Release Info:
- Developer: Positech Games
- Publisher: Zero G Games, Inc.
- Platform: PC
- Format: CD-ROM
- ESRB Rating: Everyone
- Release Date: 2008
Key Features:
- Choose from over 80 policies to implement
- Poll voters to see their thoughts on certain issues
- Effectively manage the country's budget
- Deal with potential anti-government organizations
- Appoint members of your Cabinet
- Use your political capital to enact meaningful change
System Requirements:
- Operating System: Windows ME/XP/2000/Vista
- Processor: Pentium 2.0 GHz or higher
- Memory: 1GB RAM
- Hard Drive: 100MB free space
- Graphics: 64MB DirectX compatible graphics card
- Disc Drive: 4X CD-ROM drive
- Other: Sound card, mouse and keyboard
Description:
Oval Office is a turn-based political simulation game that has you serving as the President of the United States, developing a government as you see fit. You’ll appoint members of your Cabinet, make important policy decisions, manage crises, reach compromises, and attempt to balance the needs of the country with the wishes of an ever-demanding public.
You'll manage the country by making decisions in seven key areas: foreign affairs, welfare, economy, tax, public services, law and order, and transportation. The population you’ll oversee is represented by 21 voting groups, whose overall happiness is displayed as a color-coded horizontal meter underneath each group name. These groups range from parents and capitalists to smokers and farmers, and citizens can fall under more than one group.
Poverty, crime, education and other pertinent data are represented by icons that appear on the main screen. While you cannot directly change the statistics in these areas, you can indirectly influence them by focusing on certain policies.
Before you make a decision, you can click on any of the on-screen icons to view pertinent statistics and summaries. You'll then be able to adjust sliders to do things like raising or lowering taxes. Each policy decision has consequences, which you will see represented by a horizontal bar graph in red or green to indicate losses or gains, respectively.
Each policy is also influenced by an appointed Cabinet member, whose effectiveness will determine how swiftly a particular policy is enacted. Certain "hot-button" policies will also require a varying amount of political capital to implement, which represented by an overall number that will rise or fall based on your decisions and popularity.
The game is played out in turns, with each turn representing three months of actual time. Your primary goal is re-election, which will allow you to cement your legacy as the country's Commander in Chief.