Every President faces daunting tasks, trying to make the best decision in no-win situations and handling volatile political crises, while struggling to keep on the good side of the almighty Public Opinion Polls. But does he have any fun? D.C. True and Merit Studios think so, and have spent years developing the presidential simulator CyberJudas, a strikingly original game that brings the joy and jitters of presidential politics right to your desktop.
CyberJudas is the sequel to Shadow President, and takes the premise of that game to new levels of complexity. As a President who rules the nation from cyberspace, you have a difficult task ahead of you. Just as in real life, the sheer volume of information available and activity happening at any given moment is overwhelming – at first, CyberJudas is harder to tackle than a greased Roger Clinton. But after a few hours of play, this complexity becomes the game's greatest asset. The elegant artificial intelligence makes the world evolve in a realistic fashion, and seeing how nations are affected under your command is a very enthralling affair.
The game offers three levels of play. In the first two, your goal is to simply stay in office. The Presidential Simulator requires you to deal with affairs of state, such as adjusting the budget, making foreign policy decisions and even enacting covert operations, all while watching your Popularity and Leadership Effectiveness Rating to make sure you keep your place at the top. Fail, and you will lose the election, be impeached or, in extreme situations, assassinated. The second level, The Cabinet Wars, uses the same premise as the Simulator, but with a new factor added to your decision making process. Each of your six advisors is trying to put forth his or her political agenda, and you must carefully weigh their suggestions before acting. The final level available is the CyberJudas Gambit, which adds a sinister layer of complexity: one of your advisors is making unsavory executive decisions without your approval, and you must investigate and successfully convict this traitor before his or her actions wreak worldwide havoc.
This game is deep, and definitely not for those looking for a quick diversion. Even playing at the fastest speed of 2 hours per second (which makes it essentially impossible to properly execute commands), it takes about 5 hours to complete a single term. But CyberJudas does a good job of keeping your interest. The haunting music and dark artwork lend themselves nicely to the shadowy tone, and the constant barrage of world events makes sure your job is never done.
Of course, there are a few problems. At times I wished the interface was a bit more intuitive, and that I had a more comprehensive way of viewing my past actions and decisions regarding certain regions. But the game is so strangely addicting that these issues seemed unimportant once I learned to make do with what I had been given. In a world of games aimed at short attention spans, CyberJudas is a refreshing original.
