UK Politics Simulator is a political career simulation. You don't manage a country from above - you live a political life from within it.
This isn't a god-game where you adjust policy sliders and watch numbers change. It's a simulation of what it actually feels like to build a career in British politics: the grind, the relationships, the trade-offs, the moments where everything you've built is suddenly on the line.
Think Football Manager, but for politics. That comparison isn't casual - it's the design north star.
The most memorable moments in UKPolSim aren't scripted. They emerge from systems interacting in ways that surprise even us.
When your closest ally quietly distances themselves the week before your leadership bid, that isn't a random event that's been authored. It's the relationship system responding to factional pressure, their ambition, your recent voting record, and a dozen other factors converging. Looking back, you'll see the signs were there - you just weren't paying attention.
This is the core design principle: data-driven systems, not scripts.
Every NPC has attributes that drive their behaviour. Every constituency has demographics that shape voting patterns. Every action you take ripples outward through reputation, relationships, and visibility. The simulation runs whether you're watching or not - and it remembers everything.
There are no pre-written storylines. Only data-driven systems complex enough that storylines emerge naturally. Your playthrough will generate political drama that no one has experienced in the same way before, because it arose from the unique combination of your decisions and the simulation's response.
The game is built on a simple question that's always at the forefront of the developer's mind: "Would this actually happen in UK politics?"
Institutions work like they actually work. Three-line whips have consequences. The 1922 Committee matters. PMQs is theatre with real stakes. Select committees build backbench power. The whips remember your voting record, and they trade favours.
People behave like people. NPCs have ideologies, ambitions, grudges, and memories. Someone you crossed in a selection battle doesn't forget. Relationships compound over time, for better and worse.
Progression feels earned. You start as a nobody joining your local branch. You attend meetings, deliver leaflets, build relationships, prove yourself. Eventually, you might be offered a candidacy - and the quality of that offer reflects the work you've done. Rush it, and you'll get a sacrifice seat (a candidacy in unwinnable territory, offered because the party needs a name on the ballot). Put in the time, and you'll get a real shot.
The UK is specific. This isn't generic politics with British names pasted on. Constituencies, councils and wards have real demographics, real voting histories, real local issues. The difference between a safe seat and a marginal shapes everything. The game feels British because it's built on real data and British political reality.
You play a person, not a party. You have goals, but the path to them is yours to navigate.
The game doesn't tell you what to do. It presents you with a political world and lets you decide how to operate within it. Want to be a loyal party soldier climbing the ministerial ladder? You can do that. Want to build an independent brand through select committee work and strategic rebellion? That's a valid path. Want to focus on your constituency and become a local institution? Also viable.
There's no single "correct" route. Different strategies work for different players in different circumstances. The simulation responds to what you actually do, not what some designer decided the "optimal" path should be.
This also means trade-offs are real. You cannot do everything. Time spent building your Westminster profile is time not spent in your constituency. Loyalty to leadership costs you independence. Every week, you're making choices about what matters most, and living with the consequences.
Political life is about managing scarce resources: time, attention, political capital, and goodwill. UKPolSim models this.
You can't do everything. Take on a branch role, and you'll have less capacity for other commitments. Maintain relationships with mentors, help with campaigns, attend events - each draws on your time and energy. Overcommit, and things start slipping. You miss opportunities. Relationships cool. Small mistakes compound. The game notices when you're stretched too thin, and so do the people around you.
The weekly rhythm forces prioritisation. You can't attend every event, respond to every email, nurture every relationship. Missing a key vote damages your standing with the whips. Missing a constituency surgery damages your local reputation. The game is fundamentally about deciding what matters most, right now, with imperfect information about what's coming next.
Reputation is multidimensional. Your standing with local party members is different from your standing with national leadership, which is different from your public profile, which is different from your relationship with the press. Building one might cost you another. A rebellious backbencher with a strong media profile occupies a very different political position than a loyal shadow minister with no public recognition.
These constraints aren't arbitrary difficulty - they're what make choices meaningful.
UKPolSim is designed to be played for hundreds of hours across multiple careers.
This isn't about content volume - it's about emergent replayability. Because stories arise from systems rather than scripts, every playthrough generates unique political drama. Your second career will face different challenges, meet different allies, navigate different crises. The simulation doesn't repeat itself.
Consequences compound. A decision in your first year as an MP might not matter until your tenth. Relationships built early become crucial later. Enemies made carelessly come back at the worst moments. The game rewards players who think long-term, and creates genuine tension between short-term survival and long-term positioning.
Failure doesn't end the game. Lost your seat? Political wilderness creates different opportunities. Scandal destroyed your ministerial career? The backbenches have their own power. Leadership bid collapsed? Some politicians rebuild, others find different paths to influence. Every setback opens different doors. There are no hard game-overs, only redirections.
This is a game where players tell each other stories about what happened in their playthroughs - not because anyone wrote those stories, but because the simulation created them.
UKPolSim is in active development and not yet released. This page describes the design philosophy guiding that development. Some features described here are fully implemented; others are in progress. The wiki will make this clear as we document specific systems.