We should harness the neurodivergent power of paradox map painting game dudes and direct their obsession into top down economy managing simulators instead. (hexbear.net)

submitted 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) by orangejuche@hexbear.net to c/chapotraphouse@hexbear.net

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I’d rather be having bros autistically obsessing over supply lines and infrastructure than the ww2 borders of a fascist yugoslavia. Map painting games, city builders, and political sims all push the same dopamine button in the brain. You give a dude a map of earth and tell him to build communism on it and he will spend the next twenty four hours arguing with similar nerds in a forum about entirely fictional models of resource deposits in Africa being entirely unbalanced. Let’s focus the analytical mind towards coming up with highly unrealistic plans for managing the global economy than making war.

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[-] Zvyozdochka@hexbear.net 27 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

Wait until you find out about Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic. It's a very fun game, can recommend.

[-] LaGG_3@hexbear.net 10 points 4 months ago

I want a version of this game for idiot babies like me.

[-] Alaskaball@hexbear.net 11 points 4 months ago

Cities: Skylines might be for you then

[-] LaGG_3@hexbear.net 5 points 4 months ago

I need to give it a fair shake. It's just the neoliberal SimCity ideology and Paradox DLC model that makes it hard for me to get excited

[-] the_itsb@hexbear.net 2 points 4 months ago

I haven't played C:S2 yet, but in the original, I just turn on infinite money, make all the amenities free for my citizens, and then try to make a beautiful, efficient place where everybody is happy. The mass transit and park DLCs both added a lot to my enjoyment. Every city I make has at least one giant park with preserve areas and accessible trails.

it's pretty fun 😊

[-] LaGG_3@hexbear.net 2 points 4 months ago

Sounds like a blast! I know I picked it up as an EGS freebie, but I have to see what DLCs it included. Cities: Skylines has that too many DLCs problem like The Sims and all the Paradox map painter games

[-] Alaskaball@hexbear.net 2 points 4 months ago

I wouldn't know, I don't play slim shity

[-] LaGG_3@hexbear.net 2 points 4 months ago

There's a cool video from Polygon about it:

https://www.polygon.com/videos/2021/4/1/22352583/simcity-hidden-politics-ideology-urban-dynamics

Cities: Skylines is definitely in the same design lineage

[-] context@hexbear.net 2 points 4 months ago

you can turn off a lot of things like energy/water/waste management and set it to unlimited money and easily pleased citizens and play it pretty casually.

[-] Comp4@hexbear.net 27 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

A girl just wants to industrialize and lift millions out of poverty stalin-feels-good

[-] orangejuche@hexbear.net 15 points 4 months ago

Single-handedly nationalizes the world economy

Proceeds to fumble it like spaghetti

[-] HakFoo@lemmy.sdf.org 21 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

One step futher: something like Ender's Game where they think they're playing map games, but they're actually doing real central planning.

[-] iridaniotter@hexbear.net 19 points 4 months ago

In the USSR, they harnessed ekranoplan autism. Based, of course. But imagine a communist world economy that harnessed the power of excel sheet autism. curry-space

[-] Red_Sunshine_Over_Florida@hexbear.net 12 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

I volunteer myself for this job. I can't wait to play Hearts of Project Cybersyn IV. Please go light on the DLCs. And promise a soundtrack that's better than the playlist for the Internationale in Kaiserreich.

[-] BynarsAreOk@hexbear.net 11 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

You should be aware they had an actual cold war game that got scrapped. We were decently close to this already. It was called East vs West.

[-] Redcuban1959@hexbear.net 3 points 4 months ago

Some of the soundtrack was reused in HOI IV. I think the game was 60 or 70% done.

[-] SpiderFarmer@hexbear.net 3 points 4 months ago

I like citybuilders, but I'm not sure where people find the time for them. I also wish I didn't get so rusty on GIS software. Playing around with maps is genuinely fascinating and fun.

[-] orangejuche@hexbear.net 4 points 4 months ago

Maybe I made a mistake when I said city builder, focusing entirely on one city would be too micromanaging. Map making games are more macro, city games can be that but they usually don’t have complex supply chains and the general autism that makes map games enjoyable. City builders are mostly “place building model here, it does nothing, maybe it simulates traffic, idk fuck you.” There’s no strategy in them.