I'm standing in line for the bus that will take me across town to my polling place. The lines are long, the pixelated people frustrated. And then I get a call.
It's my son. He has dysentery and I need to pick him up from school.
Game over.
The New York Times today, with the help of GOP Arcade, released an Oregon Trail parody that shows its players the very varied, unequal voting experiences across America.
Long lines, distant polling places and transportation hardships stand in the way of many Americans exercising their most basic right. And the New York Times wants to show everyone else just how challenging it can be to check a box.
The game is the last installment of the New York Times's Op-Docs series, exploring the 2016 Election.
As the New York Times puts it, "Some paths will be more intrepid than others, particularly for blacks, Latinos and pretty much anyone who brings the kind of diversity to our polling places that they have historically lacked. Thanks to laws passed by Republicans to fight the nonexistent threat of voter fraud, the perils will be great. Long lines and voter ID laws, not to mention pro-Trump election observers, will try to keep these voters from the polls."
Now all that's left to do is choose your character: A white programmer from California, a Latina nurse from Texas, or a black salesman from Wisconsin.
