Roencia Games recently announced that its business sim/visual novel hybrid game Crypterion will be released for PC in 2020. It will also be available this year, however, through a closed alpha on Kickstarter. There have been many “business sims” throughout time, but this particular game really seems to get into the nitty gritty of what it takes to guide a company to success.
Players can purchase cargo ships, trade in markets, shuttle passengers, take out loans, appear on television and more. They can also participate in stock investments to grow their riches. Taxes, much like in real life, are a given.
Where the visual novel aspect comes into play isn’t entirely clear, but the game does seem to have a somewhat involved story in which you are the main protagonist. Decision trees are a key feature in Crypterion, and each decision is said to shape your charisma, rivalries, friendships and even romances. Crew members are acquired by choice or come to you as part of the story. As the leader of your company, you can interact with these characters to unlock traits and abilities.
Economics seem to play a large role, which isn’t always the case in games containing currency. Your money is stored in a vault, so if you ever wanted to feel like Scrooge McDuck, now’s your chance! That being said, everything in the game is said to have a price. Players thus stand out from their competitors by use of lavish, expensive and rare objects displayed throughout his/her treasury.
Where we are really sold on the value of Crypterion is in its end-game content. Relationships that you worked hard on throughout the story continue to develop in the end-game. In addition, players can attend auctions and spend their earnings on a multitude of items that includes rare only-seen-once items made by the developers, or, even cooler, the community!
Roencia Games also wishes to incentivize gamers to become a part of the Kickstarter. Those who participate can be placed in the game as an actual character, submit fan art, and help in the creation of events and…alien encounters.
Check out the Kickstarter here!
This well written article describes the game perfectly. Nice job, Doc!