Presidential campaign game makes Kamala Harris pivot

• We recently checked in on Stardock again after the game, initially designed for a second Donald Trump-Joe Biden matchup, was turned upside down this summer when President Biden dropped out.

State of play: The game is underpinned by real-time political research about demographics and levels of voter enthusiasm.

Between the lines: Stardock CEO Brad Wardell tells Axios that modeling for Vice President Kamala Harris was no simple task because his team couldn't rely on past polling data for Harris, who did not participate in the 2024 primary.

• "It's a lot more guessing," Wardell says.
• Harris was previously a playable character option, but she wasn't the main focus.

The intrigue: Stardock's creators say the game's advanced simulation has had success predicting outcomes of past presidential elections, including predicting Trump as the winner in 2016.

• Wardell says the simulation shows Biden made the right call.

What they're saying: "The model was coalescing that Trump was going to win, and then when they got (Harris) as the candidate, that changed everything because the enthusiasm level is way higher now (than with Biden)," he says.

• The simulation still showed a "slight edge" for Trump before the debate, but there have been small shifts since.
• The simulation also shows North Carolina is a risk for Trump and will be a key state to win.

Go deeper: More about how Stardock's game works.