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We’ve all imagined what it would be like to start from nothing and build a business empire; well, wonder no more as Big Ambitions lets you do just that. With a bit of help from family (played out in the tutorial), you can go from nothing to something in a very ambitious life/business simulator.
Starting from Nothing
If you’re a fan of life simulators, then Big Ambitions may be of interest. You control the central character trying to make it New York City. From property to business, this game covers it all in an impressive depth.
As the character, you have some basic needs to keep up with – energy and hunger. These are taken care of by ensuring you send your character to eat and sleep. Also, make sure to buy groceries! This isn’t as in-depth as The SIMS, but it’s not really the game’s focus. There also doesn’t seem to be any penalty for letting it drop to nothing, save for a passing out animation and waking up in the hospital. It would have been nice if this had a penalty, like a charge for treatment, for example, and that groceries can go bad, so you have to build that lifestyle routine into the gameplay. This would add an extra level of immersion. As your character, you can also buy and rent property to live in – from a basic apartment to townhouses and penthouses. Naturally, you can furnish it how you like.
Where this game excelled and astonished me, though, was in how detailed the business simulator part of it is. Starting with a small business (in this case, retail), you can rent the store, design, and furnish it, buy stock, hire and fire staff and run the establishment. The goal, of course, is to make lots of money in the process. Initially, this involves driving all over town, grabbing what you need, but as you progress, you get access to importing goods, logistics and warehousing, and corporate headquarters. What do you do with all that money? Well, investment is a good idea. There doesn’t seem to be an end to the game, as with most simulation-type titles.
The game places you in a 3D world based on Manhattan, and you can navigate it freely. Not all buildings are accessible, but you can, for example, go into stores and pick up what you need for your apartment or business. You can then load it into your car, drive there, unload it and use a grid-based point-and-click system to place items. It’s a blend of playstyles, but it works well. In addition, there are a lot of UI screens to give you more information and let you manage your growing empire.
Devil in the Detail
There is a basic character creator, but don’t expect The SIMs’ level of customisation. Mostly, it serves the job, as the avatar isn’t the focus here. It is nice to be able to approximate yourself, however. In the game, you have several UI screens to help manage things. This includes a phone for arranging employment agencies to find candidates, a map with markers for different services, a general business analytics and control tab, and broader market news and feeds, allowing investments and a more profound understanding when working out what business to run. It’s all a little overwhelming, to begin with, but the tutorial is fantastic at walking you through what’s what.
I was impressed with the level of detail here. After you’ve hired a bunch of people, you can even go as far as to set their working hours and days to align with the hours you decided your business should be open for. Want a 24/7 fast food restaurant? You can. Want a gift shop that is only open on weekends? Also, possible. From coffee shops, law firms, design agencies, supermarkets and more. There are so many businesses to create.
You can also design a basic logo for your business which is a nice touch, and select the font of the store sign out front. I wasn’t expecting quite this level of detail from a business simulator, but wow, you could spend hours upon hours creating the perfect store before you’ve even started trading! Not to mention how all the items are customisable too.
Indeed, some Big Ambitions
If you have any big ambitions to start a business empire, or if you just like tycoon/simulation games, then Big Ambitions is for you. It’s an excellent simulator from Hovgaard Games and one I can see myself enjoying regularly. I hope they continue to improve things like object placement and maybe even introduce a penalty for not taking care of yourself. The sky is the limit as a PC game, and I can’t wait to see what they add!
