Common Wealth

A Marxist-inspired historical simulation game where you build a primitive communist society and progress through historical stages to defeat capitalism

Overview

Common Wealth is a sophisticated society simulation game built with Godot Engine that implements authentic Marxist principles through interactive gameplay. Starting in a primitive communist society, you'll guide your community through the stages of historical development, ultimately confronting capitalism as the final challenge.

Core Philosophy

• Collective Ownership: All resources and means of production belong to the community
• Needs-Based Allocation: Resources distributed according to individual requirements
• From Each According to Ability: All capable adults contribute labor based on their skills
• Historical Materialism: Progress through Marxist historical stages
• Worker Autonomy: Individuals choose tasks based on community needs and personal preferences

Game Features

🏛️ Society Management

• Individual-Based Population: Each person has unique attributes, skills, and needs
• Worker-Driven Task Selection: Autonomous workers choose tasks based on community requirements
• Collective Decision-Making: Community determines production priorities collectively
• Social Relationships: Bond formation and socialization systems

⚙️ Economic Systems

• Resource Production: Collective production with no private property
• Needs-Based Distribution: Direct allocation without market mechanisms
• Labor Theory of Value: Task durations reflect socially necessary labor time
• Sustainable Metabolism: Balanced relationship with environmental resources

🌍 Historical Progression

• Primitive Communism: Classless society with collective production
• Historical Stages: Progress through Marxist historical development
• Final Confrontation: Defeat capitalism as the ultimate challenge
• Dialectical Development: Contradictions drive historical progress

🎮 Technical Architecture

• Signal-Based Communication: Loose coupling through event-driven design
• Modular Systems: Independent systems with well-defined interfaces
• Scene-Based UI: Modern Godot development with visual editing
• Unified Task Management: Centralized task lifecycle and automatic creation

Project Status

Current Phase: Documentation & Design Complete ✅ Implementation Status: Ready for Development Game Engine: Godot Engine (planned)

Documentation

Quick Start

1. Understand the Philosophy: Read docs/system_documentation/15_philosophical_foundations.md
2. Explore Architecture: Review docs/system_documentation/00_system_architecture.md
3. Development Patterns: Study docs/system_documentation/development_patterns.md

Complete Documentation

All system documentation is available in the docs/system_documentation/ directory:

• Core Systems: GameManager, TimeSystem, PopulationSystem, ResourceSystem
• Labor & Tasks: LaborSystem, WorkerChoiceSystem, ConditionalTaskSystem
• Environment: WeatherSystem, NatureSystem, Ecological Dynamics
• UI Systems: Population management, resource tracking, scheduling
• Data Systems: Task types, resource definitions, item economy

Development Guide

See AGENTS.md for comprehensive development workflow, essential commands, and implementation priorities.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Godot Engine 4.x (planned)
• Basic understanding of Marxist theory (recommended)

Project Structure

├── docs/                    # Complete system documentation
│   ├── system_documentation/ # All game systems documented
│   ├── marxist_framework.md  # Philosophical foundations
│   └── marxist_sources.md    # Source material references
├── AGENTS.md                # Development guide and commands
└── README.md               # This file

Development Roadmap

Phase 1: Core Systems

1. Set up Godot project structure
2. Implement GameManagerV2
3. Create TimeSystemV2
4. Build ResourceSystem
5. Develop PopulationSystemV2

Phase 2: Gameplay Systems

1. Implement LaborSystemV2
2. Create WorkerChoiceSystem
3. Build ConditionalTaskSystem
4. Add PersonalTaskSystem
5. Implement EventLog

Phase 3: UI & Polish

1. Create main UI scenes
2. Implement population management UI
3. Add resource tracking UI
4. Polish user experience

Key Design Principles

Marxist Foundation

• Historical Materialism: Economic base determines social relations
• Dialectical Materialism: Contradiction as driving force of development
• Labor Theory of Value: Socially necessary labor time
• Species-Being: Human nature realized through creative labor

Technical Excellence

• Signal-Driven Architecture: Loose coupling between systems
• Single Responsibility: Each system has clear, focused purpose
• Scene-Based Development: Modern Godot best practices
• Comprehensive Testing: Unit and integration test coverage

Contributing

When contributing to Common Wealth:

1. Read relevant documentation before making changes
2. Follow established patterns from existing systems
3. Test system interactions thoroughly
4. Update documentation when adding new features
5. Maintain Marxist principles in all design decisions

License

This project is developed as an educational and philosophical exploration of Marxist principles through interactive simulation.

Acknowledgments

• Marxist Philosophy: Based on the works of Marx, Engels, and Lenin
• Historical Materialism: Implementation of Marxist historical development theory
• Godot Engine: Open-source game development platform

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Common Wealth represents a serious attempt to implement Marxist philosophical principles in interactive form, providing players with an experiential understanding of primitive communist social organization and historical development.