Shadow City
Shadow City is a classic text-based mafia game with a modern, gothic polish. Control districts, pull jobs from petty to serious, run businesses for passive income, and play the market to build cash, contacts and influence before someone out-earns you. Numbers and tables, not 3D, and all the better for it.
- Year
- 2025
- Status
- Live
- Stack
React
Supabase
Claude
Lovable- What I built
- Concept, the game economy, and the mood that makes a spreadsheet-driven game feel like an underworld.
Background
The problem
The old-school text-based mafia game is a beloved genre, but most look dated and grindy. The hard part is keeping a numbers-driven loop compelling while making it feel like somewhere with real atmosphere.
The idea
A gritty mafia empire game built on numbers and tables, not graphics: control districts, pull jobs, run businesses for passive income, and play a live market, wrapped in a dark, gothic identity.
Key decisions
- Decision 1
Numbers over graphics: lean into the text-game genre, not away from it.
- Decision 2
Passive income and market timing as the strategic heart.
- Decision 3
A strong, gothic mood so the numbers still feel like a world.
How I built it
- 01
Defined the core loop: districts, jobs, businesses and the market.
- 02
Designed an economy where timing and influence beat brute force.
- 03
Built a dark, cinematic identity to anchor the world.
- 04
Set it up as a live, seasonal game rather than a one-off.
What came of it
What I learned
- In a text game, mood and economy are the graphics.
- A clear, tense core loop matters more than feature count.
Next steps
- Deepen the economy so heat and energy stay the real constraint as players scale.
Business potential
Text-based multiplayer games run lean and keep devoted players for years. Room for seasons, cosmetic upgrades and a supporter tier once the loop proves out.
Happy to walk through the thinking, the trade-offs and where it's headed next.
Get in touch