You know, it occurred to me just now, NationStates missed a great opportunity for another one of their iconic special-event mini-games (like the Zombie Apocalypse, etc) -- the NS world Olympics.
For example....
A creative (but simple) system is put into place where each player/nation can train a handful of athletes (probably via a variety of selected "training packages", or something of the sort, that allows unique and skill-varied athlete characters). Sporting events (either reflective of real-life Olympic events, NS-specific sports, or both) then take place during the mini-game event that compare the player-built athletes in some way -- thus reflecting their participation in those events. And gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded to the national athletes/characters, with, perhaps some sort of recognition on nation pages to reflect how well a player/nation's athletes did in the event (i.e., a "medal count", like the media presents in their coverage of the real Games).
Now, admittedly, this is just an idea that came to mind -- I haven't worked out any mechanics. Nonetheless, this strikes me as a special mini-game event that might work in the future -- perhaps in honor of the real Olympics, whenever they take place in real world. And the mini-game could be coded on a whole-world level, or a regional level.
As a nation-building game, this seems like an ideal mini-game concept for a game world full of unique and competitive nations.
Just an idea, of course. Just a thought. Anyone else want to build on it?
