiozzi.
The presence in the marches of characters dressed in unique attire has promoted them to the rank of superheroes with such diverse names as Pareman - also nicknamed Captain Alameda -, Nalcaman or an archer who was called Ojo de Condor - Carancho for others -, and has ended in the production of recordings dedicated to the loyalty of the Chilean Avengers , baptized by Internet users alluding to the famous Marvel brand.
One of them, Pareman , - a figure who was inspired by a boy who showed up in the center of Santiago carrying a traffic signal that served as a shield and where he read "Stop" - has ended up giving life to a comic designed by the duo formed by Guido Kid Salinas and Sebastián Castro , well known in Chile for being also the authors of the Guardianes del Sur series.
The artist announced his creation last November, of which he has already published several chapters. In them, Pareman always appears hooded, with a naked torso, protecting himself with his parapet against the shooting of the police and accompanied by the ubiquitous Black Matapacos.
" Chile is not the same as always, Chile woke up, what I did was fight, fight for my people ... defend it, " says the superhero in one of Guido's deliveries, published on his Instagram account.
Installed in Chile for two years and author of an illustrated libretto where he addresses the controversial murder of Mapuche activist Camilo Catrillanca - another figure whose face is reproduced to infinity in the graffiti and posters that adorn the walls of the center of Santiago de Chile- , American political comic book artist Erik Thurma recalled in The Clinic that "art has always played an important role in demonstrations, communicating the values and beliefs of that protest to a mass audience."
“In general, people on the left cannot compete against the big media : we don't have the power of TV, nor control over radio waves. And that is why it is so important to have the power of art with us. He thinks that right now there are expressions that have already left the Chilean borders, ”added the creator, 31.
«All this phenomenon is part of the idiosyncrasy of the Chilean. We tend to laugh at what happens, ”argues Ricardo Concha.
However, on this occasion some opponents of these mobilizations have tried to dispute the monopoly of this sector to resort to pop iconography and have created their own ideological alternative.
For Daniel Contreras, a 31-year-old computer engineer who is fond of illustration, the best way to vindicate his ideology was to create a kind of alter ego of Negro Matapacos , whom he called Rubio Matacapuchas , and who drew a character with his face embossed It carries a Molotov cocktail.
If the first is always characterized by wearing a red scarf around his neck, the second is wearing a green vest in the style of the police mascots . As could be anticipated, the drawing earned him an avalanche of criticism.
«The idea was to show that they [the protesters] are the violent ones and we are defending ourselves. It is a labrador dog, a peaceful breed that only attacks when it is threatened. I am a member of the Libertarian Party [a populist group that defends the extreme neoliberalism that was inherited from the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet] and our symbol is a snake that says: don't step on me. If you step on me, I bite you, ”the activist reasons in another conversation via WhatsApp.
Contreras acknowledges that "the right has to fight more in the culture sector" and that this was another motivation to decide to create Rubio Matacapuchas .
"It is true that we have to improve the system, but these people want to destroy it," he concludes.
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