Super Kanko Town is one part incremental game, one part city-building simulator, and one part reflection on the perversities of mass tourism. Raze gardens, rice fields, and village homes. Build capsule hotels, convenience stores, and gourmet sushi bars. Tend to your pixel city, keep the tourists happy—and if someone can’t foot the bill? That’s their problem, as long as our rating stays above 4.5 stars. Oh look: is that Brad on the beach? Selfie, quick!

(That was the elevator pitch. Now, the full story.)

(fig. 1. An intercity bus approaching the town)

This game is about a small seaside town that suddenly gets a bus route.

The bus brings the first tourists, carrying their small, touristy belongings.

The tourists come for the beach—but then what?

(fig. 2. Tourists relaxing on the beach)

They need to eat, sleep, and entertain themselves.

Help them do that. Because if they leave hungry, tired, and miserable, you’ll be surprised how quickly your town gets a rating of 1 star on the most popular mapping app.

(fig. 3. A busy autumn day by the sea)

Once you build your first food trucks and B&Bs, you’ll quickly find out that this is not nearly enough. The bus route gets popular. You’ll need hotels, the hotels need workers, the workers need supplies, and very soon the town finds itself producing and consuming goods, delicacies, equipment, and—most importantly—vibe: that general feeling that your town is actually a cool place after all.

You’ll encounter difficulties, of course. There will be occasional fires, criminal activity, trash crises, and giant monsters just off the coast (not good for the industry!). Fix everything manually, or, if you’re rich enough, delegate to the professionals.

(fig. 4. An issue of the Gazette informing of an unfortunate incident)

Get hip enough, secure a couple of internationally famous chefs, build a third-wave coffee shop, erect a Grand Hotel, and the town will start producing glamour—a necessary resource to attract celebrities and the moneyed jet-set crowd.

But will this turn off your regular motel-staying, burger-grabbing, massage-craving beachgoers? There’s only one way to find out. This is, after all, an experimental game that could grow in many directions.

Thank you for playing Super Kanko Town.