This Kind of Leader

Day 590, 21:23 • Published in USA USA • by mjdiv

In eRepublik, we often hear people talking about “winning the game”. If you play eRepublik like a shoot ‘em up arcade game in which the object is to press the trigger button as fast as you can and destroy everyone else who isn’t you, then you’ll be really disappointed in finding out that you can’t win this way. If you play it as a role-playing game, you may find temporary amusement in becoming the “character” of your choice (since eRepublik lets you do that) and growing as a member of the “land guild” or the “manufacturing guild” or even the “military guild”. There are some who also may join the “Libertarian guild”, the “Federalist guild”, the “Nationlist guild”, the “USWP guild”, etc., to build political clout and gain “power”. You may eventually run to become head of a political party (guild leader) or even president of your country (king). Role playing can be fun, but does that help you win in this “social strategy game”?

I don’t think the developers of eRepublik tried to throw people off when they developed this “social strategy game” and really meant to make it a role-playing destroy-all-the-other-countries type of game. I think we have to thank the admins for adding these facets into the game, because it makes it interesting and does allow for those people who want to role-play and treat it like Warcraft without shutting those people out and adding a little bit of complexity. The way to win, however, is told to us in the way it is marketed…social strategy. Social means it isn’t about individual people or even individual nations…it is about teamwork and cooperation. Strategy means using all of the different facets of game mechanics as well as development of social skills which encourage cooperation and teamwork in an online setting. If we play as individuals who are only out for ourselves, we will never win this social strategy game. But if we learn to play as the most cooperative, competitive and most organized team, then winning is inevitable. We will lose as individuals, but can win as a team.

We have a presidential election coming up on July 5th, right after many of us in America celebrate Independence Day. The real life Independence Day will be a celebration of freedom and self-determination and many may carry these fantastic real life American values back to eRepublik. In real life, many people have fought in many wars and have died in the name of preserving those values. But what we need to understand is that, in eRepublik, our freedom and self-determination are dependent on our ability to forge international relationships and win the hearts and minds of people all over the world so that we can become the most effective team of nations which are able to trade with each other, defend each other and provide the best model of unity in the world, which will not be broken by other nations or teams of nations. This is our “win” in eRepublik.

On Election Day, this will be the first time in 4 months that someone other than scrabman will be elected president and we need to decide what kind of leader we want to take his place. We need to elect the kind of leader that will be able to win the hearts and minds of nations around the world, who not only looks out for American interests but also how America can grow stronger together with our allies. This kind of leader should be a master of game mechanics but also a master of people skills and communication ability. This kind of leader should be able to admit that they are not perfect and has faults, but also have the providence to select a competent staff that will be able to make up for whatever faults this leader may have. This kind of leader will lead not only eUSA but anyone else who comes along for the ride to victory that will be celebrated not just here, but around the world. Keep these in mind when you cast your vote on July 5th for President of eUSA.

To learn more about the leaders who are running for president, subscribe to Freedom & Responsibility and watch for the next article, which will be the interviews with the presidential candidates of eUSA.

Have fun and enjoy another day in eRepublik!