Ah, it’s that time of year again. The thinkpieces about why Leonardo DiCaprio does or does not deserve an Academy Award for Best Actor are nigh. It’s hard to say why exactly this particular star has become synonymous with Oscar snubs (I mean, Peter O’Toole also never got one despite repeated nominations), yet here we are again. But one indie game developer, Max van der Merwe, wants to give players the power to help our dear Leo win the award we so want him to win. Well, you can’t actually help him win, but this should satisfy that itch for anyone who feels super invested in this year’s Best Actor race.
Leo’s Red Carpet Rampage debuted this morning and became an instant hit. It’s well-designed, with charming 8-bit-style graphics, and the gameplay is so basic (requiring only two keyboard keys) that anyone can quickly get a hang of it. Plus, there are some great digs at the Academy such as the below bonus round in which you must quickly alternate between pressing two keys in order to get Leo to act harder until his Oscar meter goes up.
There’s also a sequence where you must outrun Eddie Redmayne as his character in The Danish Girl by picking up different awards from the Screen Actors Guild and the Golden Globes. Kudos to the developers for tapping into this zeitgeisty topic. Now if only we could get a game about how lacking in diversity the Oscars are.
Leo’s Red Carpet Rampage debuted online today. You can play it here or check out the gameplay trailer above.
