Playing for Papers: How Video Games Expose the Cruel Logic of U.S. Deportation

As deportation politics in the U.S. grow ever more punitive and chaotic, what can a video game reveal that headlines can’t? In this episode, we explore how games like Papers, Please, Tropico, and ICED! simulate the immigrant experience—and critique it. Drawing on recent academic insights, we unpack how these digital worlds use frustration, limited freedom, and procedural rhetoric to reflect the dehumanizing systems faced by undocumented people. Can a game really challenge anti-immigrant policy? Or are we just clicking through dystopia? Tune in for a timely dive into the politics of play and the stakes of representation.  Amaya, H. (2015). ICED: Videogames in the battle between the citizen and the human. Popular Communication, 13(2), 158-169. Cleger, O. (2015). Procedural Rhetoric and Undocumented Migrants: Playing the Debate over Immigration Reform. Digital Culture & Education, 7(1), 19-39. Diamond, J., & Brunner, C. (2008). Evaluation of Breakthrough's ICED! Video Game