By Choi Ha-young
The unprecedented political scandal around President Park Geun-hye has spilled over into smartphone games as local developers are creating games based on Park's confidant Choi Soon-sil, who is being investigated for allegedly meddling in state affairs.
As of Monday, over 5,000 users left comments on a game titled "Soon-sil Raises Chicken." The chicken breeder character named "Soon-siri," named after Apple's assistant program, assigns various missions to the animal.
As it passes missions ― using the North Korea factor to win the election, editing speech texts and deciding to save the country ― the chicken's ability called "Yushin" grows. The term refers to the Yushin Constitution, which laid the groundwork for former President Park Chung Hee, who was the current President Park's father, to extend his authoritarian rule.
Users' reactions to the game parodying Park as a chicken is extremely positive ― scoring 4.9 out of 5. "This is a masterpiece," a user named Kim Seong-hwan said. Making jokes, some shared its miraculous effects, with one user saying, "After playing, my cancer was cured."
Many of the comments are letters to a court, sarcastically in preparation for being sued for playing the game that made jokes about the President. One commenter wrote: "Dear judge, I am not guilty. My cat installed it with its paws and I can't remove this app."
The developer is a 26-year-old university student majoring in game development. He told a local newspaper that he will upgrade the game's storyline to provide various endings according to user scores.
Another game features Choi riding a horse, parodying her daughter, dressage rider Chung Yoo-ra, who entered a prestigious university through alleged abuse of her mother's power. In the game titled "Come on, Soon-sil," Choi has to avoid obstacles ― handcuffs.
In the game's storyline, the rider, which is portrayed as Choi, leaves home. Then her sister, Park, eagerly finds her, calling "Where are you, Soon-sil?" Game developer PlayGamGam wrote on Google Play, "This game is not based on reality. Your misunderstanding is out of my hands." The developer is recruiting English, Japanese and German translators to globalize this game.
A group of Inha University students also made a game named "Choi's Gate." According to its rules, Park's face turns red with embarrassment when she makes a mistake while reading a script written by Choi. "Please enjoy the game," said the developers from the school's information protection club. "We will keep updating the functions unless we are arrested."
Videos about the scandal have also gone viral. In footage named "Princess Maker 2016," Choi plans Park's holiday schedule, selects her clothes and prepares remarks for a political event, following the setup of the famous simulation game.
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| A game based around Choi Soon-sil, President Park Geun-hye's confidant, is shown. Local developers are creating mobile games mocking the political scandal. / Yonhap |
As of Monday, over 5,000 users left comments on a game titled "Soon-sil Raises Chicken." The chicken breeder character named "Soon-siri," named after Apple's assistant program, assigns various missions to the animal.
As it passes missions ― using the North Korea factor to win the election, editing speech texts and deciding to save the country ― the chicken's ability called "Yushin" grows. The term refers to the Yushin Constitution, which laid the groundwork for former President Park Chung Hee, who was the current President Park's father, to extend his authoritarian rule.
Users' reactions to the game parodying Park as a chicken is extremely positive ― scoring 4.9 out of 5. "This is a masterpiece," a user named Kim Seong-hwan said. Making jokes, some shared its miraculous effects, with one user saying, "After playing, my cancer was cured."
Many of the comments are letters to a court, sarcastically in preparation for being sued for playing the game that made jokes about the President. One commenter wrote: "Dear judge, I am not guilty. My cat installed it with its paws and I can't remove this app."
The developer is a 26-year-old university student majoring in game development. He told a local newspaper that he will upgrade the game's storyline to provide various endings according to user scores.
Another game features Choi riding a horse, parodying her daughter, dressage rider Chung Yoo-ra, who entered a prestigious university through alleged abuse of her mother's power. In the game titled "Come on, Soon-sil," Choi has to avoid obstacles ― handcuffs.
In the game's storyline, the rider, which is portrayed as Choi, leaves home. Then her sister, Park, eagerly finds her, calling "Where are you, Soon-sil?" Game developer PlayGamGam wrote on Google Play, "This game is not based on reality. Your misunderstanding is out of my hands." The developer is recruiting English, Japanese and German translators to globalize this game.
A group of Inha University students also made a game named "Choi's Gate." According to its rules, Park's face turns red with embarrassment when she makes a mistake while reading a script written by Choi. "Please enjoy the game," said the developers from the school's information protection club. "We will keep updating the functions unless we are arrested."
Videos about the scandal have also gone viral. In footage named "Princess Maker 2016," Choi plans Park's holiday schedule, selects her clothes and prepares remarks for a political event, following the setup of the famous simulation game.
