May 27th 2012, 15:09:02
There are different strategies that you can run which specialize in one type of production. The best strategies will specialize because you can take the most advantage of government bonuses. Basically the point of the game is to generate income with which you can purchase all of the things your country needs to survive. Once you've established a good foundation, net gainers will start to stockpile food so that they can sell it en masse near the end of the reset and buy a lot of military to increase their net worth.
A few basic strategies are:
Casher - you build enterprise zones and residences in order to generate cash directly. You then use the cash to buy military, tech, food, and oil if required. Cashers usually use a Republican government because they receive bonuses to population and per capita income.
Techer - you build research labs and research technology, which then you sell in order to generate money to buy food, military and oil if required. Techers usually play as a theocracy because they receive bonuses to build speed which means they don't need to spend as many turns building their land which in turn leads to more turns available for researching technology.
Oiler - you build oil rigs to produce oil which then you sell in order to generate money for food, military and technology. Most oilers use a fascist government to take advantage of the 75% oil production bonus.
Industrialist - you produce industrial complexes in order to produce military which then you sell in order to generate money for food, technology and oil if required. Indy's use a communist government to take advantage of the bonus to military production.
Farmer - you build farms to produce food which you del to generate money for tech, military, and oil if required. Farmers don't have a specific government that gives them a clear advantage. Some farmers will use a dictatorship or tyranny, especially if they are in an alliance that may be going to war during the current reset. Dictatorship gives bonus to military, meaning they don't need to buy and support as much military in order to receive the same defensive effectiveness. Tyranny's make military cheaper, and you gain more land when attacking. Attacks also spend only 1 turn which makes tyranny's a very popular government for countries that plan on going to war.
You can get a full summary of all the governments in game when you click on the Manage link and then Help Information on Government Types.
If you're new to the game I know this can be very confusing. I've been playing over 10 years and I'm still not sure if what I said up there is accurate. Your best bet is to join an alliance where you can learn from experienced players. Alliances also have a variety of different strategies, many of which give you turn-by-turn instructions on how to run your country the most efficient way. It's good for new players... or old bums like me who still don't understand how this game works.