Viral Telegram Game ‘Hamster Kombat’ References Trump Assassination Attempt

Telegram tap-to-earn game Hamster Kombat has gone viral, reportedly racking up a quarter of a billion players who are eager to get a cut of the upcoming token launch. And in the latest crossover with real-world events on Wednesday, Hamster Kombat served up a reference to last weekend’s failed assassination attempt against Donald Trump.

The game’s new “Fight fight fight” special card reimagines the iconic photo of a bloodied Trump defiantly raising his fist, albeit with smiling cartoon hamsters.

“Hamsters never give up,” the card’s subtitle reads, matched with the description, “You are a strong manager and nothing can stop you.”

It’s a recreation of the immediately iconic shot captured by Pulitzer Prize-winning Associated Press photographer Evan Vucci at Trump’s Philadelphia rally. The Trump stand-in is still bleeding from the ear and raising his fist, the Secret Service protectors are clutching him, and the American flag has been replaced with one showing the game's logo.

“Fight, fight, fight” is what Trump reportedly said on Saturday when he returned to his feet, and the phrase has since been used to rally supporters of the Republican presidential candidate. Trump himself began selling limited-edition sneakers emblazoned with the phrase and his photo on Wednesday.

Playable within the Telegram messaging platform, Hamster Kombat lets players control their own crypto exchange as a hamster CEO, spending money on various features, upgrades, and marketing initiatives to generate more passive income over time. The game has featured cards inspired by the Euro 2024 soccer tournament, for example, along with crypto conferences.

Hamster Kombat claims to have amassed more than 250 million players in just three months, soon after Telegram CEO and co-founder Pavel Durov’s declaration that the game had racked up 239 million players as of July 5.

Like the earlier Telegram game Notcoin before it, Hamster Kombat plans to launch a crypto token on The Open Network (TON) and allow players to claim it via an airdrop process. That launch is expected to take place sometime this month.

Trump has increasingly embraced cryptocurrency in recent months, despite previously being a skeptic. His campaign accepts crypto donations, and the Republican party has put crypto in its draft platform, with Trump pledging to support Bitcoin miners in America.

Decrypt’s GG reached out to the developers of Hamster Kombat about the Trump-inspired card, but did not immediately receive a response.

Edited by Ryan Ozawa.