This tax season, fall for MSCHF's dating sim, not tax scams.
On Monday, MSCHF launched a free anime dating game for doing your taxes. From the cheeky creator behind the Big Red Boots, Tax Heaven 3000 is a real, working game that enlists a dating sim named Iris to help you prepare your federal income taxes. "Hi there! Iris here," she says on the taxheaven3000.com(opens in a new tab) website. "It’s always been a dream of mine to meet that special someone…and file their tax return. Join me and we’ll search for deductions while searching for love!"
Predatory tax filing services are the latest target of MSCHF, an art collective known for creating viral products that offer provocative commentary on late-stage capitalism, fandom, and hype-driven consumer culture. The company has generated media attention for its "Satan Shoes(opens in a new tab)," custom Nike Air Max sneakers made in collaboration with Lil Nas X that contained a drop of blood, "Eat the Rich Popsicles,(opens in a new tab)" and "Ketchup or Makeup(opens in a new tab)," packets that either contained ketchup or lip gloss. Now, MSCHF is calling out companies like TurboTax and H&R Block for taking advantage of confused taxpayers.
If you made less than $73,000, it is free(opens in a new tab) to file your taxes in the U.S. But a ProPublica investigation revealed how tax-filing company TurboTax deliberately(opens in a new tab) confuses and misleads customers into paying for their services. TurboTax also lobbies heavily(opens in a new tab) to keep these using these deceptive tactics. As we enter the dreaded tax season, Tax Heaven 3000 is here to remind you that filing your taxes can be free...and sexy.
"TurboTax, per its own internal documents, is built on the 'Fear Uncertainty and Doubt' that ordinary people have about their taxes," says the website. "Against this we pit free software instead built on parasocial desire for intimacy and benign horniness! If TurboTax is Dark UI, TH3K is Pink UI, the nightcore of tax software."
Tax Heaven 3000 was leaked on Steam last week and subsequently taken down from the popular gaming platform. But Daniel Greenberg, co-founder of MSCHF, said it is now available via itch.io(opens in a new tab). You can also buy a collector's edition of the game on the Tax Heaven 3000 website for $90. The purchase includes a physical collector's box with a CD of the game, an instruction manual, an IRS mailing envelope, and an Iris body pillow (otherwise known as a dakimakura).
Snuggling up to Iris seems like a better investment of your money than paying for service that is technically free. At least she won't break your heart like the IRS.
