I love politics, though with all the talk about Obama and McCain these days, the dozens of Senators scrambling to keep their once comfortable seats in Congress, and the non-stop chatter from the liberal and conservative media, one thing has become clear. Politics is a game. My question is, and it’s probably a pretty silly one but worth considering nontheless, where is the political massive multiplayer online game? I’ve never been a huge fan of MMOGs, but I completely respect what they attempt to achieve in the robust gaming community. Imagine this: you start the game (let’s keep the title simple, Politics.) as a state senator or assembly person, U.S. Representative or Senator, a mayor, governor, or even members of the media and interest groups.

The format would be very similar to what I laid out in my previous Harry Potter MMOG blog and as such there would have to be several “arenas” so that there are real life equivalents for various branches of government (2 Senators/State, 1 President, etc). Let’s say that the game starts with a new session of Congress, with a generic (possibly developer controlled) president that is in place until the next presidential cycle, at which point any user to place a bid for the Executive spot. Unlike today’s politically backwards environment, if you want to be president or vice president you’ll have to have a certain amount of experience or legislation.

As is probably clear, Politics would be geared towards the political savvy. Congress people will have a generic bill/resolution format in which they write in their proposals and submit it to the collective assembly. The users that choose to be part of the media or interest groups will be there to keep the government from overreaching their bounds, and the judiciary will be there to judge legitimacy. Imagine it: you’re at work and receive an email alerting you that the President (the lucky user to surpassed the obstacles and became elected) has signed a bill into law. As a member of the Supreme Court, your job will now be to congregate with the other Justices and determine the constitutionality of the new law (possibly in a password protected chat room?). It would be a complete political experience, requiring wit, cunning, and a degree of responsibility on the part of each user.

Why do I think this would work? Well, last year I took a college course called SIMCONG ("Simulation Congress"). Each student was assigned a Representative from the House, and we were charged with submitting bills, debating, and voting. Some students were the Executive, some were the media, and others were interest groups representing everything from the Environment to Big Oil. I saw that, even if some students weren’t totally into the experience, they took stock in what they were doing and how they were affecting the rest of the House. This game, if it were ever to be created, would probably be a web based title, but I don’t think that would hinder it’s potential success.

Ya never know, a digital republic could become a grand republic. 

Posted by Daniel on 09/02 at 09:54 PM
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