New Pope is a „casual gamer.” Leo XIV's brother reveals what games he enjoys most
Pope Leo XIV managed to play several rounds even before the conclave started, and he was elected as Francis' successor.
Pope Leo XIV surprised Catholics not only with his education, but also with his interest in "casual" games.
Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the 267th pope on May 8th, becoming the first leader of the Catholic Church from North America in history. However, the Augustinian clergyman stands out from his predecessors not only because of this. The Holy Father studied at a Catholic university in a census-designated place, Villanova, where he obtained a bachelor's degree not in theology, but in mathematical sciences (to the surprise of some). His fondness for tennis is also well known.
However, the bigger surprise for some internet users was the information conveyed by the Pope's brother, John Prevost, that just before departing for the conclave, the future Pope played several sessions in two word games: Wordle and Words with Friends (via NBC5 Chicago / ArsTechnica / Gamestar).
Pope's word games
We could argue that such "casual" games do not make Leon XIV a player. Nonetheless, the fact that a 69-year-old clergyman has shown any interest in a video game at all can be seen as a sign of the times. It's true that we've come a long way from the time when games were seen as just for kids and blamed for increasing violence. However, it's still rare for even the most relaxing and simple games to interest seniors, unless it's for health reasons.
As Ars Technica notes, the ESA (Entertainment Software Association) report on the industry in 2024 states that as much as 44% of Americans born between 1946 and 1964 ("Boomers") are having fun playing video games. Meanwhile, in a survey by the Civic Science group, only 15% of respondents had ever launched Wordle, and 13% appreciated this simple title. And yet, the new Pope was also found in such a narrow group.
Not that previous Popes didn't talk about gaming at all. Some players may remember the unusual gift for Francis in the form of Undertale, as well as the "blessing" of John Paul II for Pokémon fans (via The Medium). On the other hand, we had critical statements from Benedict XIV in 2007 and Francis in 2016.
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Author: Jacob Blazewicz
Graduated with a master's degree in Polish Studies from the University of Warsaw with a thesis dedicated to this very subject. Started his adventure with gamepressure.com in 2015, writing in the Newsroom and later also in the film and technology sections (also contributed to the Encyclopedia). Interested in video games (and not only video games) for years. He began with platform games and, to this day, remains a big fan of them (including Metroidvania). Also shows interest in card games (including paper), fighting games, soulslikes, and basically everything about games as such. Marvels at pixelated characters from games dating back to the time of the Game Boy (if not older).
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