Business is Contagious

Business is Contagious

In the pre-dawn gloom, the docks were already a frenzy of activity. I made it by a slim margin, on the last ship before the quarantine fell. With more security than I anticipated, I was forced to ditch my cargo to avoid arousing suspicion. An annoying setback, but I've been through worse.

The hunch that brought me here was already proving right. The epidemic is spreading faster than authorities predicted, and the populace is terrified. Desperate. Demand, meet supply. My medical credentials can get me through the checkpoints that are being erected around the island, so long as no one looks *too* closely.

I have have my truck, some cash, and my trusty Nokia, filled with the contacts I'll need. Buyers, sellers, informants... and my ticket off this rock when my work is finished. The boatman came recommended by associates I can trust, and I already paid half his fee in advance. One call, and I'll slip away before FEMA knows I was here.

Pulling on my mask, the stench of urine and rot that drenches the city is muted by crisp astringent. Smells like money. Time to get to work.

About

This game was created as part of Nokia 3310 Jam 2, with the theme "Death is Good". It draws inspiration from trading sims like Drugwars, while attempting to evoke the UI of the Nokia 3310 operating system. The game is implemented using Octo, an IDE for the venerable CHIP-8 games platform. If you download the cartridge file below, you can open it in Octo and view the full source code.

Gameplay

Take on the role of a semi-legal medical supply trader, taking advantage of a mysterious disease afflicting a large urban center.

• Buy and sell commodities
• Get hints about the market from informants
• Take out high-interest loans from seedy characters
• Play blackjack at the casino
• Rob hospitals
• ...And more!

Controls

The control scheme mimics that of the Nokia 3310 OS, and would be comfortably playable one-handed, provided your hands have thumbs.

• W/Up - navigate up in menus
• S/Down - navigate down in menus
• E/Space - choose a menu option, or advance through text/image screens

On mobile devices, the "A" button on the virtual gamepad acts like "E".