Microsoft is once again dipping into politics — and this time, it’s raising eyebrows worldwide. The tech giant is funding a video game called Take Us North, developed by Anima Interactive, that puts players into the role of a guía — essentially, a coyote — tasked with leading migrants illegally across the U.S.–Mexico border.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
For many, this is not just tone-deaf. It’s dangerous.
The Premise of Take Us North
Anima Interactive bills itself as a “socially conscious” game studio that wants to “expand perspectives” and “drive positive cultural impact.” Their flagship project, Take Us North, is a survival-narrative game where players guide groups of migrants through deserts, fences, and hostile landscapes.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
According to coverage from Wired, Spectrum Local News, and the studio’s own Kickstarter, the game is meant to highlight the “humanity and resilience” of migrants. It draws inspiration from interviews with people who crossed borders in Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East, aiming to create what the studio calls an “empathy machine.”
In practice, that means the player essentially becomes a coyote — the very term used in real life for human smugglers who “guide” (in reality, traffic) migrants across dangerous terrain, often working hand-in-hand with cartels.
Microsoft’s Role
The project received early-stage support from Microsoft’s ID@Xbox Developer Acceleration Program — a funding initiative that helps independent studios bring their games to market. The studio has also launched a Kickstarter campaign, raising tens of thousands of dollars to keep development going.
The Xbox Pride Month profile Picture – X: @Xbox
That Microsoft’s money is tied to the project has sparked serious backlash. Why is one of the world’s largest tech corporations financing a video game that portrays illegal border crossings as heroic journeys?
The Reality of Coyotes
Here’s where the problem comes in. In the real world, coyotes are by and large not selfless guides helping vulnerable people on a noble trek. They are criminal smugglers.
- Cartel Connections: Many coyotes are linked directly to cartels, who treat migrants as part of a broader criminal enterprise that includes drugs and weapons. In essence, the people being smuggled are just another product to them.
- Exploitation: Reports from the U.S. Border Patrol and humanitarian organizations alike confirm that migrants are routinely robbed, abused, and even abandoned by coyotes once money has changed hands.
- Deadly Practices: Coyotes often pack dozens of people into trucks with no ventilation, push them into deserts with little water, or place children on top of freight trains like La Bestia. Countless lives have been lost in the process.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
To portray a coyote as the protagonist of a “heartfelt” video game is to whitewash criminality. These are not heroic guides; they are profiteers preying on desperation.
The Public Reaction
So far, the public has not been impressed. The official game teaser trailer for Take Us North has been up for months, but hardly anyone has noticed. On GameTrailers’ YouTube channel, the trailer sits at just 3,500 views, with a dislike ratio of 307 thumbs down to only 67 thumbs up.
The dislike ratio on the trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, GameTrailers
Meanwhile, Anima Interactive’s official YouTube channel has a grand total of 61 subscribers — hardly a sign of genuine excitement.
This is not a project being demanded by players. It’s not a hit waiting to happen. It’s a niche ideological product that would never exist without corporate backing from Microsoft.
Elon Musk Weighs In
The controversy caught even more fire on August 25th when tech billionaire Elon Musk responded to a post by former Blizzard developer Mark Kern (known online as Grummz). Kern had blasted Microsoft for funding Take Us North, calling out the game for its focus on sneaking across the U.S. border illegally.
Weird
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 26, 2025
Musk’s reply was short but cutting. With a single word — “Weird” — Musk signaled his agreement that Microsoft’s involvement in the project raises eyebrows.
For a game that had mostly flown under the radar, this was a turning point. Musk’s massive following on X, numbering in the hundreds of millions, has now put the spotlight on a project that otherwise might have slipped by unnoticed.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
His reaction ensures that Take Us North won’t just be a gaming controversy — it’s now part of the larger cultural conversation about illegal immigration, corporate priorities, and the role of video games in pushing political messages.
Why It Matters
The debate isn’t about whether migration is a complex and emotional issue. It is. People do flee violence, corruption, and hardship. But that doesn’t change the reality that sneaking across a border with the help of smugglers is illegal and incredibly dangerous.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
By turning this into a game — and framing the coyote as a player’s avatar — Anima Interactive and Microsoft are crossing a line. They’re not just making art. They’re normalizing criminal behavior as something and romanticizing an industry built on exploitation. At least in games like Grand Theft Auto, while the player engages in criminal behavior there is at least the underlying narrative that what they’re doing is wrong. No one has ever tried to make it seem as though crimes committed on the streets of Liberty City are some grand noble act.
A Studio Openly Pushing Ideology
Anima Interactive doesn’t hide its politics. On its website and promotional materials, it emphasizes that its team is over “60% BIPOC and over 60% female/non-binary,” stating that they are determined to “challenge the status quo” in gaming.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
It’s clear the studio’s purpose goes beyond storytelling into activism. The question is whether Microsoft should be pouring money into projects that promote border lawbreaking and gloss over the violence of coyotes in the process.
The Bottom Line
Take Us North is marketed as a heartfelt survival story. In reality, it’s a dangerous piece of political propaganda dressed up as entertainment. By funding the project, Microsoft is actively lending credibility to the glorification of illegal border crossings and human smuggling.
A screenshot from the teaser trailer for Take Us North – YouTube, Anima Interactive
This is not just misguided — it’s reckless. While American communities deal with the fallout of record-breaking border encounters, cartel violence, and humanitarian disasters in the desert, the last thing anyone needs is a video game making coyotes look like heroes.
Microsoft has made controversial funding choices before. But this one may prove unforgettable.
Have you heard of the Take Us North game? What do you think about Microsoft funding it? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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Microsoft was one of the first companies to start doing “woke” as part of the corporate culture. Minority “(my special demographic!) @microsoft email groups have been a focus there since around their 100th employee in the late 80s, early 90s.
I am surprised that anyone is surprised to catch MS out on something like this; it is totally in character. All you have to do is look at the history of the Xbox President and some of the high level directors in the gaming division. I think it is amazing they haven’t got whole boatloads of money funding this sort of Activist tripe.
Microsoft needs to be brought down. The whole woke movement needs to be eradicated. Let’s get on it, people.
Punish woke Microsoft. Everyone DO NOT USE Windows. Switch to Linux if you possibly can. And use open source LibreOffice, not MS Office. And the Firefox Browser.
Also, boycott XBox and MS games.
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