NationStates: Ideas For World-Building?
NationStates is an old site, that I first discovered a few years ago. If I’m not mistaken, it had been put online at first in parallel with the development of the Jennifer Government story. Last week, I found a renewed interest for it, and created a new nation on the server. This is what got me to think some more about it, as a potential source for ideas.
The basis of the “game” is simple: one creates a nation, chooses its name, currency, animal/symbol and type of government, and every day (depending on the chosen settings), one or two issues are submitted to the “government” of this new country. Issues are on various topics, such as cloning research, minorities on television, people demanding a ban on cars due to pollution, and so on. Two or three opinions from imaginary inhabitants of the country are offered, and the player needs to choose one for each issue. Once these choices are input, the nation evolves to reflect the government’s new policy.
Where the ideas may stem from is exactly this: the issues, and the proposed solutions. Some are funny, some are just improbable, some are more serious. In any case, I think that it provides a good ground for imagination when it comes to creating a world for a work of fiction, and dividing said world in countries.
In all likeliness, the game won’t last me more than two or three weeks, as usual with this kind of things, but who knows? Maybe it can give an inspiration boost at times!
Y Tags: countries | nations | world+building | writing
January 7th, 2006 07:33
The game looks awesome. I’m going to give it a go. I’ll probably get addicted.
January 7th, 2006 12:55
It’s interesting, indeed
I know that I tend to get tired of these games quickly, but it goes this way with so many of them that it must be me, not the games being crappy 
January 7th, 2006 12:56
I played it for a couple of months after I read Jennifer Government. I found it pretty interesting, but it got lost among more important things I had to do.
I think I’ll go check if my nation is still alive.
January 7th, 2006 13:11
It seems my old nation is still alive, but deactivated (and the name isn’t available to create a new account). No idea what the e-mail address I had used at the time is, if I ever used one, so this nation will remain dead and buried.
Come to think of it, I haven’t even read Jennifer Government yet, although the first chapter was interesting. I think I should.
January 7th, 2006 23:48
I’d recommend it. I thought it was a fantastic book – not to mention spectacularly hilarious.