Summary
Power fantasies have always been a big part of video games. Games likeDoom,Grand Theft Auto, andYakuzahave been selling players on the dream of being able to punch, shoot, explode,and occasionally karaoketheir way to the top of the pecking order with outrageous sales records of success. But when it comes to the ultimate power fantasy, one job blows everyone else out of the water: the leader of the free world.
Although being the President of the United States is a different power fantasy to carjacking, fighting dragons, and general gun-gameplay, it’s still a power befitting to players that they would otherwise lack outside the virtual space, so it’s time to look at some games that let players become the U.S. President.
Updated on July 08, 2025 by Mark Sammut:The specs have been added for every included game.
While players won’t get much political action after the opening act,Saints Row 4slaps two major pieces of legislation across the boss' desk with all the little political capital that a party formed explicitly around a gang leader can muster: curing cancer or ending world hunger. However, after that, aliens invade, and the political decisions are reduced to “AK” or “grenade.”
Sants Row 4probably takes the spot as the most fantastical depiction of a United States president, complete witha unique character creator, and the fact that this is the first time audiences see a commander-in-chief personally grab onto an in-flight giant rocket and start firing explosives at a spaceship.
To be honest, few players are likely to be interested in playing a geopolitical simulator from 1993, butShadow Presidentwas an impressive release for its era. As well as permitting things like invading Canada or plotting coups in South America, Shadow Presidents also have to worry about managing perception, winning tickets at the ballot box, and balancing the budget.
The future of this alternate reality United States can get wacky depending on the decisions the president makes, including the advent of cyberpunk tech or even world peace!
For anyone who ever wanted to hear JFK yell, “Need some beans for the chowder here!” while reloading back-to-back with Fidel Castro, Richard Nixon, and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara over the ever-encroaching noise ofblood-gurgling moans of zombies,Call of Duty: Black Opshas a secret zombies map named “Five.”
Players won’t be taking round after round of policy debate with tricky political opponents, but instead, they and their three friends will take on wave after wave of zombies with pistols, shotguns, and demonic cymbal-playing wind-up monkeys. It might not be very presidential in the traditional sense, but it hits the mark given that every line out of JFK’s mouth sounds like a riveting speech.
Here’s a game that doesn’t just let players choose the politics, but the time and place. The political sandbox inSupreme Ruler Ultimateoffers players the chance to wage war, race to Mars in the second great space race, or shift the country’s capital from DC to Alaska.
Players can challenge themselves by trying to turn 1950s Sweden into the NAP-abiding, an-cap dystopia of their dreams, or they can try their hand at repainting the Whitehouse withSoviet-appropriate-erared paints. The best way to play this RTS game is to just jump into sandbox mode and pursue a personal goal.
Supreme Ruler Ultimateallows players to take charge of most nations, so the focus is not just on the United States.
Metal Wolf Chaosis a wildly ambitious interpretation of the American political process from the point of view of someone who enjoysawesome mech animes, where policymaking is seconds to mecha-combat.
There isn’t much policymaking to be had inMetal Wolf Chaos, but there’s plenty of rad, bad, giant-mech-clad action from start to end. If only civic action took place in the same way as depicted in the game. There wouldn’t be much of a country left, but it would certainly be quite a spectacle.
The fan base ofSuperPower 2is a notoriously tight-knit one, which means there’s still a good chance of finding someone else to play in multiplayer mode despite the game’s age. However, even for players who prefer a purely single-player experience, the game’s incredible AI does a fantastic job of learning and changing behaviors between world leaders, making for a challenging but always surprising playthrough.
This makes it more or less fun to target other countries' economies, liberalize their natural resources, or straight-up blow up their bases, depending on the player’s sympathies (or lack thereof).SuperPower 2gives players total freedom over what they can do throughout their term limit, including removing the term limit, instating a presidential monarchy, and declaring themselves the king of the sea.
Plenty of real presidents have made plenty of appearances in sports video games. However, not all of them were playable.In NBA Jam: On Fire, not only is the 44th POTUS playable, but Barack Obama also brings his A-game along with Joe Biden and Bill Clinton. Having famously installed a basketball court in his Whitehouse, this cameo is a no-brainer.
However, whether Clinton or Biden are also hotshots at shooting hoops is less clear.NBA Jam: On Firealso includes the 43rd POTUS, George W. Bush (who seems more like the type of president who enjoys golf than basketball, but his inclusion makes for a fitting rivalry nonetheless).
In most prez simulators, the player is presented with economic, geopolitical, or ethical questions. However, inThis Is The President, the player is told in no uncertain terms that the new POTUS' goal is entirely self-serving.
There are plenty of meaty policy options to wrangle with, as well as civic servants sharking the pools of the Oval Office to contend with, appease, or crush.This Is The Presidentappeals to those with a nihilistic view of politics, or at least those with ableak sense of humor. In that sense, it might be the most realistic simulator on the market.
Civilization 6starts players off during the founding year of the United States of America, 4,000 BC. The game is an alternative take on history since it’s doubtful that figures like Gandhi could possess nuclear warheads. Regardless, players must bring America to its full glory or watch as the empire falls apart.
The term limits inCivilization 6are a little longer than in reality, capped at around 6,000 years (give or take a thermonuclear apocalypse). But for big fans of Theodor “Teddy” Roosevelt, good-old honest Abe Lincoln, or players who like working towardsspectacular cultural victories,Civ 6might be the perfect presidential fix.
The latest game in a series of surprisingly addictive spreadsheet-powered politics sims puts players in the shoes of a newly elected and faceless POTUS. Once elected into the highest office in the land, the player must ensure that all the country’s demographics are satisfied or risk being out-elected or assassinated.
There’s less emphasis on warfare inDemocracy 4and more on cold, complex policy. The interface doesn’t exactly scream “excitement,” but the game is deep enough to get even the cleanest political junkie playing all night.
