UK Game Fuels Viral Support For Antagonist

A UK government video game called Pathways, funded by the Home Office’s Prevent programme and aimed at 11–18-year-olds, launched in January 2026 to discourage extremism by having players guide a student through choices that affect a 'radicalization meter'. Instead, the antagonist Amelia — a purple-haired character who questions mass migration — became a viral symbol for immigration critics, prompting memes, fan art and accusations of state propaganda, while the Home Office defended the game and said Prevent had diverted nearly 6,000 people.