Yesterday Steve Mathers posted a project on FairSoftware that looks pretty exciting: It’s a Facebook game called despots.

I asked Steve for some more info. The interview is below:

Alain: Tell us about your product and maybe where the idea came from, or why you think this is important

Steve: I’m an avid strategy gamer, and this game has been slowly coming into form over five years. Originally I envisaged it as a web application, but recently I came to realize that Facebook would be a perfect platform for it.

The setting for Despots is a fictional middle-ages world of many states or kingdoms. Each player plays a single character in that world. The central idea behind Despots- is that the players’ characters form the ruling elite of various states – the kings, courts, functionaries, generals, lords and ladies.

Player characters will be able to buy land, build armies, invest in businesses, collect taxes, command their underlings, spy on each other, and above all, conspire with one another via email.

So in a nutshell, I expect Despot to be a snake-pit of shifting alliances, intrigue, and skulduggery, both on an international level, as various states cooperate or compete to their best advantage, and also within each state itself, as individual player characters do the same on a personal level. It will be about strategy, diplomacy, and above all, trust.

Of course there is much more to it — suffice to say that the game is one that hasn’t been seen before.

Alain: What stage are you at – do you have code, specs?

Steve: The game is almost fully specced. There are some minor details awaiting further thought and/or play-testing, but all significant spec work is complete. There needs to be some tweaking now that the aim is the Facebook platform rather than a straight web app.

Alain: What help do you need now?

Steve: I need Facebook app developers and a 2-D graphical artist.

Alain: Tell us about yourself, what is your background?

Steve: I am a software developer with no time on my hands to do this concept justice!

Alain: What else will you need to succeed, or is there anything else that would make a difference for you?

Steve: I am unsure exactly how to monetize a Facebook application. I am hoping that someone with Facebook development experience will have a better idea.

Alain: Thank you!