Stardock Systems took on the 4X strategy genre in 2003 with Galactic Civilizations (a space they obviously had some experience in) and shocked a lot of gamers with a product that proved to be a satisfying strategy experience (more so then another big budget 4X space strategy title that I won't mention in this space). So a few awards later and truckloads of confidence, Brad Wardell and the Stardock team are working on a new game in a different arena - the political kind. While the game we've been playing is far from stable or complete, what there is surprisingly good (you can also check out these brand new screenshots from the game as well.)



Political strategy or simulation games tend to be boring, overly complicated and about as fun as listening to a Ralph Nader speech. Stardock has taken all the statistics and all the activities involved in politics and presented them in a palatable way using simple but deep interface to give players all the data they need without overwhelming them. The game is open ended in that you make your candidate do what you want to do without hindrance. Players can earn cash, go on talk shows, run political ads, give speeches and a myriad of other activities to keep the game of politics fresh and alive.

And the game doesn't let players slide. Gain California and neglect it later in the game and you'll get a surprise; go on a talk show and say something stupid or contrary to what your core beliefs are and you'll look like an idiot to the public. The great thing about the game is that something is always happening and its up to the player to keep up and play by the type of politician he or she chose to be at the onslaught.



At the heart of the game are the voters in each state, who are divided among three factions - Republican, Democrat and Independent. But beyond that, each state has five top issues that players must ultimately pander to. Some, like Job creation are pretty easy to get behind (everyone loves job creation). But others require strategy - talk about anti-Abortion policies in a state where the voters are pro-choice and it will hurt you, or talking about gun control in a state like Texas will get you in serious trouble with the voters.

But beyond that players have to keep track of what's going on in each state, how they are personally holding up against other candidates and what issues are important to the voters. knowing which states have the most electoral vote can't hurt either - but if your opponent takes a lot of states there's a chance for getting your head handed to you on election day. For example, playing as a republican candidate I managed to take California, Washington, Florida, Texas, New York and a few other smaller states. My democratic opponent beat me by 22 electoral votes. Why? Because I didn't do my homework: states rich in delegates like Wisconsin were off my radar and my opponent took it and many others uncontested.



That's the glory of Political Machine. It's not fast paced but the devil is always in the details. Paying attention to what the nation wants on a state by state basis is important. It should also be noted that the game does follow loosely the make of states in terms of political power. But that doesn't mean these states aren't in play. A smart politician can target the issues he can work with to sway both sides of the isle or at the very least capture the swing voters. Of course there are a ton of other factors that can affect players - special interests endorsements, political ads (good and bad) TV appearances, campaign organizations in each state, stump speeches and a myriad of special units that run the gamut from political advisors to veterans.

Obviously the game still needs a lot of work and on the technical side there are a lot of crash to desktop (CTD's) bugs even under Windows XP. But with an August release date as the target (that's a pretty mobile target at the moment but it looks like it can happen if things go right) Political Machine should be revved up and ready for launch. Currently the game only offers a quick match with over dozen or so modern day and historical candidates. We suspect there will be a lot more fantasy characters to toy with, and the create your own candidate feature (which is broken in this current build) looks robust enough to give gamers the ability to create a custom character worthy of taking over the White House.



Political junkies that watch Chris Mathews and other political shows will definitely want to see the end result of Stardock's labors. For the rest Political Machine offers an interface and gameplay that strategy fans will definitely enjoy. Ultimately the game is an empire building game without an army -unless armies of Spin Doctors, Cheerleaders and political pundits of all shapes and sizes counts. Look for Stardock Systems to bust the game out into the public eye in August. Check out these extra screenshots from the game here and be sure to stick with GameShark for the latest on this promising strategy title!