Economics and Civil Rights

[Idealand]

This is an interesting game, but its algorithm engine is obviously based on a US economics model and policy.

Whenever I introduce legislation to protect consumer or civil rights my economy tanks. This doesn't happen in real life outside of America. For example, when vehicle safety standards rise in Europe and Japan, domestic sales and exports rise. Also, people survive accidents, so continue to contribute to the economy.

Food safety is paramount in Europe, with many American foods banned, but according to this game my economy will suffer if I legislate for higher standards. The reality is those with lower food standards, like the US, can't export many of their products but those who do have higher standards have no export restrictions.

So, is it possible to move to a Rest of the World economic model instead of a US model? Otherwise I may as well have no safety legislation in order for my economy to grow.

[Mr TM]

Thats not quite true, as this nation has a strong economy while still having high safety, lifespan and food quality.
And plenty more with better stats than me.

[Vastiuq]

It's most likely you arnt understanding the issue. They have alot of nations who have good civil and political rights while having the best economy. On the right side of the website with the (?) I believe they have a whole section on why issues does this and that to stats.

[The Galactic Empire of Zimbabwae2]

This is an interesting game, but its algorithm engine is obviously based on a US economics model and policy.

Whenever I introduce legislation to protect consumer or civil rights my economy tanks. This doesn't happen in real life outside of America. For example, when vehicle safety standards rise in Europe and Japan, domestic sales and exports rise. Also, people survive accidents, so continue to contribute to the economy.

Food safety is paramount in Europe, with many American foods banned, but according to this game my economy will suffer if I legislate for higher standards. The reality is those with lower food standards, like the US, can't export many of their products but those who do have higher standards have no export restrictions.

So, is it possible to move to a Rest of the World economic model instead of a US model? Otherwise I may as well have no safety legislation in order for my economy to grow.

I can dive into more detail if you'd like, but one key thing to keep in mind about this game is that the text for each issue translates directly into legislation—it’s implemented exactly as written. Essentially, every idea is assumed to have the team and resources needed to make it work.

When it comes to economic issues, a good starting point is usually to pick the option where you subsidize something (as mentioned in the text for the issue option). Subsidizing tech, for example, to promote technological advancement is a real-world strategy, and it works in the game too—though here it’s far more effective than in reality, mostly because it assumes all the teamwork and expertise are in place.

I totally get what you’re saying about economic policy in the game. It’s not super nuanced—like, breaking up monopolies should boost your economy significantly over time, but the game doesn’t quite capture that. Plus, the tax model is pretty simplified. That said, I still think this game does an amazing job for what it is.

Honestly, I love stats and economics IRL, and this is one of my favorite games. It takes a bit of time (1.5–6 months of answering issues) for your country’s stats and ideals to align with your vision, but the payoff is so worth it. The stat distribution is one of the best I’ve seen in a political simulator, and the graphs for government expenditures, %GDP, and category spending are super well-designed.

There are a few stats I feel the need to check on the issue results site to help me make decisions (due to their implementation in this game):

Business Subsidization – If this stat goes up, it’s usually the right pick for economic issues.
Defense Forces – Great for seeing if an issue improves defense and by how much.
Corruption – This often ties into warfare issues.

Despite its quirks, I think this is one of the best games ever made. If you can look past the simplified models (I only feel like the economic one is slightly over simplified), it’s an absolute blast to play!

Let me know what you think or if you’d like me to explain anything further!

[Idealand]

Thanks all, I guess time will tell how it all pans out.

Let me know what you think or if you’d like me to explain anything further!

Thank you, I may call on you later in the game if I get stuck or frustrated!

[Persicaria]

This is an interesting game, but its algorithm engine is obviously based on a US economics model and policy.

Whenever I introduce legislation to protect consumer or civil rights my economy tanks. This doesn't happen in real life outside of America. For example, when vehicle safety standards rise in Europe and Japan, domestic sales and exports rise. Also, people survive accidents, so continue to contribute to the economy.

Food safety is paramount in Europe, with many American foods banned, but according to this game my economy will suffer if I legislate for higher standards. The reality is those with lower food standards, like the US, can't export many of their products but those who do have higher standards have no export restrictions.

So, is it possible to move to a Rest of the World economic model instead of a US model? Otherwise I may as well have no safety legislation in order for my economy to grow.

The Economy stat is much simpler than you think it is. There are 2 things that make it go up, Business Subsidization and Economic Freedom. Lack of economic freedom makes it go down. So whenever you pick legislation that, in real world logic, would improve the economy, the game is simply thinking "economy control = economy go down".

Increasing either of those stats are a valid way to boost the economy, (see Midlands, has a high economy with high economic freedom and no taxes, and Despoticania, has a high economy with high business subsidization, immense taxes and negative economic freedom).

It's also possible to increase both. If you look closely, you'll notice that Midlands also has high business subsidization (how that works when it also has no taxes is unknown to me). Economy is honestly, fairly broken and easy to game, it's rare to see a nation with a bad economy unless they do it on purpose.

The Issues side of NS isn't meant to be a perfect recreation of real politics. It's mainly a form of loose roleplay. The economy works this way to allow both capitalist nations (who would use the Econ. Freedom strat) or socialist nations (who would use the Bus. Subsd. strat) to have good economies regardless of what would actually be realistic. This effect can similarly be seen in the way you can have a low crime rate by either boosting welfare or law enforcement.

[Idealand]

Thank you!

[New-Normandy]

I agree with everyone else that business subsidization is OP. I got to basket case to frightening economy in just under 3 months by spamming it, whilst retaining about negative 70-80 economic freedom.

Environmental regulations also seem to count towards that so if you see an issue saying "we need to tax businesses for hurting the environment" or something similar I always go for that.

[The Galactic Empire of Zimbabwae2]

This is an interesting game, but its algorithm engine is obviously based on a US economics model and policy.

Whenever I introduce legislation to protect consumer or civil rights my economy tanks. This doesn't happen in real life outside of America. For example, when vehicle safety standards rise in Europe and Japan, domestic sales and exports rise. Also, people survive accidents, so continue to contribute to the economy.

Food safety is paramount in Europe, with many American foods banned, but according to this game my economy will suffer if I legislate for higher standards. The reality is those with lower food standards, like the US, can't export many of their products but those who do have higher standards have no export restrictions.

So, is it possible to move to a Rest of the World economic model instead of a US model? Otherwise I may as well have no safety legislation in order for my economy to grow.

The Economy stat is much simpler than you think it is. There are 2 things that make it go up, Business Subsidization and Economic Freedom. Lack of economic freedom makes it go down. So whenever you pick legislation that, in real world logic, would improve the economy, the game is simply thinking "economy control = economy go down".

Increasing either of those stats are a valid way to boost the economy, (see Midlands, has a high economy with high economic freedom and no taxes, and Despoticania, has a high economy with high business subsidization, immense taxes and negative economic freedom).

It's also possible to increase both. If you look closely, you'll notice that Midlands also has high business subsidization (how that works when it also has no taxes is unknown to me). Economy is honestly, fairly broken and easy to game, it's rare to see a nation with a bad economy unless they do it on purpose.

The Issues side of NS isn't meant to be a perfect recreation of real politics. It's mainly a form of loose roleplay. The economy works this way to allow both capitalist nations (who would use the Econ. Freedom strat) or socialist nations (who would use the Bus. Subsd. strat) to have good economies regardless of what would actually be realistic. This effect can similarly be seen in the way you can have a low crime rate by either boosting welfare or law enforcement.

That's interesting. I always wondered how a low crime nation without law enforcement worked. I never really got a clear explanation before. It was described to me as people weren't in poverty and had access to what they needed; but that's interesting that it's related to welfare/law enforcement more specifically or that economy is related to econ freedom/bus sub more specifically than what I had thought before.

We should sticky this somewhere tbh