Congress: The Game Launched

Congress: The Game is live now.

For the next couple weeks I will be using the lame duck session to test the site some more.  When the data on govtrack.us updates for the next session, I will update the game's data set.

Once the data is updated for the new session, drafts for the 2013 session can begin. Teams will need to be set by midnight of January 3, 2013 (the day the 113th Congress convenes).  The first period of January 3-10 will go active then.  From then on each period will run from Sunday-Saturday and points will be assigned weekly.

This site will be a continuing work in progress as I try to teach myself more and more about web design and programming.  I have built what I have so far through hours and hours of YouTube videos and googling things.  I have some big goals for the site over the coming year and I hope to get them accomplished as soon as possible.

Some things on that list are:

• An open league where users will pick members weekly and be ranked against others who play the open league.  No draft would be used and people could have duplicate members.  It would just be a league to show who is the best at picking members for the week.
• The ability to view other players teams.  This would allow for people to see who is on the various teams and how they choose to play the game.  This seems crucial and is a top priority.
• Smoother mechanics.  The clunky mechanics of the site now stem from my lack of familiarity with coding.  I am working on this and hopefully subtle improvements will be implemented as I get them worked out.
• A more professional looking website.  I have not focused on aesthetics much in the build of the site.  I was more interested in getting the game working.  Now that I think it is working for the most part, it is time to start making it pretty.  This is another place where I have a lot to learn.
• More useful statistics and interfaces.  Currently, I can provide some information on the various members of congress, but not nearly enough to make informed decisions.  Hopefully soon I can have relevant statistics that lead to more effective drafts.

There are many other areas I hope to expand upon that are not listed as well.  Over time I hope for this project to grow and evolve into a engaging, stable, attractive game.

If there is ever an issue or you have a comment or a suggestion, just let me know.  You can leave a comment here, email me, or post something at me on facebook.   Thank you for reading this wall of text.

- Philip

TLDR - The site is up. It will get better.