As I scroll through my TikTok feed, I’ve been seeing a fair number of satirical videos floating around the idea of “Pheromone-Maxxing.” Game tournaments have needed to put up signage regarding the personal hygiene of their attendees. Card shops have the unfortunate stigma of terrible-smelling patrons. It’s a wild world out there, and TCG Card Shop Simulator has its hooks in me for this particular reason.
Sure, the trading card goblin inside of me is always eager to rip into a new pack of cards. It doesn’t matter if these likely AI-generated Pokémon knockoffs are worth pennies or thousands. The feeling of crouching in a corner and ripping open a pack of Epic Cards feels just as great here as it does in real life. Surprisingly enough, it’s the simpler actions that take place during the day-to-day hustle of owning my own shop that bring me back for more.
A Can A Day Keeps The Stink Away in ‘TCG Card Shop Simulator’
As bizarre as it sounds, the daily monotony of keeping my trading card shop open and running efficiently is the most exciting part of TCG Card Shop Simulator. Ordering inventory, stocking shelves — who needs to hire additional help when you can do it all yourself? The idea of running a shop has always been a dream of mine. While this may not be exactly true to life, it’s a great way for my socially awkward self to live out a dream I can hardly fathom trying in real life. Or practically afford to maintain.
It functions as an escape from daily life. Who wants to play a video game where you have to work a standard 9-to-5 job? Most people won’t, but I’m apparently in that select number that finds joy in doing something like this. Sure, I could be spending my time as a super-powered alien creature performing the most out-of-this-world moves you’ve ever seen. Or, I could flip my sign around and turn on the lights while I wait for 15 of the same character models to walk into my shop and criticize my prices. So, maybe I’m just a masochist…
It Isn’t Perfect, But it’s Staying In My Rotation For Quite Some Time
At the end of the day, TCG Card Shop Simulator is a janky mess of an Early Access game. But, it’s also something I can’t put down. Further, it’s a joy to experience firsthand. Watching my shop expand before my eyes, adding additional inventory so my loyal customers have something new to look at and buy. Chasing down a customer that walks into the store with a disgusting green aura around them, only to pelt them with spray cleaner. It’s the American Dream come true, or something like that.
Since it’s in Early Access, there’s plenty of room for improvement. Shop customization is completely absent as of the time of this writing. I’m already itching to swap things out for something a little less drab. The in-game roadmap gives players a look at what they can expect as more updates hit this, frankly, addictive simulator.
I still have plenty of progress to make in my TCG Card Shop Simulator save. I’m only on Day 40-something. There are plenty of shop upgrades I can work toward, new air purifiers I can purchase. And tons of new cards I can get my hands on.
The post Help! I Can’t Stop Playing a Game Where I Have to Spray Stinky Customers While Selling Trading Cards appeared first on VICE.
The post Help! I Can’t Stop Playing a Game Where I Have to Spray Stinky Customers While Selling Trading Cards appeared first on VICE.
