I've watched a couple seasons of the premium TV series Spartacus. Specifically, Gods Of The Arena and Blood ans Sand. While watching the series, there was always a thought I could never get out of my head: I want to play a game where I am the Dominus of a gladiator ludus in ancient Rome.
I was shocked that no such game exists. Perhaps this is reflective of how much of an outlier my personal preference is. Nevertheless, I think it would be a neat concept to put in a game, focused heavily on the management aspect and less on player intervention.
I envision such a game as a simulator of sorts, either turn based or real-time. At the start of the game, the player would fall into a inheritance after the untimely death of their parents. Rather than take up the mantle of the player's father in whatever trade he excelled at, the player would instead sell the family estate and use the proceeds to start a ludus, intent on gaining prominence and station in the Roman empire by training gladiators. Your first task would be to purchase land and an estate, then add sections to your ludus where your gladiators can train, eat, sleep, and recover from injury. Additionally, the estate would need facilities that can prepare food for you, your family, your staff and your slaves, living quarters, and the means to entertain prominent guests.
The player can macro and micromanage as much as they like, either tending to daily needs of the ludus and estate himself, or leaving certain tasks in the hands of paid servants or owned slaves, allowing them more time to tend to more important business matters. Of course, the nitty-gritty of the game centers around the gladiators themselves, and where the most interaction would take place is in the training of gladiators. From the purchasing of slaves/indenturing of servitude to destitute Romans, to hiring a Doktore to oversee their training, to planning out a daily training regimen, and finally at the end of each week, sending your best and most able gladiators to fight in the Arena. The dynamics of the game would also be very diverse, as not all slaves are created equal. When purchased, all slaves are more or less equal, but if the player has particularly experienced Doktore, they can advise the player about the potential of slaves at market.
"This one is too expensive: He/she has all the makings of a great fighter but is too old, and would last no more than five seasons."
"This one is a bargain! I know he/she looks like a bleating lamb now, but after two seasons of training, he/she shall become a great champion!"
"I can have him/her ready to fight by the end of the month, and he/she shall bring glory to the ludus. He/she is worth the high price being asked."
Over the course of the week, the players gladiators would train and improve their skills. But the Dominus would be tasked with ensuring their needs are met. They need to be fed and have their injuries tended to. Sometimes an injury during practice may be severe and force them to rest for a period, missing out on arena matches and potential income. At week's end, if the player has earned enough prominence, they can send a number of gladiators to fight in the games, They would compete in the lowly matches at first, with the hope of winning and earning the favour of the crowd in order to increase prominence and compete in more prestigious matches in the coming weeks, until eventually the players gladiators earn the right to fight in the Primus, the headline fight of the week. Each gladiator that wins in the arena earns favour and confidence, which can improve the effects of their training. Each gladiator that loses in the arena could potentially be killed permanently if the crowd decides they are not worthy of life, which could be devastating particularly if said gladiator is one of the players most potential gladiators with a considerable investment placed on them.
As gladiators earn more and more prominence, it becomes harder and harder to keep them happy. Gladiators that win many matches may demand special favours. Things like their own private sleeping quarters, wine, supervised time outside of the ludus, or a day with a prostitute. Fail to see to these base needs could earn resentment and inspire the gladiator to lead the others in a revolt against the player.
While combat is an essential part of training gladiators, the game would not involve any player interaction in the arena. At no point would you take control of your gladiator and button-mash your opponent to death. The player, as the Dominus, would instead watch from the stands as the AI controls their champion for them.
Other aspects of the game would be similar to the management of a professional sports team. The player could have the opportunity to trade/buy/sell gladiators with another ludus, for example. The player could also have the opportunity to use bribes to fix the outcomes of matches, or use stealthy agents to injure an opponents gladiator before the match in order to give their own gladiator an unfair advantage (or to ensure their own gladiators are protected from other Dominae trying to give their gladiators an advantage). Some fights -- with advance warning -- would pit the player's best gladiator against an opponent they have absolutely no hope of defeating, and the only way to ensure their champion comes out alive is to shower that particular week's patron with tributes and parties in order to win their favour, such that when your champion is ultimately defeated in the arena, the patron of the games gives the thumbs-up sign allowing them to live rather than be killed off forever.
The ultimate goal of the game would be to rise in prominence from a small ludus in a small town, to one of the larger city-states of the empire, and finally onto the Roman senate itself, and ultimately have a Colosseum built in your honour.
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