Apartment Expansion, House Hunting, and Rags-to-Riches Gameplay

Wishlist
1

One thing I would really love to see expanded in inZOI is apartment living. We already have apartment buildings in the game, but we need more available units inside of them. I would love for each apartment building to offer several different units, layouts, views, and price ranges.

For example, one apartment could face the ocean, while another faces the city or another side of the neighborhood. This should apply to every world that includes apartment buildings. Even if the exterior of the building stays the same, having more units facing different directions would make moving into an apartment feel much more varied.

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I would also love to see more types of apartment buildings, especially smaller and more affordable buildings. Not every apartment needs to feel luxurious. There should be a full range of options, including:

  • Small studio apartments
  • Older or poorly maintained units
  • Basic and affordable apartments
  • Mid-range apartments
  • Renovated and modern units
  • Large luxury apartments and penthouses
  • Units with different views, floor levels, and layouts

Studio apartments would be especially useful for Zois who are young, broke, living alone, or just starting their lives.

Apartment and House Hunting Gameplay

I would also love a more realistic way to search for a new home after a Zoi has already started their life. Instead of simply selecting a new lot from a menu, Zois could use their phone or computer to search for available apartments and houses.

They could filter listings by:

  • Price range
  • Number of bedrooms
  • Number of bathrooms
  • Neighborhood
  • Apartment or house
  • Furnished or unfurnished
  • Amenities
  • Distance from work or school

Once they find a place they are interested in, they could schedule a tour with a leasing agent or real estate agent. The agent could meet them at the property, walk them through the home, and explain the rent, price, amenities, and requirements.

For apartments, the Zoi could apply for the unit, pay a deposit, and find out whether they were approved. Their income, employment status, credit, or rental history could affect the application. I want there to be a leasing office for apartments.

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For houses, Zois could make an offer, negotiate the price, request repairs, apply for a mortgage, or compete against another buyer. This would make purchasing a home feel like a major life event instead of an instant transaction.

Rags-to-Riches and Houseless Gameplay

I would also love an official rags-to-riches starting option where a Zoi does not begin the game with an apartment or house.

They could start with very little money and spawn in a public area, such as a park, bus station, or another designated location. From there, the player would need to help them find food, earn money, build skills, and eventually afford a place to live.

It would also be interesting to have a shelter for Zois who do not currently have housing. This could either be a rabbit-hole location or a fully built community shelter with:

  • Bunk beds
  • Shared bathrooms
  • A dining area
  • Lockers
  • A front desk worker
  • Social workers or staff
  • Rules and check-in times
  • Temporary meals and basic supplies
  • Computers for applying to jobs
  • Resources for finding permanent housing

A Zoi might only be allowed to stay for a certain number of nights, or they may need to check in each evening before the beds fill up.

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This would create a much more meaningful progression system. A Zoi could go from sleeping in a shelter or park, to renting a small studio apartment, to eventually buying a home. It would make financial struggles, moving, renting, and homeownership feel like real parts of a Zoi’s life story.

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Well, I won’t agree with “real estate agents” and apartment previews by “status, neighborhood, number of bathrooms,” etc. — this is still completely unnecessary. For these filters to be useful, we’d need at least 50 housing options in the game. Right now, we don’t even have 10 places to settle in each city without throwing a game family out on the street. So the question of price and location currently solves all these issues perfectly fine. Especially since I can move into a terribly looking house, but nothing stops me from turning it into a marble and gold palace. So all these “low - middle - high” tiers practically lose their special meaning within the game.

But “from rags to riches and without a home” and other popular challenges worked out by the community — I’d support that. Especially since this isn’t the first time someone’s asking for it; a lot of people really want this. Only it would be very desirable for this to be implemented on a much larger scale than just cramped starting conditions. The idea about a “fate engine” has already been mentioned, and the ability to create such a “challenge mode” so that the game itself changes the rules according to the given framework and limitations, and doesn’t let the player break them (forbidden options would simply be unavailable until unlocked, forced teleportation home at the appointed time if “curfew” is introduced within the challenge with the corresponding penalty, and so on). This, as an addition to the normal free play mode, would really be interesting.

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