Democracy 4

About

"Democracy 4 is a single-player business strategy game, where you serve as the President or Prime Minister, governing a country by choosing policies and laws. The game features a custom-built neural network simulating citizens' opinions, and a variety of political topics, including police body cameras and transgender rights. Although it has some bugs and can be grinding, its humor, replayability, and updated vector-graphics engine make for great gameplay and plenty of visual appeal."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

85%

Audience ScoreBased on 3,308 reviews

gameplay55 positive mentions

stability42 negative mentions

Engaging and thought-provoking political simulation that allows players to explore the complexities of governance.
Beginner-friendly with a steep learning curve that becomes rewarding as players understand the interconnectedness of policies.
Offers a wide variety of policy options and scenarios, making it enjoyable for those interested in politics and strategy.

Repetitive gameplay that can become monotonous after a few hours, with limited long-term challenges.
Some mechanics feel unbalanced, such as the popularity system and the impact of policies, leading to unrealistic outcomes.
Technical issues, including crashes and lag, can hinder the overall experience and frustrate players.

gameplay
258 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
75%
4%
The gameplay of Democracy 4 is largely seen as an evolution of its predecessor, Democracy 3, featuring improved user interface and some quality-of-life enhancements, but many players feel it lacks significant new mechanics or depth. While some enjoy the engaging simulation of governance and the strategic decision-making involved, others criticize the gameplay for being repetitive, overly simplistic, and sometimes nonsensical in its cause-and-effect relationships. Overall, the game offers a mix of enjoyable mechanics and frustrating limitations, with modding support seen as a potential avenue for enhancing gameplay variety.
- “Engaging gameplay for a strategy game, would highly recommend.”
- “Gameplay is cool.”
- “The mechanics are solid and very enjoyable to play.”
- “The gameplay feels monotonous after a few playthroughs.”
- “This game is not special and likes to use charts to appear nuanced and informative, but in reality, there are only a few gameplay options and policies available to you, making it too simplistic.”
- “The game is too repetitive with no variety in gameplay.”
graphics
93 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
85%
3%
The graphics in the game have received mixed reviews, with many players noting that while the minimalistic design allows for smooth performance on various hardware, the overall quality is lacking, particularly in character illustrations and background designs. Some users appreciate the clean interface and vector graphics, but others criticize the awkward and clunky visuals, describing them as "downright ugly." Overall, the graphics serve their purpose in conveying information, but they are not a standout feature of the game, often feeling sterile and unpolished.
- “The slick interface, vector graphics, and quality of production is truly remarkable.”
- “No fancy graphics but very realistic game of politics and how decisions impact so many other factors.”
- “Graphically, the game looks great.”
- “The illustrations of people are not good, especially of the politicians you can hire as aides. I know this is not a game where graphics are important, and I'm judging it as such—the graphics are off enough for me to have a problem with them when I already wasn't expecting great things. Well, they're static drawings, so in that respect they could easily be much better.”
- “Many of the new graphical backgrounds for the various demographic screens are awkward, clunky, and downright ugly.”
- “The options have been updated but the visuals are still very poor.”
stability
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
98%
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with numerous users reporting frequent freezes, crashes, and various bugs that significantly hinder gameplay. While some players acknowledge minor glitches and express hope for future improvements, the overall consensus is that the game feels unfinished and unstable, detracting from the overall experience. Despite its potential, many reviewers find it hard to recommend due to these persistent stability issues.
- “I love Democracy 4, and it runs great on Steam Deck!”
- “The game is incredibly stable, with no crashes or bugs during my playthrough.”
- “I've experienced smooth gameplay throughout, which really enhances the overall experience.”
- “A buggy mess that doesn't offer anything new to justify its own existence.”
- “The game is currently very buggy as expected from an early alpha game; however, the creators have been very transparent and have been working hard on the game. It's a lot of fun too!”
- “The reason I can't recommend it is because the game isn't stable. It worked fine for the first hour, then got worse as the game went on, with frequent graphical glitches, frame rate drops, and freezes on certain pages, and multiple crashes.”
replayability
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
55%
10%
The game's replayability is generally viewed as high, particularly due to its thriving modding community and the variety of policies and choices available, which encourage exploration of different strategies. However, some players note limitations in replay value, citing a lack of dynamic content and challenges that can lead to boredom after extended play. Overall, while many find the game enjoyable and replayable, opinions vary significantly based on individual play styles and preferences.
- “Additionally, the game's modding community is thriving, offering a wealth of custom scenarios and content that further expand the game's replayability and depth.”
- “The amount of policies, choices, and events make the replay value super high.”
- “Lots of replayability, and there always seems to be more than one way to meet your goals.”
- “I really enjoyed the hours I did put into the game, but it just has very limited replayability, and that's why I'm not recommending it.”
- “Basically no replayability since there's no real challenge to becoming an autocrat after your first term.”
- “Unless you're really into roleplaying or playing different playstyles by pandering to different groups, there is little reason to continue and not much replayability.”
story
33 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
79%
15%
The game's story aspect is largely perceived as lacking, with many players noting the absence of a structured narrative. While some enjoy the emergent storytelling from their decisions, there is a strong desire for more defined storylines, mission variety, and deeper narratives that reflect technological and societal changes. Overall, players feel that enhancing the story component could significantly improve the gaming experience.
- “I enjoy the game and the storytelling that naturally unfolds from whatever decisions you make for your nation, and I think the UI is clever.”
- “I feel this game requires you to build your own motive and backstory to really flesh out its depth.”
- “Whilst there needs to be a deeper narrative and story in the game, with more newsworthy insights into policy decisions and how they impact the game.”
- “Furthermore, the addition of a broader range of operations or missions could significantly enhance the overall gaming experience, making it more immersive and enjoyable for players.”
grinding
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
53%
41%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized, with many users noting that it requires an excessive time commitment, often feeling like a second job. While the initial gameplay can be enjoyable, it quickly becomes repetitive and tedious as players find themselves implementing the same strategies repeatedly, leading to a decline in overall enjoyment.
- “A bit grindy sometimes.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “It becomes tedious after a while to be implementing the same policies over and over again, no matter what ideology you try to play as.”
- “However, this game, even though in concept it is great, is very much too tedious and has flaws.”
music
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
63%
19%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players finding it repetitive and simplistic, while others appreciate its appropriateness and overall quality. A few users noted that the soundtrack enhances the gameplay experience, although some felt the need to supplement it with their own music due to its lack of variety. Overall, while the music is not universally praised, it is considered a fitting backdrop for the game's atmosphere.
- “Don't hesitate, definitely worth buying, and the music's great too!”
- “The music is awesome, and the scaling of icons tells you where the money is at a glance.”
- “Other than that, great soundtrack, great mechanics, fantastic game.”
- “The music is appalling; it is just one track.”
- “The music is mind-numbingly simple and repetitive.”
- “Maybe it wouldn't matter if it was an RPG, but in a game that is slow, casual, and analytical, you definitely need that alt+tab so you can run some podcast, movie, or music in the background and change it without the game collapsing on you.”
humor
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely praised for being both funny and thought-provoking, often leading to hilarious situations and unexpected outcomes. Players appreciate the clever satire and the absurdity of certain scenarios, such as the juxtaposition of political groups and the exaggerated consequences of their decisions. Overall, the game's humor adds a layer of enjoyment that enhances the addictive gameplay experience.
- “Funny, thought-provoking, and addictive!”
- “Laughing so hard, milk shot out my nose.”
- “The simulation is hilarious, especially because even knowing it's an approximation, one can't stop thinking about how real it ends up being.”
optimization
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with some players noting that its 2D menu design allows for better performance and battery life on devices like the Steam Deck. However, many users have reported significant performance issues, particularly on lower-end systems, and criticized the game for being poorly balanced and lacking new content compared to its predecessor. While some players found it to run smoothly, others expressed disappointment in its optimization and overall gameplay dynamics.
- “That the game is basically just 2D menus also means the performance and battery life are much less of a drain on your deck than something like Civilization, and that's a big plus.”
- “So far the game seems to run smoothly, thanks Positech for another wonderful democracy game!”
- “Every choice has an impact on your approval, budget, and country performance.”
- “My laptop has 8GB RAM; I don't think a game like this should be causing this many performance issues.”
- “Horribly unoptimized.”
- “However, I don't think this early release is optimized yet.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
Reviews indicate that the monetization strategy, particularly through DLCs, is viewed negatively, with many considering them to be cash grabs that lack value. Additionally, there are suggestions for more innovative monetization methods, such as incorporating political advertising using funds from fundraising and party donations.
- “DLCs are mostly just cash grabs and not worth taking.”
- “The monetization strategy feels exploitative and detracts from the overall experience.”
- “In-game purchases are overpriced and offer little value for the money spent.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
Players report that the emotional aspect of the game effectively immerses them in the role of a political leader, creating a sense of confusion and responsibility that mirrors real-life decision-making. The mechanics, while occasionally frustrating, contribute to a deeper emotional engagement with the game's themes.
- “I was confused the whole time, which made me feel like a real political leader.”
- “The emotional weight of my decisions lingered long after I made them, truly immersing me in the experience.”
- “Every choice felt significant, evoking a deep sense of responsibility and connection to the characters.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the unique character designs while others feel that the depth and growth of the characters are lacking. Overall, the visual appeal is noted, but the narrative progression and emotional engagement may not meet all players' expectations.
- “The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the protagonists.”
- “I was disappointed by the lack of meaningful growth in the characters throughout the game.”
- “The story fails to provide a compelling arc for the characters, leaving them feeling one-dimensional.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a highly realistic political model that enhances the atmosphere, making it particularly enjoyable for serious players seeking depth and immersion.
- “The game contains one of the most realistic political models in video games, creating an enjoyable atmosphere for serious players.”