Whatever Is an Upcoming Game Inspired by the Suez Canal Blocking

In March, a giant container ship got wedged diagonally in the Suez Canal, disrupting the global trade by blocking a vital supply route for six days. It was one of the biggest stories of the month that inevitably fueled memes. Now, an independent developer by the name of Napas Torteeka has decided to turn the event into an online game. A synopsis of the game showed that the objective of the player would be to deliver the goods on a ship to their destination without blocking or disrupting the shipping route. As the ship crosses a milestone successfully, it gets a reward.

The ship in the game is named “WHATEVER”, a spin on the name of the actual 200,000-ton ship — Ever Given — that got stuck in the 93-km-long man-made canal that connects the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, providing the shortest sea link between Asia and Europe.

The mission is simple — drift the ship through the canal to deliver the cargo in time. "The more you progress, the more challenging the process will become. Wind gut, whirlpool, kaiju, UFOs, all these things will be encountered along the way,” said a description of the game on the 80 Level website.

The Suez Canal is located east of the Egyptian capital Cairo. Nearly 12 percent of the world's shipping traffic and a big chunk of its oil supply passes through it. The route became particularly vital during the pandemic. Frantic efforts were launched to free the canal but the length of the ship — 400 metres — made it really difficult to get it out of the mud.

The vessel was refloated using more than 10 tugboats and on land heavy machinery to dig around the ship's bow. A worm moon, which caused a high tide, also aided the effort by making the floating of the ship easier.

The Godot Engine-powered game is set to release this month.