eRepublik is a difficult game for review because of the frequent changes that are introduced by a team of administrators creating this product. If you read this text in two months time, it will probably be already out of date as many elements of the game may change. Is it good? We’ll tell later…
Wake up. It’s time for breakfast and then to work. After work we’ll go to the gym and there, under the guidance of a personal trainer, workout a bit. We go back home and collect an award for being a model citizen of our eCountry. Such a routine in the real world would lead many people mad. However, the possibility of falling into a double-clicking routine makes eRepublik a unique game, a game that it’s not so easy to forget.
The unfortunate beginnings
A child born into the world does not fully understands what is going on around him. He’s taken out of the safe belly of his mum and thrown into the deep waters of life, which he learns for several years. It’s the same in eRepublik. The first days are very difficult - the game is very complex and it appears that the discovery of many of its elements will take many months. Fortunately, the community living within our eCountry is very helpful. It’s the community that makes the New World such a wonderful place to live in. At the beginning, apart from the tutorial run by Plato, a Greek philosopher, we get the necessary support from senior players. Because everyone is aware that the eRepublik is not the easiest of games and if we want our eCountry to grow strong, we need as many people as we can.
To find a job, just visit the job market to find the best offer. We can work once a day and we gain a salary for our good work. The better employees we are, the more the employer appreciates us, as a result, we are better paid. With time, we can open our own business to recruit others and earn more. Such a move would require from us a lot of entrepreneurship skill and market knowledge. Many players have lost all their savings, due to having problems with running the company or ignoring the market.
Each player has also the duty to - in case of emergency - defend his country or to conquer other countries. A relevant Ministry ensures the proper conduct of the war, the choice of strategies and a number of other factors. The common player’s main task is to participate in the fight every day, according to the published orders. Focusing our attacks on the wrong fight we waste not only money, but also the chance to influence the fate of an important battle.
The deep waters of life in the New World
The initial development is based primarily on a model walking to work, through which we earn bread, and training, which is needed in order to be the most significant on the battlefield in the virtual war. With each day in the New World we learn more about the very interesting aspects of life. The game gives the community a huge leeway in terms of impact on the fate of the world. Players are a part of the government led by President appointing ministers keeping a hand on various factors of the country's development. Those representatives guard that the treasury would always be full of gold and our borders secured.
The career of a politician or a businessman is not the only option we have. We can also be the editors’ of our own newspapers and publish your articles read by the players. You only need to spend some money to start and have something to write about. And there are plenty of topics - from humorous satirical comic amusement in the service of the nation, through the analysis of all wars and economic issues, to the criticism of our mercifully reigning government. You can also join the battle groups, which jointly train and synchronize their attacks. They’re known for their enormous power of destruction and their impact on various battles. Often, the state invests in the training of members of various groups so that they can train in the most efficient way, and thus – to inflict more damage. Groups can also have their companies, the income from which is earmarked for the overall development.
Briefly - we have enormous opportunities and it’s not possible to describe them all in such a short text.
To make ends meet
The basic currency of the game is the national currency - different for each country. Just like in the real world, the odds are dynamic and depend on the situation in the country. The stronger the countries are, the more their money is worth. The currency shared by all, and also being the Premium currency, is Gold. We can purchase it with real money, but the game offers us many other ways to obtain it. With every next level we receive a certain number of gold that can be used in many different ways, for example on improving the efficiency of one’s work or training and developing his own business. Many people active on the military level and trying to create the most successful businesses invest real money in Gold, but the game does not force anyone to buy it. Average citizen simply does not have to. The average citizen can give his gold to charity or even sell it on the black market in the form of online auctions (but it’s against the rules!). During my two years of playing this game I didn’t feel like buying the gold and that's certainly a big plus.
Changes in some elements of the game are also worth mentioning. With the support of the community in the form of a number of ideas sent in a public forum, the creators have implicated a lot of "improvements". Sometimes, however, these amendments are really unnecessary and are a killjoy, including many who force people playing for several years to commit a virtual-suicide because of starvation. It has already happened that administrators made their changes, which deterred a large part of the community. The only solution was to restore the old practices. Therefore, frequent updates are difficult to clearly identify as a disadvantage or advantage. They just occur. Some worse, other better. Changes from the past several months can be also seen in screenshots, so I invite you to become acquainted with the gallery, which you can find in one of the tabs.
eRepublik is undoubtedly a game that you have to give a chance. Despite difficult beginnings, which every citizen of the New World must go through, we won’t say goodbye to this title for a long time. Even if we don’t have time or don’t feel life being active, we can drop by once a day to feed our citizen and work. Even if we let him die when we no longer desire to play – it’s no problem to make him come alive once again.
