Tropico - further thoughts
Interesting to try to use the Cold War power politics to advance development. Frankly, the Russian aid is immediately useful (Tenement half-cost), whilst the US aid (airport half-cost) needs to be timed after a lot of tourism has already been developed...and one has a lot of spare labor (they get to quite a lot of tree clearance before they even break ground on the airfield).
Missing elements (which may have been addressed in subsequent sequels):
1. Narco-trafficking: depots and processing (including smugglers, packers, warehouses), as well as growth/generation (cultivate illegal yields; build meth-labs - at least as polluting as a mine) ... plus all the international DEA/religious faction disapproval/black marketeer elements that invites.
2. To the credit of the existing game, it has cheap jewelry factories as an option - but it lacks cheap textiles, weaving, or basketry factories.
3. One idea I've thought over is the opportunity for black markets to develop, and how Tropico's dictator deals with it. In the same way that Tropicans will build shacks in the absence of proper housing, perhaps Tropicans should build crude food service and retail shacks ... which in the continued absence of a proper pub/market/etc. might develop into one of those larger versions (in the presence of a Capitalist faction leader, for example). The upside: market forces express themselves; the downside: as with the shacks, Tropico's Dear Leader should not be able to collect rent on the developed structure.
As a corollary, it might be interesting to see what might happen if the dictator labels the successful black marketeer a Heretic and perhaps nationalises their property (another use for Police forces, or the Military). ;-)
4. Overt prostitution. It's suggested with the Cabarets (and I still haven't built Casinos, so I don't know if that is better modelled), but not particularly overt. It might be interesting to have state-sponsored prostitution on Tropico, with the hell-and-damnation results in the Religious faction, as well as Women Everywhere.
5. A city dump. Most 3rd World settlements will have a neighbourhood corner, abandoned lot, ravine, or town edge that serves the purpose. There should be similar unsightly things properly modelled in the game, with the option of building a proper landfill. Subsequent development might allow for scrap recycling.
6. Piracy. Areas of the island beyond government control might make particularly lucrative Smugglers' Coves - and begin to experience their own independent development. Bringing these areas under government control (via propaganda, development, or indirect conquest^) might be a fun game challenge.
^e.g. Be able to hire up an invading army, send a Che Guevara-type communist cadre to stir revolution in their ranks, produce a strong religious appeal to the cove's inhabitants, build a clinic or other critical infrastructure that improves the lives of cove dwellers to bring them under Tropican control.
7. The Intellectuals faction complains when there isn't enough education (especially College) to keep Tropicans on their home island. Likewise, there are authoritarian measures that can expel large numbers of natives abroad. In either event, there could be a silver lining in that cloud - in the form of overseas workers sending money home. Naturally, El Presidente will take his cut for Tropico. This should be modelled.
8. Bottling plant - Tropico might be blessed with abundant clean water (until El Presidente builds a mine at the spring source), which may make for a useful regional soda bottling plant. Perhaps a tertiary investment after bauxite mining, or rum distilling is well ensconced? I like the idea of being able to get to that more directly, making use of indigenous corn or sugar resources ... and perhaps sand for glassworks.
9. Fish Fight! Either as a corollary to piracy and a fishing dispute between Tropico and its neighbours; or uppity environmentalists complaining about dying dolphins from the annual tuna harvest - these might be interest challenge elements to introduce to the game.
Missing elements (which may have been addressed in subsequent sequels):
1. Narco-trafficking: depots and processing (including smugglers, packers, warehouses), as well as growth/generation (cultivate illegal yields; build meth-labs - at least as polluting as a mine) ... plus all the international DEA/religious faction disapproval/black marketeer elements that invites.
2. To the credit of the existing game, it has cheap jewelry factories as an option - but it lacks cheap textiles, weaving, or basketry factories.
3. One idea I've thought over is the opportunity for black markets to develop, and how Tropico's dictator deals with it. In the same way that Tropicans will build shacks in the absence of proper housing, perhaps Tropicans should build crude food service and retail shacks ... which in the continued absence of a proper pub/market/etc. might develop into one of those larger versions (in the presence of a Capitalist faction leader, for example). The upside: market forces express themselves; the downside: as with the shacks, Tropico's Dear Leader should not be able to collect rent on the developed structure.
As a corollary, it might be interesting to see what might happen if the dictator labels the successful black marketeer a Heretic and perhaps nationalises their property (another use for Police forces, or the Military). ;-)
4. Overt prostitution. It's suggested with the Cabarets (and I still haven't built Casinos, so I don't know if that is better modelled), but not particularly overt. It might be interesting to have state-sponsored prostitution on Tropico, with the hell-and-damnation results in the Religious faction, as well as Women Everywhere.
5. A city dump. Most 3rd World settlements will have a neighbourhood corner, abandoned lot, ravine, or town edge that serves the purpose. There should be similar unsightly things properly modelled in the game, with the option of building a proper landfill. Subsequent development might allow for scrap recycling.
6. Piracy. Areas of the island beyond government control might make particularly lucrative Smugglers' Coves - and begin to experience their own independent development. Bringing these areas under government control (via propaganda, development, or indirect conquest^) might be a fun game challenge.
^e.g. Be able to hire up an invading army, send a Che Guevara-type communist cadre to stir revolution in their ranks, produce a strong religious appeal to the cove's inhabitants, build a clinic or other critical infrastructure that improves the lives of cove dwellers to bring them under Tropican control.
7. The Intellectuals faction complains when there isn't enough education (especially College) to keep Tropicans on their home island. Likewise, there are authoritarian measures that can expel large numbers of natives abroad. In either event, there could be a silver lining in that cloud - in the form of overseas workers sending money home. Naturally, El Presidente will take his cut for Tropico. This should be modelled.
8. Bottling plant - Tropico might be blessed with abundant clean water (until El Presidente builds a mine at the spring source), which may make for a useful regional soda bottling plant. Perhaps a tertiary investment after bauxite mining, or rum distilling is well ensconced? I like the idea of being able to get to that more directly, making use of indigenous corn or sugar resources ... and perhaps sand for glassworks.
9. Fish Fight! Either as a corollary to piracy and a fishing dispute between Tropico and its neighbours; or uppity environmentalists complaining about dying dolphins from the annual tuna harvest - these might be interest challenge elements to introduce to the game.