I spent a day in Kamala Harris' Fortnite town. It was full of policy details meant to reach young voters, but was mostly empty.

• The Harris-Walz run launched a Fortnite representation to prosecute young antheral voters.
• The map, Freedom Town, USA, focuses connected affordable lodging and Harris' projected policies.
• I spent a time successful Freedom Town, USA, building housing, and it was beautiful empty.

Welcome to Freedom Town, USA, a Fortnite world created by nan Harris-Walz campaign.

On Monday, a caller colorful world appeared successful nan video crippled Fortnite. It's littered pinch Easter eggs for Harris-Walz devotees: You tin prime up sporting equipment astatine Coach Walz's store, for instance, aliases caput to Doug's Deli for lunch. Slipped successful betwixt are specifications connected immoderate of nan Harris campaign's main argumentation proposals.

It's a move to scope nan key young male voters that Harris would need to carve retired a way toward winning nan election. Some of those avid gamers are eligible to ballot this year. A 2019 YouGov survey of 1,570 US adults recovered that 22% of adults ages 18 to 24 had played Fortnite before; 82% of antheral Gen Zers play an hr positive of video games a week, per a study of 5,000 Americans by nan Entertainment Software Association via YouGov.

I took a travel to Freedom Town, USA, and spent nan time watching and attempting to talk to players. Spoiler: There weren't very many, and a batch of them seemed to beryllium children. Here's what I saw and learned.

Details connected argumentation positions hidden wrong a ngo to build housing

Getting to nan representation itself proved a situation for a first-timer for illustration me, arsenic it's not portion of nan game's default and wildly celebrated multiplayer combat mode. A existent Fortnite aficionado would've known really to usage nan entree codification online to find Freedom Town, but it took maine a fewer minutes to way it down.

When I yet arrived successful Harris' Fortnite world, I was plopped into a train position that resembles nan New York City subway aliases DC Metro.

My mission: Use Harris' proposed $50,000 taxation break for mini businesses to get building supplies to combine caller affordable housing.

As I went astir my tasks, I noticed nan representation was besides very nationalist transit-oriented, from nan subway position to buses dotting almost each corner.

For a Fortnite first-timer for illustration me, the game was comparatively easy to prime up, though I recovered myself floundering successful mini-games meant to thief maine cod building tools.

At its peak, I saw astir 180 different gamers coming connected nan representation pinch me. They seemed to beryllium notably younger. One subordinate who remained unmuted appeared to beryllium a coughing child.

To get a existent gamer's perspective, I said to a 23-year-old successful Ohio who had been exploring nan world pinch her boyfriend.

Lauren Obanion, a loyal Fortnite personification successful caller months, heard astir Freedom Town, USA, from her mom. She thinks nan representation could make a existent difference, particularly because she said immoderate gamers whitethorn not beryllium successful touch pinch policies. Small title cards for different quests discussed Harris' policies reasonably in-depth — 1 of nan first things you spot upon entering nan representation is simply a quest invitation that tells you astir nan $50,000 taxation in installments for mini businesses.

"It's bully for them to put thing successful a crippled truthful group tin beryllium willing and past want to do investigation extracurricular of it," she said.

So far, Freedom Town hasn't taken off; according to 3rd statement subordinate statistic locator Fortnite.GG, nan Freedom Town map saw an all-time and 24-hour highest of 563 users. That's a mini fraction of nan 24-hour highest of 267,000 players connected nan main Battle Royale map.

But for immoderate users, nan connection is still getting across. Obanion said her fellow is an illustration of a gamer who is interested in reference astir immoderate of her platforms arsenic he built houses.

"I deliberation it's bully to effort and scope retired to nan younger demographic," she said, "because different a batch of group who don't get disconnected Fortnite astir apt haven't seen anything."

Ultimately, while I was not bully astatine immoderate of nan mini-games — and didn't extremity up getting astir of nan building supplies — I still did person a bully time. I tin understand really immoderate gamers tin get mislaid successful nan world of Fortnite for hours, but I person my doubts Freedom Town, USA, will effect nan predetermination very much.