The Political Machine 2008 [PC]

We were a little disappointed by this limitation until we realized that you can actually adjust your position on all of these issues during the campaign. You can get a hefty boost towards traditional values, big government, or drilling in ANWR just by courting the endorsement of various religious, business or environmental groups. You can also shift your platform based on the ads that you run and on the answers you give during your TV appearances. In the end, we were actually happier that you couldn't just spec the platform you wanted by spending points, but actually had to earn it through your actions during the campaign. We've even found ourselves crossing over to court voters of the other party whenever we saw that our opponent wasn't responding to a clear preference among voters.

The types of issues you talk about in your TV appearances and political ads can even catapult lesser known issues into the national arena. While everyone's going to be talking about the economy, or health care or the war on terror, you can jump in and start hammering away at an issue your opponent is weak on, like social security reform or gun control. This tactic can be risky though because while you're busy building up marginal issues, your opponent is gaining more and more momentum on the issues that already speak to a wide range of voters.

There are a number of map filters to help you plan out your conquest of the electorate. You can quickly see which states are important by checking the number of electoral votes they have and how wealthy they are overall. A quick check of the liberal vs. conservative voter numbers can also tell you which states are likely to vote for or against you at the beginning. By far the most useful of the map filters is the one that shows polling data. This is a real-time update of the way a state is likely to vote. This can change from red to blue during the course of a turn, even hanging on pink (or possibly gray) when the voters are just too confused to commit.

Players looking for a bit of a challenge will be happy to see that the AI has been improved since the 2004 edition. Your opponents know seem more inclined to go for the bigger states and to use their operatives in response to your own actions. You'll still get the occasional inexplicable fund-raising trip to Wyoming, but the AI plays a much smarter game this time around, particularly in the latter stages of the campaign.

The presentation has been improved a bit as well. Though it won't win any graphics awards, the new 3D engine gives the game a slick, updated feel that puts it a step above most games in this price range. And whether it was intentional or not, the bobble head figures offer a great commentary on politicians in general. The music and sound effects are equally polished, which enhances the experience.

The real problem with the game is the same problem that we have with politics in general. In short, it basically seems to be the same game over and over again no matter how many times you play. The candidates start out with lots of hope and enthusiasm, building up their infrastructure piece by piece, raising cash and giving speeches. Once they get a solid platform built up, they keep shouting the messages that they think will appeal to the largest number of voters, and in the end the only issue that really matters is whether or not the Republicans were able to take California and New York away from the Democrats.

Okay, so there is a bit more subtlety and variety to be found. Sometimes the Republican candidate picks Giuliani as a running mate. Sometimes the Democrats can get lucky and find a million dollar donor and a director who's willing to shoot commercials for half price. Sometimes Texas is undecided right up until the night of the election. But these variations are really just small shifts in the current of this game.