So, I was thinking of running an RTD that was based off Paranoia. However, I was thinking that it would be interesting to do an RTD that is focused on a subject other then violence, so I decided to mix it with a bit of Papers Please. But communism's pretty done, so I decided that a little bit of Brazil (The film, not the country) might help the mix.
You live in an incredibly paranoid, very twisted version of post 9/11 America. Except it's not really America, but the Liberty Federation. However, you don't play as the psychotic enforcers of the insane law, nor do you play as the fascistic stormtroopers of this nation. Instead, you play as a paper pusher working for the Department of Supply & Information. Your job is to handle the requests for supply/information and obey the various objectives given by your superiors (Such as "Deny all requests for information on trains" or "Requesting assault rifles is now against the law, give the illegal stamp to all requests for them"). However, making things more complicated is two factors. One, your fellow workers are probably terrorists. In fact, you probably are as well, you dirty terrorist. Two, the system is so bloated and inefficient it's an uphill battle doing pretty much anything. This is going to be difficult.
One of the differences from Paranoia is that no-one is actually a terrorist. At least, at the start. However, as the game continues on, you will get contacted by various groups against the government. This is in a PM, so other players don't know about it. They will issue you an objective like "approve this request" or "steal this item". You can ignore it if you wish. However, if you accept it, then you get a free item on the black market. These items will actually make your job much easier. The objectives are dangerous and the mere act of acceptance treasonous, but the rewards are great.
So, what do you guys think? Think it could work? The reason I posted it here and not the idea repository (I'll post it there in a moment) is that I actually do need a few tips on the game mechanics. Should I have skills or not? Since the main things would be in paperwork and subterfuge, skills might be superfluous but they could come in handy.
I also had an idea where the players actually have to fill out the paperwork themselves. Thus, if they want to order a pistol, they're going to have to fill out the request form. Could that work or it would it be too tedious? I imagine the tedium could be avoided if the main parts of the forms were not just names and addresses, but why exactly you're ordering the item and various questions about what you're going to use it for.