While this game is a little unrealistic, focusing American presidential campaigns on actual relevant issues, as a pure strategy game it has merit. The demo is the full game, but it ends on Week 12 of a 41 week campaign. Build awareness, give speeches, construct campaign headquarters, create ads, appear on TV shows, win endorsements, raise funds, and hire consultants, spin doctors, and smear merchants. The game does a very good job of giving you a lot of choices to make, while keeping the interface simple. It might take a couple of turns to figure out what's going on, but it's more than worth it, even if you aren't all that into politics.
The Political Machine Demo [Stardock]
