A new wave of digital activism is emerging inside the world's most popular video games. In a recent demonstration, the New Save Collective – a team of 13 activists and organizers from diverse immigrant backgrounds – used the role-play mod for Grand Theft Auto V to simulate real-life immigration enforcement scenarios, aiming to educate gamers on asserting their rights during encounters with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

SteveTheGamer55, who has over 4.6 million YouTube subscribers, streamed the session live to an international audience. Viewers watched as he navigated his character, an immigrant worker on a visa, through surprise ICE raids carried out by players role-playing as agents.

In one scenario, his character was confronted, interrogated, and surrounded before ultimately being released, while bystanders – also controlled by players – challenged the agents and demanded accountability. The session included staged scenes near virtual gates designed to resemble real-world detention centers.

The initiative represents the New Save Collective's first major outing. The group has partnered with immigration advocacy organizations and gaming content creators with the goal of transforming games into platforms for public education, reaching audiences who might otherwise remain untouched by traditional activism.