the-political-machine posts

As the US presidential election goes into its final weeks, Stardock has announced that it has updated its recent strategy-sim game The Political Machine 2008 with a number of new features. The update is only available via Stardock's Impulse download client.

The update includes adding the promised matchmaking features in the game's multiplayer mode. According to the press release, "It also includes features allowing players to print out bumper stickers and campaign pins from within the game: Players can create their own candidates, controlling everything about them in how they look, and then export them as an avatar for on-line use or use the new print shop to create a variety of physical media with their creations including campaign pins, bumper stickers, and more. The update adds the new vice presidential candidates, Joe Biden and Sarah Palin to be incorporated into campaigns as well."

One of the biggest problems currently with PC gaming is that many hardware rigs simply can't run modern PC game titles. Stardock, who has a better handle on this issue than most, still got surprised when people couldn't run their latest title, the strategy-sim game The Political Machine 2008. Why? Because the game requires video cards that can run pixel shader 2.0 features and that's something that many people who pick up the game discover they can't do on their PCs (the game is designed more for a mainstream audience).

So Stardock has announced on their official forums that they will offer full refunds on The Political Machine, even if folks bought the game from a brick-and-mortar store. Refund requests must be made within the first 10 days after the game is bought and must contain the box, the receipt and a note on what video card the person has installed n their PC.

[Via Blue's News]

Just like in a real election game which can result in some voter errors, Stardock's recently released election simulation title The Political Machine has a few bugs that were discovered after the game's ship date. Now Stardock, via their new Impulse client, has released their first patch (version 1.03) for the game.

The game's web site has all the details on what's fixed in the patch along with a couple of tweaks and a new feature, the 60 Seconds Interview Forum. Stardock has decided to no longer release stand alone patches for their games so if you want this patch you have to go through Impulse.

You'd think with all the mania surrounding the race to the White House that a game like The Political Machine 2008 would fit right in. The game lets players pick from a list of bobbleheaded caricatures of prominent politicians from past and present, which brings a unique (albeit slightly creepy) sense of style. Each excels or falls short in critical areas like charisma, wealth, experience, comeliness (attractiveness), fund raising ability and total stamina for running the campaign marathon. Players then hit the campaign trail and rush from state to state to win recognition and votes. Yet, when everything is said and done, putting a lighthearted and simplified spin on the political race only makes fora mildly entertaining strategy game. More in-depth after the jump...

Is PC gaming dead? Not if Stardock and its CEO Brad Wardell have anything to say about it. The company has developed and published its own games like the Galactic Civilizations and Political Machine series but has also been an online and retail publisher on a large number of third party games. Last February, Stardock and developer Ironclad Games shocked the industry with the sales success of Sins of a Solar Empire. The space strategy title got great reviews as expected but no one expected the game to be a huge sales success as well, staying on the NPD Group's top 10 sales list for PC game software for over three months straight.

But that;s not all Stardock is doing. Their just released 2008 update to The Political Machine also has the debut of Impulse, the company's new digital download service for games that's also aiming to simplify how PC gamers install and play games in general. The company already has agreements in place with Epic Games, THQ and other developers and publishers to use their platform.

Big Download got a chance to ask Wardell a number of Stardock related questions, including some updates for Sins, their plans for Impulse, The Political Machine 2008, and some hints about Stardock's future game plans.