Democracy 2
- October 11, 2012
- Positech Games
- 5h median play time
Get on SteamDemocracy 2 is a political simulation game that puts you in the role of a country's leader, where you must balance the needs and wants of your citizens while managing the economy and diplomacy. The game features a complex simulation of citizens' motivations and desires, but is easy to pick up with its intuitive user-interface and turn-based gameplay. Your success depends on your ability to adjust policy sliders and make decisions that will appease various interest groups and maintain the stability of your country.
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Reviews
- The game offers a fun and engaging political simulation experience, allowing players to experiment with different policies and see their effects.
- It serves as a decent educational tool for understanding the interconnectedness of political decisions and their societal impacts.
- Players who enjoy micromanagement and strategy will find satisfaction in balancing budgets and appeasing constituents.
- The gameplay becomes repetitive and lacks depth, leading to a quick loss of interest after a few hours.
- The game is criticized for its political bias and oversimplification of complex political systems, making it less realistic.
- Technical issues, such as crashes and poor user interface design, detract from the overall experience.
- gameplay12 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Democracy 2 is criticized for its shallow mechanics and ease of exploitation, allowing players to quickly master the system and achieve victory with minimal challenge. While it offers a basic understanding of interconnected political issues, the lack of depth and engaging content leads to a repetitive experience after a few sessions. Players often find themselves micromanaging without meaningful gameplay, resulting in a desire for more functional achievements and complexity.
“Graphically, it was not pleasing, nor was the gameplay particularly engaging; every turn you spend your limited 'political capital' in order to enact policies, etc. The game was also difficult, but that was not a deterrent.”
“It is far too easy to 'game' the mechanics - just pour money into tech and universities and suddenly you are making massive income through technological advantage, which lets you build up everything else to win votes.”
“Its mechanics are very shallow, and it does not do a good job at representing politics beyond highlighting the very basic idea that many different issues are interconnected.”
“After playing about three times, you learn all the mechanics inside out, and it becomes boringly easy to 'win'.”
“Democracy 2 is good for a few hours of understanding these systems and general gameplay, at which point you end up wishing there were more functional achievements and a deeper game.”
- graphics7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game are minimalistic and prioritize functionality over aesthetics, resulting in a practical user interface that lacks visual appeal. While the design is not engaging or flashy, it supports the game's depth and strategic elements, making it suitable for players who value gameplay over graphics. Overall, the graphics received a score of 6.5/10, indicating a focus on text and statistics rather than visual stimulation.
“No flashy graphics to distract you, just a screen and some government policy options.”
“There's a lot of depth here for people who don't care about graphics.”
“There are limited graphics and the user interface favors practicality over visual stimulation.”
“Graphically, it was not pleasing, nor was the gameplay particularly engaging; every turn you spend your limited 'political capital' in order to enact policies.”
“Also, this game doesn't have much of a graphics interface and is mostly text and statistic based.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, users find the game's replayability lacking, noting that it tends to follow repetitive patterns that diminish the incentive to play again.
“But it simply has no replayability.”
“There isn't a really high amount of replayability; it all gets to be the same pattern for me.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious due to its linear and predictable nature, leading to a lack of engagement and excitement.
“Everything has a linear and predictable effect, and overall, it becomes very tedious.”
“The grinding feels endless and lacks any real reward, making it a chore rather than an enjoyable experience.”
“Repetitive tasks with minimal variation make the grinding aspect feel like a slog rather than a challenge.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has received a mixed response, with users reporting a moderate level of glitches, lag, and bugs, resulting in an average rating of 6.5 out of 10. While some players experience issues, others find the game generally stable.
“The game is plagued by glitches and lag, making it frustrating to play.”
“I encountered numerous bugs that disrupted my experience, leading to frequent crashes.”
“The stability issues are a major drawback, as the game often freezes at critical moments.”
- story1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The story conveys a critical perspective on democracy, suggesting that it is ineffective or flawed. This theme resonates throughout the narrative, prompting players to reflect on the implications of democratic systems.
“The story feels disjointed and lacks a coherent narrative arc.”
“Character development is shallow, making it hard to connect with anyone.”
“The plot twists are predictable and fail to engage the player.”
