Coming in 0.6.0: interactive work shifts

Hello everyone!

Work is getting its biggest upgrade yet. Until now, going to work meant clicking a button, watching a few hours disappear and finding some money in your pocket. In the next update, a shift is something you actually live through, hour by hour.

Every full hour rolls an event. Most are small moments: a coworker leaning on the counter, something going wrong in the building, a bystander who wants your attention. Others turn into little multi-step scenarios where your choices matter, and a few of them lean on your own skills to see how well you handle it.

The people in these events are real NPCs, not extras. They are cast from whoever is actually scheduled at your workplace at that hour, and the game looks at who they are before putting them in front of you: their traits, whether they find you attractive, whether they are your ex, your partner, etc...

And what happens at work does not stay at work. Every choice moves affection with the people involved, for better or worse. Be warm with a colleague and they will greet you differently tomorrow. Brush someone off, side with the boss against them, report them, and they will remember it long after the shift ends. You can walk out of a shift with a new phone number, with a coworker who suddenly likes you more than they did this morning, or with something that went a lot further than a conversation.

Every job now has a boss too, promoted from the crew, who answers for everyone and shows up when things get serious.

Work shifts can get serious: film an infraction and report it for Merits (civic reputation you can trade against your rent at the town hall), or push your luck and get written up yourself. Careers can actually end, yours included.

Hope this makes going to work feel like a part of the game instead of a button. Have a great day!