Summary
Anyone who’s ever been frustrated with political issues in their country has likely imagined themselves doing a much better job than those currently in power. Whether that’s due to the speed of policies getting passed, an issue that continually gets ignored, or even a feeling that corruption is rampant, there’s an appeal in wanting totake the reins in place of those in charge.
Video games provide an excellent outlet for this, as there are a number of games that show the intricacies of political systems and the impacts certain decisions can have on society. Whether it’s modern-day politics, royal courts, or ancient territorial disputes,political gameshave many ways for players to be the rules they feel they deserve to be.
Updated on June 07, 2025, by Ritwik Mitra:Simulation games are pretty engaging for players who want to feel like they’re in direct control of a complex system. These games have many metrics that players need to take care of if they want to ace the gameplay, trying their hardest to attain positive numbers, complete objectives, and do whatever else the game asks of them. Simulation games can be pretty engaging if they let players control entire governments, letting them rule over a populace and decide the best course of action they can take to keep citizens happy while also securing political influence and making their nation as powerful as possible.
12Suzerain
Agovernment simulation game that is heavily narrative-based,Suzerainis a great game that explores complicated political themes following the journey of the Republic of Sordland, a country that just came out of a lengthy civil war and needs to start picking up the pieces before they end up either losing their identity to infighting or become the victim of annexation by neighboring powers.
The decisions inSuzerainare hard and can be quite tough to make, with players having to make sacrifices in some form or the other. Players need to strike some kind of balance in their ruling if they wish to get through this game and see their country enjoy a ray of hope after being bombarded by negativity over and over again.
11Republic: The Revolution
There was a time whenthe hype forRepublic: The Revolutionwas through the roof.After all, the idea of enjoying a political simulation game with highly realistic elements was quite novel for its time, and the game’s promises made many people feel likeRepublic: The Revolutionwas going to change the very scenario of gaming for good.
However, despite having some promising design aspects, the game was delayed numerous times and never really achieved its true potential. The game was way too ambitious for its time and ended up biting off more than it could chew, with the project’s scope having to be reined in midway through development. The end result was a game that was frustratingly lifeless and didn’t really communicate what it felt like to make crucial political decisions.
10Democracy
TheDemocracyseries represents modern-day politics by placing the player in the shoes of the President or Prime Minister of their chosen nation. From there, they are presented with a series of interconnected bubbles that include a number of political situations, such as homelessness or high crime rates, and tasked with setting policies that can fix these problems.
Of course, the difficulty inDemocracycomes from the constantly competing needs of the populace, as some decisions can please capitalists but anger environmentalists, for example.The challenge comes from balancing these needsin a way that keeps the books balanced and addresses society’s ills in a meaningful way without getting voted out at the next election.
Papers, Pleaseisn’t a simulation of what it’s like to be in charge of a government, but instead, it simulates what it’s like to be part of a government system that shows little regard for the people stuck inside it. Players take the role of an immigration officer in a fictional Soviet-era nation called Arstotzka, where they must make decisions about anyone crossing the border by viewing their paperwork. While this might seem straightforward, the ethical ramifications of turning away people who have no choice but to get into Arstotzka for their own safety make this gameplay loop extremely engaging.
Due to harsh government policies, the player is often forced to make difficult decisions about people passing through, often sending innocent people to jail or turning away the desperate. However, players can’t simply rebel against the government, as they have a family to feed, and this balance between what’s right and being able to survive is a huge part of the game’s challenge. It’s a brutal game with barely a ray of hope that breaks through the bleak nature of this game, and it’s a testament to the riveting storytelling ofPapers, Pleasethat the simple act of stamping a piece of paper becomes harrowing with each and every day.
TheVictoriaseries is a deep political strategy set during the time of the British Empire, althoughthe game doesn’t require players to be in charge of the empire itself. It’s a game that balances two distinct threads in running a country during the age of colonization and rapid industrialization – players must use diplomacy to encourage good relations with other nations while also keeping the economy of their own nation in a healthy position.
The Victoria games are beloved by strategy fans, with many citing its deep economic systems to be among the best in the genre. Its focus on resource management and industry, along with a deep market system, means that players can really delve into the intricacies of 19th-century politics to their heart’s content.
Much likeVictoria,Romance of the Three Kingdomsis a historical strategy series about managing an empire. However, Koei Tecmo’s series goes even further back, placing the player in charge of imperial China during the fall of the Han Dynasty in the second and third centuries, drawing a lot of influence from the famed historical text also titledThe Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
As imperial leaders, players must manage the food supplies of their cities, deal with the damage caused by natural disasters, and maintain the loyalty of the populace, all while waging war with rival kingdoms in a show of dominance.
TheTropicoseries sees the player placed in the shoes of El Presidente of a banana republic during the Cold War, where the goal is to remain in charge indefinitely. The game’s goals mostly involvekeeping the populace happy so that they don’t violently overthrow the regime, usually by providing the pretense of democracy while secretly rigging the results.
The island nation can also charm either of the major superpowers, whether that’s the USA or the Soviet Union, in order to gain monetary and military aid and prevent them from enforcing their own rule. It’s a series full of deep political systems, all layered with a satirical sense of humor, keeping it all together.
Paradox Interactive is one of the biggest names in the market when people think about 4X strategy games, allowing players to influence the development of the world itself while partaking in a bunch of activities relevant to the time period that players are experiencing at that time.Europa Universalisis one such franchise that takes a deep dive into the era of colonialism as players control one of the many European nations and try to secure as much wealth as possible.
This breakneck title forces players to be as aggressive in the realm of politics as possible, trying to make their nation the very best in the entire world. While it’s true that the practice of colonialism was heinous, players can still learn some valuable history lessons while playing through this game nevertheless.
4SimCity
While most of these entries focus on managing a nation or even an entire empire,SimCityshrinks its politics to a local level. In these games,the player is the mayor of a fledgling citywho must keep it functioning as it grows.
While not as deep as the more expansive political sims out there,SimCityoffers an insight into how decisions are made on a local level. Managing water systems and transport may not be as glamorous as building a vast international trade network or charming world leaders, butSimCitymakes it just as compelling.
Most people would be surprised to seeStellarison this list, but a galactic government definitely counts! No one expected Paradox Interactive to go down a sci-fi route before this game was announced, and the fact that players still can’t get enough of this game despite the many years that have passed since its release is a testament to how well a developer with little experience in this genre managed to nail everything.
With its wealth of content updates, mods, and DLCs,Stellarisis a game absolutely jam-packed with content that any fan of 4X strategy simulation games should check out for themselves. The learning curve may be a bit steep, but the end result is definitely worth it.
