While he may not be making his way through the leaderboards in Guilty Equipmentthe real Joe Biden enjoys the occasional game of Mario Kart with his family at Camp David. The current President of the United States has something of a mixed relationship with the gaming industry, having once called a certain developer a “arrogant little creep” among other controversial comments during the campaign in 2020. However, it looks like even Biden is enjoying a game or two without leading an entire nation – and some players are naming themselves after him to compete in esports competitions.
Kotaku reported that a Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R player under Joe Biden’s online handle has competed in multiplayer tournaments, even landing in the top 10 or 20 in the last events they’ve played. He’s not the same Joe Biden as the President, but some people have still confused the two – to the point where Joe Biden’s (the President’s) official Twitter account has been tagged in posts mentioning Joe Biden (the player). Joe Biden (the player) recently spoke to Kotaku about their particular handle, explaining that they finally settled on it after going through several screen names due to them play like Guilty Equipment character Chipp Zanuff – who is president like the real Joe Biden.
Even Joe Biden plays Mario Kart
Meanwhile, the real Joe Biden has been known to play video games with his family while relaxing during the official presidential retreat at Camp David. Last year, ABC News reported that Naomi Biden, granddaughter of Joe Biden and daughter of Hunter Biden, shared some photos of her and her grandfather playing Mario Kart on a pair of arcade cabinets during his first visit as president. She joked that the Secret Service “makes an exceptionof their usual policy and let him drive the kart himself; she also noted that “he was a little rusty but still won (barely).”
While former presidents have been seen playing video games on occasion, Biden could be the first US president to play them regularly while in office. The game was also instrumental in his presidential run. Biden’s campaign hosted a special island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons where players could encounter an avatar of then-candidate Biden in the final months leading up to the 2020 election.
The POTUS is not the same Joe Biden making headlines on the Guilty Equipment multiplayer circuit, but it’s still fun to play Mario Kart with her granddaughter at Camp David. One can only imagine President Biden’s reaction to the Guilty Equipment player sharing his name and the many jokes and memes spawned by “Joe Biden” dominating the ranks at fighting game tournaments.
