Updated thoughts.
Hello.
Here are my thoughts on more improvements for Political Machine 2024.
You need to overhaul the candidate attributes.
Please restore old attributes like credibility, integrity, fundraising prowess, comeliness, minority appeal and religious appeal to add more flavour to the game.
Also, you need to reexamine the intelligence of some of the candidates. Here are my comments on Steam:
You underestimate the intelligence of several candidates. Clinton was one of the smartest Presidents ever, both academically and politically. He is an alumnus of Georgetown, Oxford, and Yale Law School. Even his opponents recognise him as the defining political genius of his generation. You have him at “sharp”.
Pete Buttigieg is even smarter. Almost impossibly smart. Knows eight languages. Triple major in English Literature, History and Theology from Harvard and Philosophy, Politics, Economics degree from Oxford, plus served as a Naval Intelligence officer. You have him at “average”.
Jimmy Carter graduated as a nuclear submarine engineer from the US Naval Academy. He could run a nuclear submarine. What more do you want? You have him at “sharp”.
Years ago, you listed AOC as “dim”. She is not a bimbo. She won a prize at an Intel National Science Fair as a teenager and graduated with honours from Boston University. She is very articulate and savvy.
That's just the Democrats you've undercounted.
You have Dwight David Eisenhower at 'basic' intelligence. Eisenhower? The Supreme Allied Commander who organised and planned Operation Overlord, known as D-Day? Who had to manage personalities like Winston Churchill and Montgomery? Who led a capable Administration with multiple domestic accomplishments like infrastructure, NASA and the National Defense Education Act?
Richard Milhous Nixon, whom I think was a terrible President, was a genius. JFK respected him for his intellect. Kissinger worked very well with him. They were both brilliant minds.
While George W Bush did strike many as a lightweight, he was more than ‘Basic’. And his father was more than average. Bush Senior was very competent.
Ted Cruz should also be classified as exceptional. He was a Princeton debate champion. And I loathe Ted Cruz.
That being said, you need to look at the media bias. The media liked Bill Clinton. And the media was rooting for John Kerry and respects him. And you need to look at charisma. Gore was reserved during the campaign.
Please reexamine the game play changes. The new changes are too restrictive. We should be able to hire more than one operative per turn, and should be able to raise a little more money. Maybe you can adjust the headquarters to give candidates more flexibility in War Room hiring and fundraising.
We need more endorsements. National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People, Evertyown for Gun Safety, the National Rifle Association, and the Federalist Society should all be included alongside other organisations. We could also do with newspaper and magazine endorsements, and interviews and press conferences.
Also, we need more issues included in the game, like the child tax credit, cancellation of medical debt, funding science, Taiwan, Project 2025, prosecuting January 6th rioters, etc.
Note: Eisenhower was born in Texas, but his true home state was Kansas, where his Presidential Library is based. He ran for President from New York, where he was Columbia's President, and Pennsylvania. His ancestors were Pennsylvania Germans.
