RPGFit check
Is Shape of America: Episode One worth it for you?
We tell you who should skip it, too.
Play it if you…
Good fit- Players drawn to political stories who want to pursue a fictional presidential campaign.
- RPG fans who prefer negotiation, relationships and speeches over weapon combat.
- Players interested in nonlinear stories set against late-1990s U.S. events.
Skip it if you…
Saves you a refund- Players seeking action-oriented combat may find its verbal, turn-based confrontations too restrained.
- Those looking for open-ended character builds may find the described development centered on social skills.
- Players seeking a fantasy or historical setting outside late-1990s U.S. politics may prefer another setting.
Our take on Shape of America: Episode One
The political premise is paired with RPG conventions: speeches and arguments take the place of conventional fighting, while appointments and favors shape interactions. The available description emphasizes these systems but gives no detail on how broadly the political choices change the story.
What is Shape of America: Episode One?
This nonlinear, turn-based role-playing game follows a young aspiring politician in the United States during the late 1990s.
The story touches on the millennium bug, the internet boom and an approaching presidential election. Players build relationships, negotiate deals, give speeches and debate as they pursue the presidency. A calendar affects when characters can be met, while a favor system tracks whether they have received help. Character interactions use skills such as boasting, bargaining and flattery. Verbal confrontations use turn-based combat, with rhetorical techniques serving as the tools of argument. Speeches involve reading an audience’s political views and adapting what is said to them. The game uses retro-styled visuals associated with the 1990s.
How Shape of America: Episode One plays
- 01Calendar-based encounters
- Characters may only be available at particular times, so missing a meeting can close off that opportunity.
- 02Character favors
- People remember whether they were helped, and may return that assistance later.
- 03Rhetorical battles
- Turn-based confrontations use persuasive techniques instead of weapon-based combat.
- 04Audience-aware speeches
- Speeches call for adapting arguments to the political views of the audience.
Games like Shape of America: Episode One
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Phew Phew GamesFor:Action-RPG players who want political campaigning alongside nighttime combatSkip if:Players who want combat without a separate daytime election and team-management phase may stop at the campaign system.
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Shape of America: Episode One: platforms & release
Is Shape of America: Episode One worth it?
It is worth it if: players drawn to political stories who want to pursue a fictional presidential campaign. Skip it if: players seeking action-oriented combat may find its verbal, turn-based confrontations too restrained.
Where can I download Shape of America: Episode One?
Use the Download Now button on this page: it opens Shape of America: Episode One's store page, where you can choose how to get it.
What platforms is Shape of America: Episode One on?
Windows only.
