We are releasing a series of new beta features to aid in the transition from this version into the next one.  Welcome to The Grid.  The Grid is an overhead view of the actual city, broken down into blocks, which in turn are then broken down in to properties. There are many features that your property can perform, ranging from information gathering, to reputation boosting, XP accumulation, to war time staging, all the way to hoarding of goods until you get the right price. Utilize your properties to gain every advantage over those around you, this is some end game shit!

Slowly one by one, actions in the game are being ported over to utilize the grid.  For example, if a dealer sets up shop on your property, you get a cut of all drugs that are moved through them.  Foster a good working relationship and get unique pricing that takes your hospitality into account.

There are currently 21 uses of properties, most are hands off and basically run on autopilot, other can be worked and tuned for great and unique gains.

NPCs will mimic players actions with a little bit of randomization to create a 'heat map' of sorts to drive business and traffic for your budding empire.

Each city has its own unique benefits, a smart player will be able to take advantage of their areas limited services/resources to corner a market early on to firmly establish your stake in that aspect of the market.

Owning a property that provides public facing services, earn you things like money/xp/reputation.
Owning a property that provides private services, earn you things like xp/efficiency/independence
Owning over a certain % of a block, provides bonuses.
Family/crewmates owning over a certain % of a block, provides bonuses.
Family/crewmates owning over a certain % of an area, provides bonuses.

When viewing the overhead view of the city, you will get a feel of its activity by viewing its foot traffic and the heat map, combined with viewing your competition will be able to take advantage of underserved markets or scarcity of that cities unique goods/services.  A little bit of research and you can use this to gauge where you should make your mark.

When obtained and maintained under your bookkeepers name, properties persist past death and pass on to your next of kin.  This provides a little bit of anonymity if you wish to keep your empire on the downlow.

Because you can keep your property long term, there is a mechanism to make sure abandoned properties are thrown back into the pool to be fought over/purchased.  Each property has an ultra low tax that has to be paid, thus resetting the countdown clock.  This ensures that players who have certain markets cornered do not leave the city high and dry if they take break.

Certain properties carry a risk, for example, storing a large amount of drugs in a warehouse run a risk of them being discovered and stolen. Always consider the gains and weigh it out against risks so you can determine what level of exposure you want.

Some properties carry very little risk, with risk being controlled by the owner.  For example, a 'massage parlor' lets you set the % take of the staff vs the owner.  A higher % for you means bigger bucks, but with greed comes the problems associated with it.  Being fair to your workers goes a very very long way into negating almost all risk.

A general overview of the features/limitations of each property type will be displayed including pros/cons so you can make an informed decision as you build up and out.

How do I get one?

Once all users who have a number showing their pecking order have claimed their property, there will be a limit on how many properties you can purchase in a rolling week period to ensure that others have a chance to get established.  

Currently, properties are not available for public sale, they are only given out via event prizes, and flash sales as a 1 in 3 BAM. They are estimated to go on sale directly outside of the flash sales around October 20th depending on the results of initial bug testing scheduled for Oct 13th until Oct 20th.

In the beginning, only a random assortment of 50% of the properties will be available, once they are all spoken for it will start a slow drip of the other 50%

You can sell/buy a property on a marketplace, however once listed, you can not control who buys it if they pay full retail.  If someone sends an offer, you can accept/deny/counter offer.  These are all done publicly via the bookkeepers name if they employ one. There are no private transfers, with the public transfer log showing the past X transactions.

Whats it cost?

If you already have a pecking order via event or BAM!, then its already paid for.  

To purchase a new property, the cost is 20 credits.

The purchase a property from another user on the market, the price is as listed.

There are properties that will be occasionally dropped on Lounge that can be fought over at no cost, winner keeps the property, losers sulk off with their tail between their legs.

There will be more detail and screenshots upcoming after the testing is a little more solidified in how things work out.