Hidden Agenda (1988 video game)
A political simulation of balancing factions in a fictional Central American nation.
In 1988, a strategy game called Hidden Agenda put players in the role of a newly elected president. The fictional nation of Chimerica had just overthrown a corrupt dictator named Farsante. The game simulates running a post-revolutionary Central American country. It is seen as an early influence on the Games for Change movement, along with other Macintosh titles like Chris Crawford's Balance of Power.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Trans Fiction Systems
- Publisher
- Springboard Software
- Writer
- Jim Gasperini
- Producer
- Ron Martinez
- Designer
- Gregory Guerin
- Jim Gasperini
- Ron Martinez
- Programmer
- Ron Martinez; Bill Herdle
- Artist
- Angela Greene
- Released
- 1988
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
The game opens with a press conference where the new president answers questions that determine which social class the administration will favor. Throughout the game, the player chooses whom to consult and makes decisions based on advisors' proposals, including cabinet ministers and representatives of various groups, while also studying press reports and an almanac of national statistics. The core challenge is balancing the interests of conflicting factions; excessive concessions to one side may lead to insurrection, and overreliance on a single faction risks a coup d'état. Chimerica's economy relies on two export crops: cotton, dominated by large landowners, and coffee, held by small to medium growers, while most food is produced by campesinos. With development aid, campesinos and farmers can receive help producing vegetables for the American market using mechanized techniques. The player can pursue a free-market approach supported by the United States or a collectivist approach backed by the Soviet Union and Cuba. Central to the game is appointing ministers from three main parties to four cabinet positions: Agriculture Minister (responsible for land reform and export commodities), Defense Minister (controls the Army), Internal Affairs Minister (budgetary policies like infrastructure and healthcare), and External Affairs Minister (manages diplomatic standing).
Development
Jim Gasperini designed and wrote the scenario for Hidden Agenda, with input from project consultant Eric Ehrmann. The scenario was implemented in text form, but the game featured an innovative graphical interface with naturalistic characters, settings, and digital video interstitials. Greg Guerin and Ron Martinez designed and implemented the narrative simulation system, and Martinez also designed the front end user experience, inventing one of the first implementations of digital video using frames grabbed from a hacked four-head VCR.
Reception
In 1989, Dragon magazine's reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars. Computer Gaming World praised it as a deep simulation but noted that parts, especially the individuals, could become predictable after several games. Compute! agreed on the simulation's depth but stated that characters never became stale despite not changing, while reporting technical issues such as the inability to restore saves when playing from floppy disk. In 1992, Chuck Moss wrote in Computer Gaming World that Hidden Agenda reflected extreme bias on the part of its designers and forced the player to become a Sandinista to survive. The Foreign Service Institute and University of Minnesota used the game to teach students, including U.S. Foreign Service officers assigned to Central America. Macworld reviewed the Macintosh version, praising its multifaceted simulation of diplomatic strategy and resource management and its excellent graphics, but criticized the inability to create one's own policy proposals and the repetition of some proposals even after acceptance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who developed Hidden Agenda (1988 video game)?
Hidden Agenda was developed by Trans Fiction Systems.
Who published Hidden Agenda (1988 video game)?
Hidden Agenda was published by Springboard Software.
What platforms is Hidden Agenda (1988 video game) available on?
Hidden Agenda was released for Classic Mac OS and MS-DOS.
Who designed Hidden Agenda (1988 video game)?
Hidden Agenda was designed by Gregory Guerin, Jim Gasperini and Ron Martinez.
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