The owner of the website that hosts the 2008 disease simulation Pandemic 2 recently said that game had also spiked. It has remained near the top of the charts ever since, according to the tracking site App Annie.
Near the end of January, Plague Inc., which perennially bobs near the top of cellphone gaming sales charts, settled into the top spot as the most downloaded game for iPhones in China, South Korea, Japan, Italy and the United States, matching the spread of the novel coronavirus. Indeed, one of the most macabre experiences video games can currently provide is also one of the world’s most widely played. “The flip side of that is that our game does seem to help a lot of people and make them feel better about the situation.” “It’s not nice thinking of the fact that there’s a serious situation which is causing our game to be popular,” he said.
His 2012 video game Plague Inc., which challenges players to spread contagion around the world, surges in popularity. The British video game developer James Vaughan, 33, knows what to expect when a really bad flu season or a novel disease like Covid-19 makes headlines.
