WOW!!!
fantastic! i have long wished to have a credible and capable developer tackle the issue of american politics in game form!
ever since SCRAM, civilization, the ghostbusters game on the commodore 64, and constantly reinforced by rts and tycoon games as well as the seminal THE SIMS, i've found that one of the things that games can do probably better than any other medium is to elucidate to a player HOW A SYSTEM WORKS - to really show an audience the dynamics and interplay between parts and how it all gestalts to make function whatever system is being portrayed. and there is probably few social systems as complex and ill-understood by regular folk than politics. i'm really serious in saying that this is a great opportunity for games to really shine as no less than ART.
i am also really heartened to see that you guys have created a political 'lounge' to hang out and speak about non-fictional politics! as taboo as the subject often is in 'polite society', it encourages me greatly to see such gumption cuz i'd really like to see that kind of courage in the game design too.
i hope that you guys end up having a strong vision and POV for the game by simply showing the consequences of actions - namely, fund raising and the veiled quid pro quo of soft money and other campaign contributions. i've felt for a very long time that americans believe in a myth that not even a child would accept - that large, formidable gifts come without any kind of strings attached.
and if that is indeed false, then as a result, not everyone has equal say - those with more money have louder voices. even though the ability to gain that louder voice is often subsidized by a corporation's own customers and employees.
in this regard, i hope your game can show that in today's america, how wealthy you are makes a difference in how much of a say you have - that that is our america. see, a 'simple game' can have a profound voice!
i also hope that you guys can accurately model the affect of the 'bible belt demographic', the dominance of the media by the 'left wing' vs the dominance of the media by the 'right wing', and why every group feels that they are being persecuted! and create a system that recognizes the complexities of national economics, outsourcing, immigrant labor, trickle down theory, etc.
and i certainly hope that controversial issues such as race, religion, gay rights, abortion, etc come to play an important part as well.
granted, this is a game about getting to the white house (though i really wish that were only the opening of the game! it would be much more enlightening if you had to then make policy as president dealing with all the consequences from campaigning, run for re-election, play out lame duck! [hey, how about keeping the door open so that this game can be LINKED to future modules later on that deal with being in the white house, the re-election based on this first games mechanics, and lame duck?! and then later, the player can play through an entire career as president after you've released all the games [although each can be played on its own]), i hope that you guys exploit this rich material for all its worth and create a game that enlightens and enrages and enthralls in equal measure.
good luck and i eagerly look forward to its release.
jin choung
