Capitalism Strategies and Tactics Collections

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Update a tactic proposed by infoscott : "1984 Branding"

Also update newbie introduction videos' links, now with 3 languages. English, French, and Chinese.

[infoscott]

Proposed tactic for this list: Foot traffic spinning

People probably noticed that when apartments and commercial buildings are built up densely in an otherwise low value area, it starts raising the property values. From what I can tell, there is also a corresponding rise in foot traffic for retail firms already located there or land plots reserved for retail firms. Sometimes a real estate AI will build a "subdivision" of many adjacent apartment buildings far away from the city center, and together they can raise the foot traffic index to close to 30 from around 9 - 15. This all needs to be verified and not just from my imagination.

This tactic leverages either your plans for real estate expansion or the AI's. It works best when you are either a bit of a distance from the CBD, or between two "dark spots" of high property value with purchasable land inbetween. It can also work well near the CBD if you planned on using the strategy Flight to the Suburbs. Here is the tactic.

[Description] Place retail firms in mediocre foot traffic areas, around a 30 index is best, and better still if you can buy the property cheap during a recession. Then buy up land around it, either for real R/C real estate expansion or as part of a Flight to the Suburbs strategy. Then when you have the extra cash for buildings, lay down a mix of apartments and commercial buildings near your so-so retail location. The additional residents in new apartment buildings will raise the nearby foot traffic index and increase the desirability of your retail firm. In mid-game or later, this may be your only alternative to siting next to the CBD, especially with large footprint buildings like department stores.

[counting]

Proposed tactic for this list: Foot traffic spinning

People probably noticed that when apartments and commercial buildings are built up densely in an otherwise low value area, it starts raising the property values. From what I can tell, there is also a corresponding rise in foot traffic for retail firms already located there or land plots reserved for retail firms. Sometimes a real estate AI will build a "subdivision" of many adjacent apartment buildings far away from the city center, and together they can raise the foot traffic index to close to 30 from around 9 - 15. This all needs to be verified and not just from my imagination.

This tactic leverages either your plans for real estate expansion or the AI's. It works best when you are either a bit of a distance from the CBD, or between two "dark spots" of high property value with purchasable land inbetween. It can also work well near the CBD if you planned on using the strategy Flight to the Suburbs. Here is the tactic.

[Description] Place retail firms in mediocre foot traffic areas, around a 30 index is best, and better still if you can buy the property cheap during a recession. Then buy up land around it, either for real R/C real estate expansion or as part of a Flight to the Suburbs strategy. Then when you have the extra cash for buildings, lay down a mix of apartments and commercial buildings near your so-so retail location. The additional residents in new apartment buildings will raise the nearby foot traffic index and increase the desirability of your retail firm. In mid-game or later, this may be your only alternative to siting next to the CBD, especially with large footprint buildings like department stores.

From my experience, the current working theory is - retail store get a boost (different stores have different boost amounts) if the northwest corner part of a retail store in within 3 tiles range of any apartment buildings (i.e. northwest part and apartment can't have more than 2 tiles space between them, apartment types don't matter). The northwest part of a store is 1-tile shorter than the original building size. It's if its a 4x4 discount store, NW part is a 3x3 counting from NW corner. 3x3 store NW part is 2x2, 2x2 store NW part is the NW corner tile. The boost amount is also related to NW part size, like discount store with 9 tiles of NW part, can get a boost from 9 to 33 with just one apartment nearby. Multiple apartments have accumulated effect, and by having commercial buildings nearby that can raise land value underneath with visible color change in land value map view (this is difficult in when the location is far away from CBD), community buildings have similar effect by raising land value. The occupancy rate is also important, however even with low rate like 5% to 20%, it has dramatically greater boost impact, but at higher rate like from 50% up to 80% is almost the same. Finally, these effects are recalculated on the 1st day of each month.

[infoscott]

Proposed tactic for this list: Foot traffic spinning

People probably noticed that when apartments and commercial buildings are built up densely in an otherwise low value area, it starts raising the property values. From what I can tell, there is also a corresponding rise in foot traffic for retail firms already located there or land plots reserved for retail firms. Sometimes a real estate AI will build a "subdivision" of many adjacent apartment buildings far away from the city center, and together they can raise the foot traffic index to close to 30 from around 9 - 15. This all needs to be verified and not just from my imagination.

This tactic leverages either your plans for real estate expansion or the AI's. It works best when you are either a bit of a distance from the CBD, or between two "dark spots" of high property value with purchasable land inbetween. It can also work well near the CBD if you planned on using the strategy Flight to the Suburbs. Here is the tactic.

[Description] Place retail firms in mediocre foot traffic areas, around a 30 index is best, and better still if you can buy the property cheap during a recession. Then buy up land around it, either for real R/C real estate expansion or as part of a Flight to the Suburbs strategy. Then when you have the extra cash for buildings, lay down a mix of apartments and commercial buildings near your so-so retail location. The additional residents in new apartment buildings will raise the nearby foot traffic index and increase the desirability of your retail firm. In mid-game or later, this may be your only alternative to siting next to the CBD, especially with large footprint buildings like department stores.

I tested for Foot Traffic Spinning in the small town scenario very early in the game, before the AIs really had a chance to be a presence. My Department Store placed near the CBD center started with a 45 traffic index. About half a year later I placed two of the largest apartment buildings due west of the store. Several months later when the apartments were around 45% occupancy, the Department store's index had jumped to 72!

I couldn't anticipate the magnitude of the change, but organic increases around the CBD probably had to do with some of that delta. If it is the case that you can swing smaller towns merely by your presence, I may just not bother advertising in them and let the natural build up in neighborhood foot traffic take care of desirability.

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I tested for Foot Traffic Spinning in the small town scenario very early in the game, before the AIs really had a chance to be a presence. My Department Store placed near the CBD center started with a 45 traffic index. About half a year later I placed two of the largest apartment buildings due west of the store. Several months later when the apartments were around 45% occupancy, the Department store's index had jumped to 72!

I couldn't anticipate the magnitude of the change, but organic increases around the CBD probably had to do with some of that delta. If it is the case that you can swing smaller towns merely by your presence, I may just not bother advertising in them and let the natural build up in neighborhood foot traffic take care of desirability.

Apartment size doesn't matter, the number of buildings surrounding a store is more important (they don't have to be apartment, commercial buildings have larger impact, especial 4x4 ones, but they are expensive to build). You can artificially increase it with all side surrounded and get 100+ traffic index retail store easy. It would be even more impressive if you can surround it near existing community building. However, the investment of real estates, could slow down your business expansion. If you know a product has low product concern, by all mean using real estate to boost traffic if you have extra cash reserve. If a product has high brand concern, it's best just find a natural good spot, and invest the capital in increasing brand rating. And remember you can even surround a store with R&D centers, enough of them next doors can form 30~40+ traffic index.

[infoscott]

...However, the investment of real estates, could slow down your business expansion. If you know a product has low product concern, by all mean using real estate to boost traffic if you have extra cash reserve. If a product has high brand concern, it's best just find a natural good spot, and invest the capital in increasing brand rating. And remember you can even surround a store with R&D centers, enough of them next doors can form 30~40+ traffic index.

I'm sort of doing the R&D center trick now when employing a Flight to the Suburbs strategy. If I need to reserve a 2x2 it's an R&D lab or small factory, 3x3 for a Department Store gets a medium factory or small farm, etc. Since real estate is my single biggest expense in the first few months, I try to make the money go as far as possible by not buying real estate I'm going to be moving into (in the suburbs) months or years in the future.

It also seems to be the easiest to secure with borrowed money from my credit line. From what I can tell, as long as you are profitable, your credit line is determined in large part by land, buildings, and cash portions of the balance sheet.

If other buildings can contribute to foot traffic, then Flight to the Suburbs combined with Foot Traffic Spinning could give very nice jumps to foot traffic at the very beginning of the game when investment capital and free cash flow are so strained.

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It also seems to be the easiest to secure with borrowed money from my credit line. From what I can tell, as long as you are profitable, your credit line is determined in large part by land, buildings, and cash portions of the balance sheet.

If other buildings can contribute to foot traffic, then Flight to the Suburbs combined with Foot Traffic Spinning could give very nice jumps to foot traffic at the very beginning of the game when investment capital and free cash flow are so strained.

Credit line is determined by assets with weight average to each item, sort of like if you go bankrupt, how many would bank get in return if they liquidate every assets into cash. Like Stock holdings will only be 1/3 of value, land plot get full value, etc. Add all of them up then rounding to $1000 unit precision is the credit limit.

Every buildings even retail stores themselves can increase nearby store traffic index. normally around a factory or farm, you could still get 15 to 30 traffic index, HQ has quite a boost (even AI's), media firm has a large boost, even natural resource firms. The least helpful perhaps is the Mansions, not very helpful and take a lot of space. However, we don't actually have a list of how many boosts each building can provide. And they have diminish return when multiple ones are around. Perhaps you would like to do experiments and see what exactly these boosts are.

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Update : added small tips and links in the back, and considering whether to put foot traffic index effect into tactics, since it's a foundational game mechanic, and it's part of the strategy of real estate method that AIs already doing it.

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Etym had asked me about the implementation of the tactic - Multiple R&D, so here I'll post the reply message as a reference.

The key (in implementing Multiple R&D) is the later part "spread out their finishing time", and reaching different level of tech from the beginning. The first one put on 5 years, second one 3 years, third one 1 years, you will get the third one finished and ready for you to produce at year 1. Then switch the third one to longer term 5 or 10 year. Second one finished in year 3, switch it to long term as well, and so on. Then all of them will finished in long term (higher tech vs time ratio) with different finished goal, and instead of getting one tech every 5 years, you get it every 2 or 1 year. (You can set different interval and R&D centers with different ratio).

Think of this trick as the you vs the whole world's tech centers race. Obviously with more than one competitors in a highly tech-oriented product, you are outclass by AIs globally simply because different AI start their research with different tech with different interval, hence you are outgun by their number. This trick is just making yourself spend more R&D cost to be on par with multiple competitors' multiple R&D, in order to get "regular tech update". You don't actually gain "absolute tech vs time ratio ahead of time, but by always on par and leading every time, to squeeze out others by constantly been the leader, leaving them with no breathing room.

[Meiaman]

Question about low cost industry

Is it possible to execute a low cost manufacturing company?

Like no R&D center and selling low quality products at tiny margins?


I suppose this works better with semi products...