Gamers Will Literally Play Anything, Even A Home Renovation Simulator

In a development that will likely infuriate some indie developers who have created video games that follow traditional examples of the industry, gamers are apparently going nuts over a new game on Steam called “House Flipper.” It basically involves renovating a house by repairing and painting it, and then selling it for a good price.

Gamers are willing to play absolutely anything. From actual train and bus simulators that simulate the long commutes involved with such modes of transportations to actual bridge-building, the industry has proven that it can make video game enthusiasts try something out as long as it’s called a game. In the case of House Flipper, the reason for its popularity is obvious, as Kotaku notes.

Basically, it takes many of the things that are frustrating about renovating homes and making them more convenient and thus “satisfying” to the players. Watching paint dry in real life might be incredibly boring but it’s immensely fulfilling in a game.

The title takes players through the whole process of starting a business in house flipping, wherein they start off by first renovating and painting houses for others before they strike out on their own. At that time, players will slowly build their businesses by flipping homes for bigger and bigger amounts, thus increasing their investments and profits.

Through this simple, but incredibly in-depth and effective model, House Flipper has now become one of the top-selling games on Steam. It brilliantly taps into the parts of the brain that provides people with a sense of accomplishment with every successful transaction, as if they were selling actual houses in real life.

On top of this fact, it would seem that the game is genuinely earnest as well, Polygon reports. It doesn’t try to parody anything and doesn’t try to instill a life-changing concept in the players. The whole experience is straightforward and honest.