Performance – Skill progression guide (post–December update)

:microphone: Performance – Skill progression guide (post–December update)

In my rotational play I’m testing different money-making skills with Zois dedicated to a single skill. Since I wrote everything down for future reference, I’m sharing my Performance notes here as they might be useful if you’re considering investing into this skill.

Settings: 96-minute day
Context: measurements are post–December update.


:white_check_mark: Quick Summary

  • Level 0 → Level 1 is very fast (~10 minutes) and not representative of the overall leveling pace.

  • Unlike many other skills, time per level-up slowly increases as your level rises (roughly ~1h early → ~2h+ later in my run).

  • Tips depend on Performance (not Instrument) and are heavily affected by crowd/location/time — plus you need the guitar case placed correctly.

  • Tips started appearing from Level 2 and felt noticeably better from Level 5–6 onward.

  • Mood matters: Amused/Playful helps; Hysterical felt noticeably faster (rough estimate).


:magnifying_glass_tilted_right: General notes (actions & timings)

:books: Books

  • Reading a Performance book: 15 min

:guitar: Busking / Singing / Dancing

  • Busking with guitar: ~15 min

  • Busking by singing (mic): ~23 min

  • Busking by dancing: ~4–5 min

  • Sing a Song at microphone: ~15 min

:performing_arts: Comedy / Audience interactions

  • Perform stand-up comedy: ~17 min

  • Pump up audience: ~20 minNO skill gain

  • Busking Rap / R&B / Jazz / Rock: ~23 min

:laptop: PC / :mirror: Mirror / :television: TV (extra options)

  • PC: “Check out humor website” ~14–15 min

  • PC: “Make post on humor website” ~15 min

  • Mirror: “Practice different facial expressions” ~6 min

  • Mirror: “Practice jokes alone” ~6 min

  • TV: “Watch music broadcast” ~10 min


:puzzle_piece: Unlocks (new actions by level)

Level 0

  • “Start Busking” + “Sing a Song” at the microphone

  • Personal actions include busking as Song / Guitar / Dancing

Level 4

New microphone / performance options:

  • “Start busking by rapping”

  • “Start busking by singing R&B”

  • “Perform stand-up comedy”

  • “Pump up audience” (no skill gain)

  • “Rap” and “Practice R&B”

Level 8

  • “Start busking by singing Jazz”

  • “Start busking by singing Rock”

  • “Practice Rock Music” and “Practice Jazz”

Level 10

  • Should unlock “Singing competition” and “Comedy club performance” PC events (see bug note below).

:bar_chart: Leveling times (post-December update)

(Times are what it took me to level up using the listed mix of actions.)

Level-up Time to level up (my run) Notes / method
Level 0 → Level 1 ~10 min Book reading or any basic performance action
Level 1 → Level 3 ~1h Example combo: 2× guitar busking + 1× mic busking
Level 2 → Level 3 ~1h 13m Example mix: guitar busking + sing a song + mic busking + dancing
Level 3 → Level 4 ~1h+ Example: 1× guitar busking + 2× mic busking
Level 4 → Level 5 ~1h 50m Mixed actions (mic + comedy options)
Level 5 → Level 6 ~1h 55m Various performance actions
Level 6 → Level 7 ~2h Various performance actions
Level 7 → Level 8 ~2h 20m Various performance actions
Level 8 → Level 9 ~2h 20m Various performance actions
Level 9 → Level 10 ~2h 10m Various performance actions

Pattern: leveling becomes slightly slower as you go up — not “flat” like some other skills.


:money_bag: Tips (how it worked in my run)

When tips started + how they scale

  • I got tips for the first time at Level 2.

  • Tips felt noticeably better from Level 5–6 onward, assuming a good location/crowd.

What tips seem to depend on

  • Mainly:

    • Performance level

    • location + time of day

    • how many Zois are nearby

  • Instrument level did not seem required for tips (low instrument still worked if Performance was high).

Required setup: the guitar case

You need the guitar case to receive tips. Place it close to the mic at the performance spot:

Tip amounts & variability (examples)

  • Tips come in chunks of 100 Mew.

  • Examples:

    • Level 6–7, daytime park: 10 songs ≈ 1700 Mew (≈ 4 hours)

    • Level 8, evening beach: 6 songs ≈ 600 Mew (≈ 2.5 hours)

    • Level 9, evening park: 5 songs ≈ 900 Mew (under 2 hours)


:grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes: Mood effects

  • Amused / Playful: felt somewhat faster.

  • Hysterical: felt significantly faster (rough estimate ~30% faster in my run).


:mobile_phone: “Rumors” note

Sometimes I received smartphone rumor messages after performing (sometimes positive, sometimes negative). I’m not sure if they have gameplay impact yet.


:bug: Level 10 bug note

At Level 10, the game suggests Singing Competition and Comedy Club performance events should appear on the PC under the Performance tab.
In my current run (and two other playthroughs), they never showed up, so I couldn’t test payout or schedule. I logged this as a bug on the forum.

(My assumption is that it likely works similarly to other skill competitions: win 1000 Mew or nothing, possibly on Sundays — but I could not confirm.)


:hourglass_not_done: Time to max (real play)

With a strong focus on Performance but still managing needs + some social life, I reached Level 10 in ~3 in-game days.

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A small update regarding the mentioned bug that the Singing Competition and Comedy Club Performance was not available. While paying this household it never showed up at the PC, even after several days. Now I payed another household for a couple of days and came back to this household again: and it is available. Still it is a bug as it should not require to change households in order for it to come up but at least might be worth a try if you have the same issue.

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