Video game rides conclave excitement with cardinal fantasy team
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Cardinals visiting the tomb of the late Pope Francis in the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome on April 27.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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VATICAN CITY - As cardinals prepare to elect a new pope, thousands are doing so already – in a new video game that allows users to pick their favourites as the next pontiff.
Almost 60,000 people have signed up to join Fantapapa, an online game that plays on Italians’ passion for football and the Church, since it was launched after Pope Francis died last week, its creators said on April 29.
“People are intrigued by Vatican power dynamics,” Mr Pietro Pace, 42, one of the website’s two founders, told AFP.
“Playing allows them to try to get inside these dynamics and remove some of the mystery that shrouds them.”
The game mimics fantasy league, a pastime of many sports fans where users pretend to be managers of professional teams. Football fantasy league in Italy is known as “Fantacalcio”.
Fantapapa – papa is the Italian word for pope – asks players to choose a squad of 11 cardinals, including a captain (the “most papable” cardinal) and a goalkeeper (the least likely winner), providing an insight into users’ favourite front runners.
As at April 29, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi was the cardinal picked by the most people, followed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle and Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Pierbattista Pizzaballa – more or less in line with bookies’ expectations.
But the top 10 also featured some dark horses.
Cardinal Fabio Baggio ranked seventh, possibly because he shares the same surname with Italian football legend Roberto Baggio, Mr Pace said.
Sixth was Cardinal Jose Advincula of the Philippines, who is first in alphabetical order and thus an easy pick for users rushing to complete their roster.
Cardinal Mykola Bychok, the Ukrainian archbishop of Melbourne in Australia – currently the world’s youngest cardinal – was the top choice in goal, meaning most players do not believe he will become pope.
Points in the game are also assigned to those who guess, among other things, the new pope’s political leanings, his religious order, language and the name he will take.
The most voted options in the latter category were Francis, John, Pius, Paul and Leo.
The brainchild of Mr Pace, works in artificial intelligence, and Mr Mauro Vanetti, a game developer, Fantapapa has no prize money because its creators are anti-gambling activists.
Winners will be granted “eternal glory” instead, Mr Pace said.
Pope Francis died at the age of 88 on April 21. The conclave to elect his successor will begin on May 7. AFP
