Trump Billionaires Club, the video game that recreates the president’s lifestyle and tries to revive his memecoin
Participants compete to build a business empire with the cryptocurrency, which has plunged 87% since its launch. Trump’s old friend Bill Zanker is behind the project
A shower of dollar bills, the image of Donald Trump, and a voice in the background— similar to the president’s — asking: “Do you want to be a billionaire?” That’s the start to the one-minute trailer introducing the Trump Billionaires Club, a 3D game set in New York that allows users to deposit and spend $TRUMP, the presidential memecoin, to acquire properties and build business empires. In other words, to recreate Trump’s lifestyle.
For their achievements in the game, players can even receive prizes: the developer promises to distribute up to $1 million in $TRUMP. The initiative has a clear goal: boosting the price of the asset — one without fundamentals, driven by social-media hype — that has fallen 87% since the day it launched. In 11 months, it has wiped out about $7.6 billion in value, according to CoinGecko. So far, the announcement has not had the desired effect: in the last 24 hours it has rebounded just over 3%, an insignificant rise for such a volatile and speculation-driven asset.
“Master the art of negotiation; invest smart; win big; scale your business empire, but above all, win.” A voice-over urges players to give it their all, while images of skyscrapers, mansions with pools, jewelry, and yachts flash across the screen. The objective? To mirror Trump’s own rise: “Live the high-roller lifestyle as you race to become the ultimate Trump billionaire!” promises the official website of the project, which is expected to be launched in late December, according to Bloomberg, both in Apple’s App Store and in a web version.
The rules of the game are simple: users roll the dice (virtually) and complete missions to advance. They can buy properties, luxury cars, invest in the stock market, compete with friends, and acquire digital collectibles — such as a statue made of golf clubs or a U.S. flag pin — and even pay taxes. Each achievement earns points, but that’s not the only way to get them: recruiting new players also counts, and the amount varies depending on how many $TRUMP tokens each person holds in their wallet. If those new users recruit others, the initial player climbs further up the ranking, in a cycle that resembles speculation more than gameplay. Depending on the level reached, participants can receive rewards in the form of $TRUMP tokens: the player with the most points wins up to $50,000 in the memecoin. The rest receive between $4,000 and $10,000.
Freedom 45 Games LLC is the company developing the game and uses Trump’s name under a licensing agreement, according to the official website. It is not created or distributed by the president or his companies, and it is not meant for investing but for entertainment, they warn. Nevertheless, the driving force behind this new and controversial project is businessman Bill Zanker, a lifelong friend and business partner of Donald Trump. In 2007 they wrote a book together titled Think Big and Kick Ass: In Business and in Life, and they have been collaborating ever since.
In 2013, they launched FundAnything.com, a crowdfunding platform designed to give everyone the opportunity to raise money to fulfill their dreams — whether for a medical emergency, a home renovation, or starting a business. Later, when the crypto market began to take shape, Zanker started doing business using the Trump name. Thus, when the NFT craze exploded, he launched a series of collectibles featuring caricatures of the president as a superhero: Trump in a soldier’s uniform holding a U.S. flag, or as a cowboy. It was 2022, shortly before the collapse of FTX, and Zanker claimed that the Republican devoted hours to the project, approving each image.
With Trump’s return to the White House, Zanker’s efforts to help his old friend have intensified. He heads Fight Fight Fight LLC, the company that on the eve of Trump’s inauguration launched the $TRUMP memecoin, which briefly reached a value of about $15 billion but lost all its value within hours. In a constant attempt to revive it, Zanker organized a private dinner in April with major token holders, which Trump himself attended. Recently, he announced that he was looking to create a digital asset treasury intended to accumulate this token. And the latest effort is the launch of this video game.
History is repeating itself: while the most critical voices warn of scandal and conflicts of interest and caution about how Trump’s initiatives encourage speculation among the most vulnerable investors, the presidential team dismisses the complaints. In each project, the fine print clarifies that there is no direct connection to the president or his family, shielding them from legal liability. Even so, his image continues to be used with the tacit approval of the administration, his team, and even regulators, who so far have not commented on the multiple controversial projects involving the president in the crypto world.
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