One online game, Animal Crossing, has stood out during the pandemic, as Hong Kong protesters have made use of the game's platform to air their political views and keep the spirit of the protests alive.

Animal Crossing allows gamers to escape to a deserted island where they can freely build a house and garden using resources on the island. Moreover, gamers are able to host events and open their islands up to visitors. The game app also enables voice communication among gamers.

Joshua Wong, a prominent pro-democracy activist, declared the game a new phase in the protests, which survived repeated crackdowns only to be brought to a halt by measures to combat COVID-19.

Hong Kong’s youth-driven anti-government protests, which at their peak brought more than one million individuals out onto the streets, have generally died down since January due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

This was released for Nintendo Switch on March 20, 2020. At the end of last month, a number of gamers gathered on the platform to create a virtual concert where they sang the protest anthem — Glory to Hong Kong.

@studioincendo has shared a gamer’s island on twitter where visitors are invited to strike portraits of Hong Kong's Chief Executive with hammers. This post says how Hong Kong people spend their time during coronavirus lockdown.