Economy: Product Nets 3/3

This post concentrates on alternative economies.  One option within the simulation will be to allow individuals to access more than one product net or economy.  There are two use profiles that can be imagined for this feature:  access to other city or world economies and introducing a criminal economy.


Access Cost and Control
This will use the existing product net model, with one additional variable.  This variable denotes the access cost for using the economy - this could be transport costs in the case of dealing with the economy of an adjacent city or a percentage mark-up if simulating some kind of black economy to represent the additional cost (or if a negative value, the discount).  The product properties such as frequency can be re-used to denote, for example, poorer quality products that are procured because they are cheaper.


Policies implemented by the player can also influence the access to these nets.  One can conceive of import tariffs to artificially increase costs, and the obvious influence of police in targeting suppliers and purchases from an economy specified to be illegal.


Effect on social model
Additional properties on products can be envisaged as influencing the social model within the simulation.  Supply of illegal weapons can influence crime rates, for example.  These additional properties can also be exploited by the "normal" product nets - buying our burger was a complicated process, but it could also lower a property called "health" in the purchasing population.


Again, it is worth emphasising that these nets can be as simple or as complicated as needed.  These additional nets and these additional properties will not be necessary to create a game, but can be used to tweak the behaviour of the game.  All part of the mad customisation kick!
The simulator will be able to cope with as many of these economies as desired, although some high internal limit will probably be placed for technical reasons.


Concluding remarks
We're at the stage where I could probably start coding the economic aspect of the simulation, which obviously centre on the available goods and services.  The economy is an essential part of the simulation and is likely to be at the centre of other models within the game pertaining to society, crime and urban development.  All these models will feed into each other in a complex way, producing an interesting challenge for the player as influences in one area have different effects on the development of the city.


I want to be sure there's enough time for the economic model to settle in, and to get feedback, before moving onto other models.  I know it's unlikely given how quiet you folks were and how quiet I've been of late, but I'll give you a day or so to get to me on here or by e-mail.


I'll also check that I've actually covered everything about the economic model that I meant to!


Next post will be one of a clarification post for any queries or suggestions I get, a graphics post where I talk front-end specifications or a post about the society model for WorldSim.


Happy New Year!


Fred