Shop Crush - Psychological Horror Thrift Shop Sim with Literal Illusions [Demo Soon]

[hollowlimb]

About the game

The game I’m working on is a hybrid Visual Novel shop management game called Shop Crush.

In Shop Crush, you run a dusty, cluttered shop where every customer is a puzzle. You have to study their profiles, learn their tastes, and figure out their deep, often unhealthy obsessions with certain types of items. And their backstory.

The core gameplay is an economic choice-based game, where you must choose between customers' offers and your shop's reputation (think the Reigns series).

The Bigger Picture

The gameplay isn't about flipping prices for profit. As you dig deeper into your customers' profiles, you realize that nobody is here by accident. The game has 3 components in structure:

Trading: A tactical battle of nerves. You must balance your own greed against their hatred, using their personal traits to justify higher prices. But you always have a limited number of turns.

Narrative: Every customer has a backstory hidden behind their stats. It affects their shopping behavior - some customers are here for a good bargain, while others prefer something extraordinary. Behind the numbers lies a mystical history that slowly reveals why these people are drawn to this place.

Illusions: This is where the management sim starts to bleed into horror. The things they bring in aren't always what they seem. To bridge the gap between shopkeeping and the surreal, I’m using Literal Illusions. By manipulating the puzzle, you discover specific angles where the geometry transforms, revealing a hidden meaning in the story.

Check the game trailer to see what I am talking about

These illusions are the link between a customer's obsession and the dark reality of the shop. Sometimes, finding the truth is the only way to understand the person standing across the counter.

Visuals: I’m moving away from a purely lo-fi look towards something more resembling the 2000s vibe. It’s high-contrast, uses PS1-style dithering, but keeps the UI sharp and readable. I want the shop to feel tactile - like you can almost smell the dust on the shelves - while the management part remains crisp and functional.

Current State: I’m currently refining the NPC response system to make their dialogue and expressions feel more reactive to the player's pricing strategy. I’ll be sharing technical breakdowns of how I implement the literal illusions and some character design sketches soon.

Key Features and Contents

• Choice-based Card Game with tense and procedurally generated roguelite Core Gameplay.
• 2D Shop Simulator and an Economy game about trading with Customers.
• Atmospheric Visual Novel about insanity, doubt, and Reality Check.
• Innovative Puzzle Game based on the Literal Illusion Effect.
• 10 Unique Clients, each with their own tastes and shopping styles.
• 5 Selected locations with carefully crafted storylines.
• 50+ Levels to Upgrade Every Customer.
• 70+ Products to buy - from weird ones to essentials!

Screenshots:

I'm preparing a Steam demo for the upcoming months, but for now, I'm focused on getting the core loop and game feel right. If you find the project appealing, please consider adding it to your wishlist.

A question for the management sim fans here:

Do you prefer when customers' traits are explicitly stated, or do you like figuring them out through their behavior and the way they trade? Right now, it only shows their numbered stats, like visiting rate or average check, but the customer tastes are mostly narratively hinted at for the players to figure out on their own.

I'm leaning towards the narrative hints because it feels more 'detective-like', but I'm worried it might be too cryptic for a management sim.

P.S.

I'm preparing a Steam demo for the upcoming months, but for now, I'm focused on getting the core loop and game feel right. If you find the project appealing, please consider adding it to your wishlist.

Thank you!

Wishlist