President Election, most commonly called President Elect, is a very unique strategy game from Strategic Simulations Incorporated (SSI). This simulation and strategy hybrid works to emulate the hard work and preparation that goes into campaigning to become the President of the United States of America. The game gives the user to play as an actual presidential candidate from U.S. history. The game is up to date and accurate through the election year of 1984, and did feature some downloadable updates to tack on a few more campaigns as the years progressed.
The managerial aspects of this game are very realistic, and it presents a great model for how presidential elections are won and lost in this nation.
The gamer does not have to play as an actual historical figure. In fact, it is fun to see how a custom made figure would have fared against a political genius from days gone by. The gamer can create a custom character by answering a list of questions about the platforms of this character. The gamer will be presented with a wide range of questions ranging in subject matter from the federal deficit to abortion rights. The gamer will have to answer each question individually by marking the box that most describes the candidate’s point
of view: “Strongly Oppose,” “Undecided,” or “Strongly Agree.” Many of the questions, despite being varied, are tailored to the eighties. For example, many of the questions concerning foreign policy deal with Communist Russia and issues that were most prevalent during the Cold War. The answers to these questions will reveal whether the gamer’s candidate is conservative, liberal, or a bit of a fence sitter.
The fun in the game is creating the character, whether the player is trying to make one as historically accurate as possible or is more trying to imitate his own political views. Making these characters provides some very interesting scenarios, such as how would an actual losing candidate from election have done if his views on a particular subject would have been different? How would Abraham Lincoln have fared against John F. Kennedy? Better yet, how would you have done against these great historical leaders if your views were driving a political machine?
Overall, this is a really interesting simulation. Although it offers the opportunity to run a campaign, the most fun is in the wildly different scenarios the user will be able to create, using history as inspiration, his own ideas or imagination. The possibilities are endless, making the replay value of President Election very high. This is an A+ play.
