Hey all, question.

I absolutely love political sandbox/city simulation style games. It's something I've loved ever since I GM'd Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition. I love deal making, networking, I love projects and schemes and plots, and I love my players monopolizing more and more of the city's power structures for themselves.

But this is sort of weird, since this isn't a game I see run very often. Critical Role, NotAnotherDNDPodcast, these all zoom in super hard on the players and their actions, whereas I like my games to be much more about the reactions to the players. I want my players to start a new business and see the effects it has on the city as a whole, for me it's never just about the players but the reverberations of their actions felt throughout the city. Even as they fight the leader of a gang in a crazy explosive fight, the camera will always show the effects this has on the setting for sessions to come.

But the thing is, I'm sort of out of my wheelhouse with this. As I've mentioned, most things I've seen don't really focus on this sort of thing which makes me feel like I could do a lot better if I had more exposure to it.

Does anyone have any advice on running political sim/sandbox style games? General tips as a GM, genre advice, etc. I've heard good things about Blades in the Dark as well, but haven't read it yet. I'd also love any actual plays centered around these sorts of things.