Pro-Russian propaganda tries to infiltrate online video games

Russian propaganda also takes place on online video game platforms.

(Illustrative Image) Dhananjay Khadilkar

Text by: Dominique Desaunay Follow

3 mins

While groups of pro-Russian Internet users orchestrate various disinformation campaigns on social networks, their propaganda actions also extend to online video games and discussion forums between “gamers”.

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Pro-Putin influencers have long invested in sites allowing

to compete with others and communicate with each other during a game.

The messages of this propaganda are mainly distilled through the chats of certain video games with many comments written to the glory of Vladimir Putin.

Some trolls salute, for example, his longevity in power or congratulate himself on his firmness in the face of the United States and the European Union. 

The Russian president is often presented as a “chad”, that is to say as a strong, virile and imposing man.

Since the Russian offensive, the messages of these propagandists have become more insistent, with the watchword of treating the Ukrainians and their head of state as “Nazis”. 

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The messages of pro-Russian influencers in France mainly focus on the chat “Blabla 18-25” from the site

or on its clone called

.

And despite the warnings published by the company that manages these discussion platforms, the moderation of comments is struggling to stem the phenomenon.

But to capture players who are already online during a game, the method used by Putin's trolls is more subtle.

They first hook their targets by publishing jokes in bad taste with no direct reference to the Russian offensive in Ukraine.

If this phishing takes, they then invite Internet users to continue discussions on encrypted messaging services such as Discord or Telegram. 

Developers pledge to support Ukraine

The war in Ukraine has also prompted the video game industry to react.

The Russian video game market, mainly focused on PC and smartphone, is worth around 2 billion dollars.

And while that's a drop in the bucket compared to the $300 billion generated worldwide, the majority of big names in the video game industry have taken a stand in solidarity with Ukraine.

Sony has decided to cancel the Russian release of its latest flagship game, Gran Turismo 7, for its PlayStation consoles.

► To read also: Russia: a teenager sentenced for “training” for terrorism on the Minecraft video game

On the Nintendo side, sales on the Russian version of its online store are suspended.

Ubisoft, the French publisher, made a similar decision.

Electronic Arts is following suit by removing Russian teams from the latest versions of its FIFA football games.

Epic Games, the publisher of Fortnite, has on the other hand chosen a middle way by stopping the sales of content in its online games in Russia, without prohibiting access to it.

In addition, we note that many development studios in Ukraine which work as subcontractors for the entertainment video industry are at a standstill.

So no offense to gamers who would be impatient to find their favorite titles on their consoles, remember that war is for real, and it has nothing to do with a video game. 

► To read also: Russia-Ukraine: disinformation, propaganda, and wars of influence, the other battlefield

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