Shoppers in the early 2000s encountered a confusing and shocking product on store shelves. A plastic handheld electronic game appeared for sale that was marked for children “Ages 5 and Up.” The packaging displayed real photographs of the burning World Trade Center towers.
The device was titled Laden VS USA. This bizarre item turned the events of the September 11 attacks into a cheap consumer commodity. It combined pirated software, stolen text, and sensitive imagery into a product that baffled consumers around the world.
A Contradictory Design
The game presented a strange mix of imagery and technology. The console featured small portraits of George W. Bush and Osama bin Laden. The Chinese title Běn Lādēng shìjì dàtiǎozhàn translates to “Bin Laden’s Challenge of the Century.”
Manufacturers released two specific models, GM-026A-3 and GM-028A-3, which differed primarily by the color of their buttons. Despite the violent real-world theme and the use of actual wreckage photos on the box, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) never rated the device. It remained an unregulated item sold in discount stores alongside standard toys.
Stolen Software and Christmas Music
The actual gameplay inside the plastic shell had no relation to the attacks depicted on the box. Players controlled a submarine at the bottom of the screen. The goal was to shoot down fighter jets flying above. This software was a direct bootleg of Submarine Battle (CG-330), a game released by Casio in 1983.
The creators of Laden VS USA took this existing naval simulation and superimposed it over a background photograph of the September 11 attacks. The game included 20 levels that automatically increased in difficulty. When a player successfully completed a stage, the device played a pinging electronic version of the Christmas carol “Deck the Halls.”
Confusing Origins
The production history reveals a chaotic assembly of stolen parts. The instructions on the back of the packaging were lifted word-for-word from the description of a boxing game and had nothing to do with submarines or terrorism.
Credits on the box pointed to Panyu Gaming Electronic Co. Ltd. in Guangzhou, China. However, the prevalence of mass counterfeiting in the region makes it impossible to confirm if this company actually manufactured the game. The ambiguous nature of the gameplay meant it did not have a clear pro-American or anti-American bias. This allowed vendors to sell it in markets as far apart as the United States and Pakistan.
Public Outrage and Bans
The distribution of the game sparked immediate controversy. In Warrington, England, a discount store removed the item from its shelves after religious leaders and residents protested. Local teenager Hannah Birchall stated that the images on the box brought back memories of the attacks and argued that the toy would desensitise children to the tragedy.
In Brooklyn, New York, pedestrians expressed anger after finding the game for sale at a local business called Oakdale Dairy. Reviewer Mike Mozart described the item as “the worst concept for a game in history” and expressed disbelief that it was manufactured and shipped to the United States. Today, the game is considered a rare collector’s item that occasionally appears on eBay.
Shoppers in the early 2000s found a shocking toy on shelves.
A handheld game titled Laden VS USA featured real photos of the 9/11 attacks on the box.
Marked for "Ages 5 and Up," this bizarre product turned a global tragedy into a cheap electronic pastime…🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/YX7sIuXib6
— Fascinating True Stories (@FascinatingTrue) November 28, 2025