Discuss this challenge in the GameDev Challenges forum: https://www.gamedev.net/forums/topic/706850-build-expand-and-manage-socially-challenge-is-now-live

It's time for another GameDev Challenge: The Build, Expand, and Manage (Socially) Challenge.

This challenge is to build a Management game with Social Elements.

This is a very broad challenge genre, so let's break that down.

What is a Management game?

The Construction and Management simulation genre is a type of game in which players build, expand, or manage fictional communities or projects with limited resources. Examples may include city-building games like Caesar, SimCity, or Dwarf Fortress; business games like Capitalism; empire games like Civilization; and others such as any “Tycoon” game on the market, even RTS games like Warcraft, Starcraft, Total Annihilation, Command and Conquer, and more could be considered Management games. More recent games may include the Anno series, Slime Rancher, Tropico 6, Prison Architect, Banished, Factorio, The Sims, Cities: Skylines, and RimWorld.

These games typically allow the player to build or put together elements toward some goal in a world of economic/resource constraints. For example, reach a population size while managing a budget and mitigating disasters, make the most money while building a fun theme park, etc.

Oftentimes Management games are single player, but this challenge is to include a Social Element. So what might that look like?

Social Elements

Social elements in gameplay can include a broad range of definitions, but at the core they demonstrate connectivity between in-game agents or multiple players (or both).

Some examples might include gameplay that encourages and awards cooperation between agents in the game, or even multiplayer - live, turn-based, or email. Maybe social elements incorporate a player's social media accounts (with the goal for the game to spread across a social network like a virus!). Ideas are endless here - be creative!

Challenge Requirements

Create a Management game that incorporates at least one social gameplay element.

The game must include:

• A menu to Start the game, Exit the game, and a way to return to the menu during gameplay
• Management game gameplay - build, expand, or manage a game world with economic constraints
• Social gameplay element - either through the gameplay itself or by incorporating other players / non-game entities
• Score system - minimum of one metric to determine whether the player's performance is good or bad. The metric must include the Social gameplay element in its calculation/heuristic.
• Audio: since this challenge's theme could be broadly interpreted, there is not an audio requirement. Bonus points for music and sound effects.
• Game may be in 2D or 3D
• Art assets must be original, free through a permissive license, or purchased
• Bonus:
  • A method for players to share their worlds/progress with others. Details on sharing options to be provided soon.
  • A GameDev.net easter egg.

Dates

The official Challenge period begins on May 4, 2020 and ends on July 3, 2020 at 11:59pm IDL.

Submission

To qualify for awards, you will need to submit through the GameDev.net Challenge system, which requires:

• Selecting your Participation in this Challenge
• Announcing your completion in the GameDev Challenge forum
• Your entry submitted as a GameDev Project
• Screenshots in the GameDev Project and/or Portfolio
• A Post-mortem in a GameDev Blog - share what went right, what went wrong, or share a nifty trick
• Sharing source code is encouraged but not required (GitHub repo, zip download, etc)

Challenge Award

Participants who complete the challenge will receive:

• 1,000 Pixels
• Mentions in the GameDev.net Bits & Bytes newsletter (sent to 50,000+ fellow GameDev.net members)
• The Management Challenge Badge