Classifieds & Put Yourself in the Game!

I've added a new page to the office UI called Classifieds. This page displays a collection of classified advertisements allowing the player to purchase upgrades and other goodies. Read on to see how you can get a bit of yourself in the game.

Why I'm Adding this?

Whilst Honcho is about driving and upgrading your kei truck, it's also a "rags to riches" story about building your vending machine empire. After adding the Engine Hoist and PC-8901 computer to the player's home garage, it began to feel like Keiko was starting with too many advantages. To reinforce the game’s scrappy beginnings, I've introduced the Classifieds system, letting Keiko roll up her sleeves and earn those upgrades herself.

How does it work?

Classifieds can be found in your home office. Once opened, a collection of advertisements are shown, separated by various flavour texts. The advertisements Keiko can interact with are broken into the following categories:

• Garage & Player Upgrades

  • A permanent quality-of-life upgrade that generally makes life easier for Keiko.

  • e.g. Engine Hoist, Power Tools, PC-8901.

  • One time purchase. Once installed to a Home Garage, the upgrade is applied to all other properties.

  • These are location specific, so Keiko must be in the appropriate town to complete them.

• Dynamic Sellers

  • Randomly generated sales of various items that the player can go collect.

  • e.g. Truck components, Paint, Repair Parts.

  • Adverts don't give a lot of information, but useful if you are desperate for a particular part.

  • Saves grinding routes

Once an advert has been selected for collection, Keiko must drive to the seller and complete the transaction.

I think it's nice to opt for a collection system over having purchases delivered to Keiko, seeing as she works in logistics anyway.

Flavour Text; Put Yourself in the Game!

Between the adverts that Keiko can interact with is various classified ads acting as flavour texts. I've written a few myself and found it's quite fun, so wanted to open up submissions from Patreon subscribers. Here's a few examples:

FOR SALE - Office chair, real leather, extremely comfortable. Endured many meatings about things that never happened.

PERSONAL - Widower, retired. Free on weekdays. Knows good places that no longer exist.

WANTED Someone who remembers what this neighbourhood smelled like before the new buildings.

LOST Briefcase containing important documents. Probably at bar near Shinbashi Station. If found, please don’t read the poems.

ROOM FOR RENT Tatami room. Sun lit mornings. Evenings too quiet since my mother passed. Rent negotiable if you like tea and conversation.

SERVICE I will wait in line for video games. You sleep, I queue. ¥3,000/hour or one canned coffee per hour. No simulation-slop.

PETS Parakeet, loud during market hours, quiet after midnight. Knows words I don't remember teaching it.

CONFESSIONAL I don't understand the numbers anymore, but everyone nods, so i nod too.

MISSED CONNECTIONS You dropped your lipstick on the Ginza Line. I picked it up. The color didn't suit me either.

Hopefully this gives you an idea of what I'm going for. So if you have a pet you want to put into the game, a funny service, a confession, someone you admire, or a meaningful personal anecdote, drop them in the replies, and I'll get them in the game. These can be funny, sad, interesting or even weird. Have fun with it, just be sure to keep to the above format and remember that the game is set during the Japanese Economic Miracle (bubble economy) during the Showa era.

Any questions, just post them below and I'll reply.

Cheers,
Greg