The day you were 'chosen' you answered the following question, "If someone gave you 10B Yen (450M USD/45M CAD) and told you to improve Japan (The USA/Canada), how would you use it?" The person (AKA Mr. Outside) who asked the question gave you a phone that has some special abilities. From that moment on, you're a participant in 'the game'...
The Phone:
The phone is a unique looking cell phone. It has a large button in the middle that connects you to your concierge named 'Juiz', who can accomplish any request at a cost. The phone also enables you to look at all twelve participants request logs, the date/time of the request and the cost to fulfill that request. There is also a display that has twelve icons (roman numerals), one for each participant. The icons will change based on the status of the participant... blinking for new requests, darkened for participants erased from the game, etc. Finally, the phone has all the normal smart phone technology: can make calls, take pictures, send/receive messages and run custom apps.
Juiz:
Juiz is your concierge and she can be reached by using the phone. She can do almost anything you ask her to but it comes at a cost and that cost is unknown at the time of making the request. She sounds like a pleasant woman at the other end of the phone and her demeanor seems to change based on the participant. If you're a dick to her she'll be less likely to fulfill your requests due to operational boundaries... but if you're reasonable she'll bend the rules just a bit. You can order her to kill other 'participants', but the other participants will be alerted of the request since they can see your phone logs... meaning participant kill attempts are extremely costly and highly unsuccessful.
The Supporter:
One of the twelve participants is tasked as the supporter. Their role isn't known to anyone except the man who gave you the phones. The supporter is charged with the responsibility of killing any participant which violates the rules.
The Rules:
1) You can't act in self-interest. If you start spending all the money on making your life better by buying nice cars, clothes, properties or whatever else, you will be killed by the supporter.
2) You can't be inactive for a prolonged period of time... although, 'prolonged' isn't defined, if you violate this rule you will be killed by the supporter.
3) If you run out of funds before the end of the game then you will be killed by the supporter. The time the game ends is only known by Mr. Outside.
4) Your funds are your funds. You can't transfer your funds to another participant... nor can you steal another participants phone and use it as your own.
5) At the start of the game you're told there can only be one winner. Anyone who didn't win will be killed.
So what would you do with $450M USD if you were told to make the United States of America better? (Canadians, you guys only get about $45M CAD to make Canada better since you have a smaller population... I didn't do an exact scaling so if you want to correct the figures then go ahead)
This is all based on an anime called
'Eden of the East', where seemingly random people were forced to play this game. They were each given a phone with 10B Yen, but I decided to scale the USD/CAD amounts with the population changes.
Some of the methods of 'saving' Japan in the show:
Spoiler (highlight to view):
* Tracking down and murdering male rapists
* Creating a hospital for the elderly which uses them as subjects for experimental drugs which are suspected to cure a number of diseases which affect the elderly
* Launching a terrorist attack against Japan in hopes to unify the Japanese (like the USA in the days after 9/11)
* Thwarting said terrorist attacks to save hundreds of thousands of people
* Giving the unemployed a chance at success
* Overthrowing the existing government and replacing it with a larger, authoritative government which reduces citizens freedoms
* Using the phone to help solve crimes; uses the phone to deal justice without the legal system