It’s one of those moments where gaming culture collides with politics in the worst way possible. Over the past few days, a sickening post on Twitter and other places I dare not tread, featured the President of the United States wearing the iconic Halo Spartan armor of John-117, saluting the flag. Yes, that Halo, the legendary franchise built on heroism, unity, and defending humanity from oppression. Which, in case you haven’t been paying attention, is the complete opposite of what our government has been doing lately.
And it’s really pissing me off.
Using popular games or aesthetics to push government messaging isn’t new. The U.S. Army had its own video game once, and even launched an esports team, using titles like Call of Duty to promote military careers. But there’s something uniquely unsettling about seeing Halo, a series built around sacrifice, teamwork, and humanity, used to promote a government that employs ICE, an organization many associate with family separations, raids, and abuse scandals.
Which, again, is the complete opposite of what Halo represents or at least used to. To make things worse, the images being shared appear to be AI generated, raising even more ethical concerns. It’s not just propaganda; but synthetic propaganda using AI created imagery meant to stir emotion and familiarity without any transparency or licensing. Also, someone really needs to tell Trump and his goon squad that the American flag has 50 stars, not 40, like in this deplorable image.
FYI, I won’t be sharing the actual link for this crap beyond necessary citations.
Then there’s the complete embarrassment that is the Department of Homeland Security, posting yet another Halo themed image, this time with two Spartans aboard a Warthog on a Halo ring. The caption read “Destroy The Flood. Join. Ice. Gov.” and linked to ICE recruitment. With the apparently context that immigration is the Flood and it needs to be eliminated by any means necessary. This not the sort of message our administration should be using, but here we are. You can see reporting and screenshots via PC Gamer and Yahoo, with additional context from The Verge.
Again, I won’t be sharing direct links to the original posts beyond necessary citations, but they are easily found.
What makes it even more frustrating is that neither Microsoft nor Halo Studios have said a thing. As of this writing, there’s been no public statement about their intellectual property being used in this way. In coverage noted above, Microsoft reportedly declined to comment.
And let’s not pretend Microsoft is a company unfamiliar with government deals. Microsoft has contracts with the U.S. military and other federal agencies, including cloud computing partnerships and technology used in battlefield operations. More recently, there were reports about private donors funding a White House ballroom project, with Microsoft included among tech companies on donor lists. See CBS News for details because I’ve already given them more than enough time on this matter.
GameStop’s role in this mess
GameStop’s official accounts joined the meme exchange and amplified the imagery that kicked this all off. Coverage shows GameStop sharing and riffing on the Halo themed images, including one where JD Vance is styled as Cortana, after the White House posted the Master Chief photo. See reporting from Alyssa Mercante’s Patreon, andAftermath, that fully break this down.
At this point, GameStop can set itself on fire while speeding off a cliff with a box of kittens in the back, and I still couldn’t care less what happens to it. Besides, I’m a dog person.
This isn’t just about this terrible ad campaign. It is about how pop culture and gaming IPs are being used to normalize state power. When a beloved video game franchise becomes a recruitment tool for an agency tied to systemic abuse, and an organization that has shown repeatedly that it values authority over humanity, it sends a chilling message about what is acceptable in the pursuit of image management.
Microsoft has every right to work with the government. But silence is not neutrality. Allowing Halo imagery, officially or unofficially, to be tied to this administration without clarification undermines everything the series once stood for. It is a betrayal of the very humanity that made the franchise legendary in the first place.
As a lifelong gamer, it is infuriating to see Halo used this way, especially by an administration better known for trauma than heroism. If Microsoft truly believes in the ideals behind its games, it owes fans a response and a clear stance on how its creations are being used. Because when the lines between art, government, and propaganda blur, silence only deepens the problem.
