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So glad to see the ePH population booming again. Great job to all! Let us all work for the glory of ePH.
Anyway, it's been a while since I published a profound article about my thoughts and insights about the world of e-Sim. Been quite busy with real stuff and all. For this one, I chose to dichotomize e-Sim politics and Real life politics. Take note that this article only aims to entertain and provide an amusing comparison of e-Sim and the real world.
Here goes!
1. The real world is anarchic. In e-Sim, we have game mods.
If your a subscriber of realism, you sure know what I mean. While e-Sim has game mods to settle disputes, make rules, punish misbehavior and all, realists believe that the real world is in a constant state of anarchy: meaning there's no governing body to oversee and regulate the action of different nations. Hence, you can say that the real world is more volatile than e-Sim.
But why does it seem like there are more wars in e-Sim than in real world? Because...
2. e-Sim is a game. Real life isn't.
e-Sim is a competitive geo-political game about strength and dominance. You conquer an entire nation, you win. And soldiers here are [kind of] immortal so there's the absence of anxiety and fear of getting butchered or snipered on the head.
In real wars, however, nations act rationally. They don't go to war instinctively just because the citizens are bored. Also if you decide to join a war, you can die in a blink of an eye.
3. In real life, the goal is peace. In e-Sim, it's war.
This is somehow related to the second item. As a game, wars are imperative for a nation in e-Sim, unless you want your players to go inactive. Hence, there's this constant pressure on e-leaders to find opportunities of war rather than settle for peace.
In real-life, however, nations want to exist in a state of peace, that is, as much as possible. Gone are the days when colonization, or getting as much land and resources as you could, is the only rule of the land and superpowers scramble for colonies. Nowadays, you're a happy country if you have a piece of land and loadshiz of oil (Bahrain, et. al).
4. In e-Sim domestic politics, there's no rule of law. In real-life, we're sick of them.
The funny thing about e-Sim and RL is that the real anarchy in this game is found within the country's domestic realms. In ePH for example, if the government passes a "special" law, there's no assurance that the citizens will follow it because there's no mechanism to implement the legislation and sanction rule-breakers. It's dog eat dog.
Real-life, on the other hand, is just full of rules and regulations. Heck, our lawmakers even want to regulate the Internet by allowing the passage of a law on cybercrime. It's sickening, really. Civil rights above all!
5. There's no such thing as 'globalization' in e-Sim in terms of economics.
While the forging of alliances can be considered a form of 'political' globalization since there's the theme of interdependence among nations, the same cannot be said in the field of economics.
In real life, the world economy is very much integrated. We get our oil from the Middle East, labor from people-rich countries like the Philippines, electronics from Japan and South Korea, coffee from Indonesia, and so on.
But in e-Sim, a country's economy pretty much depends on how many companies there are in its territories and how many consumers it has. There can never be free trade agreements between ePH and eINA, or an eWorld Trade Ogranization, etc. Sure, companies can sell their products from one country to another but that's just it.
This is why I have always been a champion of free trade and a liberalistic economy on e-Sim: there's a little opportunity to earn revenues, why not take advantage of those existing? But then again, e-Sim is a game of war, not of earning money.
6. In real life, resources are scarce. In e-Sim, they are unlimited.
This is one of the most crucial disntinction between real life and e-Sim, at least for me. In real life, conflicts are fueled by the fact that it's a material world we live in and everything in it is limited.
But if resources are unlimited in e-Sim, why are there still wars? Two things: glory and boredom.
7. In e-Sim, there are no natural disasters. In real-life, the Philippines is tired of them.
Typhoon Yolanda, anyone?
8. In e-Sim, the Philippines is a major power. In real life, we're really going to the dogs.
Let's face it, eFilipinos: our government is where rotting corpses came to die. And for as long as they rule, we can never be the Philippines we once were during the 60s: a country second only to Japan as the wealthiest in Asia. We've got many issues but corruption is the heart of them all.
Playing e-Sim though, I found a glimmer of hope. It's happy to see the youth (since most players here are young) clamor for good governance. This, for me, is a sign of hope that not all is lost for the real-life Philippines. That, in the coming future, if only we can set aside our personal agenda and ulterior motives, we can propel this once beautiful country into majesty once again.
Thank you for reading! Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!
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A message from a businessman (12 years ago)
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About the game:
USA as a world power? In E-Sim it is possible!
In E-Sim we have a huge, living world, which is a mirror copy of the Earth. Well, maybe not completely mirrored, because the balance of power in this virtual world looks a bit different than in real life. In E-Sim, USA does not have to be a world superpower, It can be efficiently managed as a much smaller country that has entrepreneurial citizens that support it's foundation. Everything depends on the players themselves and how they decide to shape the political map of the game.
Work for the good of your country and see it rise to an empire.
Activities in this game are divided into several modules. First is the economy as a citizen in a country of your choice you must work to earn money, which you will get to spend for example, on food or purchase of weapons which are critical for your progress as a fighter. You will work in either private companies which are owned by players or government companies which are owned by the state. After progressing in the game you will finally get the opportunity to set up your own business and hire other players. If it prospers, we can even change it into a joint-stock company and enter the stock market and get even more money in this way.
In E-Sim, international wars are nothing out of the ordinary.
Become an influential politician.
The second module is a politics. Just like in real life politics in E-Sim are an extremely powerful tool that can be used for your own purposes. From time to time there are elections in the game in which you will not only vote, but also have the ability to run for the head of the party you're in. You can also apply for congress, where once elected you will be given the right to vote on laws proposed by your fellow congress members or your president and propose laws yourself. Voting on laws is important for your country as it can shape the lives of those around you. You can also try to become the head of a given party, and even take part in presidential elections and decide on the shape of the foreign policy of a given state (for example, who to declare war on). Career in politics is obviously not easy and in order to succeed in it, you have to have a good plan and compete for the votes of voters.
You can go bankrupt or become a rich man while playing the stock market.
The international war.
The last and probably the most important module is military. In E-Sim, countries are constantly fighting each other for control over territories which in return grant them access to more valuable raw materials. For this purpose, they form alliances, they fight international wars, but they also have to deal with, for example, uprisings in conquered countries or civil wars, which may explode on their territory. You can also take part in these clashes, although you are also given the opportunity to lead a life as a pacifist who focuses on other activities in the game (for example, running a successful newspaper or selling products).
At the auction you can sell or buy your dream inventory.
E-Sim is a unique browser game. It's creators ensured realistic representation of the mechanisms present in the real world and gave all power to the players who shape the image of the virtual Earth according to their own. So come and join them and help your country achieve its full potential.
Invest, produce and sell - be an entrepreneur in E-Sim.
Take part in numerous events for the E-Sim community.
