Important: read this together with the navigation updateThe recent patches this week ships two changes at once:
A full navigation restructure (workspaces, sidebar, where screens live)
Founder Phone, Who's Who, social venture, and rival acquisitions (everything below)
Before you hunt for old menu paths, read the separate navigation announcement on Steam (store patch notes / news post). That post explains the new layout: workspace icons on the far left, screen list beside them, and what moved where. The click paths in this note use the new navigation only. If something looks missing from the old sidebar, it probably moved workspace.Quick nav primer (new layout):
Far left: workspace icons (Home, Studio, News & Media, Founder Life, Empire, Politics, Tech, etc.)
Next column: screens for that workspace, sometimes grouped (e.g. Industry & World, Ventures)
Floating dock (over the main game area): Phone and Who's Who (not in the sidebar)
Ctrl+K (or ⌘K on the rail footer): jump to any screen by name
Hey everyone,This update adds your founder phone, a proper Who's Who directory, a social network venture, and fully simulated rival studios you can actually try to buy. None of this has been in a public build before.
Open: floating dock on the main game area → Phone
(Draggable. Not in the sidebar. Unlocks week 4.)Inside you get:
App
What it is
Pulse
Your personal social feed
Wire
Headlines on your phone
Planner
Next 12 weeks at a glance
Ping
Private texts with people you've met
Your platform
Your own social network app (after you found one)
Unread badge on the dock when Ping (or similar) has new stuff.
Path: floating dock → Phone → PulseFeed
Your posts and NPC posts (industry, politics, wider world)
Like or dislike other people's posts
Expand to read replies and comment (quick chips or your own line)
Tap names/avatars for Who's Who cards
Big posts can show Picked up by Wire
Compose
Pick a template from what's happening in your run
Preview, post (limited per week)
Follower count at the top
Ripple effects
Online beef or praise can trigger press interview requests later
Major venture moments (airline, gym, platform launch) can pop a social post prompt (tone + where to post)
Path: floating dock → Phone → WireTabs: Industry, Statecraft, Market, Sport (sport when relevant).Tap headlines to expand. If your Pulse posts hit the press, Wire shows how many got picked up.(Desktop news still lives under News & Media → News → Newsstand and Media Centre.)
Path: floating dock → Phone → PlannerNext 12 weeks: meetings, releases, expos, contracts, tax weeks, and more. Tap an event to jump where the game allows.(Full calendar screen: Home → Calendar.)
Path: floating dock → Phone → PingWho you can text: people you've had at least one completed meeting with.Inbox → pick a contact → send from templates (thank them, banter, ask for a tip, flirt if romance is on, etc.). 5 outbound messages per week.Lunch / coffee invitesIf they send something like "Lunch next month? I owe you one":Path: Phone → Ping → [thread] → Accept — schedule lunchOpens the meeting scheduler on the phone, restaurant or coffee pre-selected, strong acceptance chance because they asked you. Lands on your calendar when confirmed.
Found and run your own social platform. Separate from personal Pulse.
Path: left rail → Empire → Command → Mogul Profile
Scroll to Ventures & passion projects → Social Network → founding wizard (name, branding, logo, archetype).Requirements shown on screen (mogul rank, cash, reputation, calendar year, etc.).
Path: left rail → Tech → Social NetworkDashboard, Audience, Monetisation, Rules, Moderation, Brand.
After launch, a new app tile appears on the phone home screen (your logo + name).Path: floating dock → Phone → [your platform]Feed, Trending, Alerts (unread badge on home tile), Post for founder announcements.
When the platform goes live, you get a venture social post prompt:
Tone: Marketing / Brag / Unhinged
Post to: Pulse, your platform, or both
Same system fires for other venture milestones (airline founded / new route, gym brand founded, club openings, etc.).Pinned shortcuts: pin a venture from Mogul Profile and it can show under My Ventures at the top of the screen list.
Paths:
Floating dock → Who's Who (week 4+, next to Phone)
Ctrl+K → search "Who's Who"
Profiles: portrait, role, affiliations, relationship, mood, history (meetings, press, Ping, Pulse).
Path: floating dock → Who's Who → [rival founder] → Interact → Schedule M&A meetingTakeover talks. Builds acquisition readiness. Not a casual coffee.When the week arrives, open from the meeting dock. Negotiation uses gut feel ("Feels promising", "Could go either way"), not percentages.
Path: floating dock → Who's Who → [person] → Interact → Request meetingRapport only. Does not count toward buying their studio.Cooldown: usually 4 weeks before another request with the same person. UI says when they're free again.From Ping: Accept — schedule lunch when they invited you.
All major rivals are now fully simulated (cash, staff, projects, health, acquisition readiness).View rivals
Path: left rail → News & Media → Industry & World → Industry
Open a studio for cash, health hearts, readiness.Buy a studio
News & Media → Industry (or Who's Who → founder)
Schedule M&A meeting (not Request meeting)
Negotiate until readiness unlocks a bid
Bid on the Industry studio profile
Formal empire M&A screen (your own deals):
Empire → Capital Markets → AcquisitionsNew games: 5 full rivals at start, up to 8 living, 14 in the industry roster.Existing saves: old lightweight rivals upgrade on load. Founders re-link for M&A.
After you buy from Mogul Profile, day-to-day screens sit under:Path: left rail → Empire → Ventures → (Racing Team, Airline Manager, Fitness Chain, etc.)Social Network HQ is under Tech, not Empire Ventures. (This is because we will expand Tech out in future updates with 'Big Tech' style options)Personal lifestyle (Founder Life hub, High Roller, wine, yachts, property):Path: left rail → Founder Life
I want to…
Go here
Open my phone
Floating dock → Phone
Open Who's Who
Floating dock → Who's Who OR Ctrl+K
Post on Pulse
Phone → Pulse → Compose
Read phone headlines
Phone → Wire
See next 12 weeks
Phone → Planner (or Home → Calendar for full view)
Text someone
Phone → Ping
Accept lunch invite
Phone → Ping → Accept — schedule lunch
Found social network
Empire → Mogul Profile → buy Social Network
Run social network HQ
Tech → Social Network
Use platform on phone
Phone → [your platform app]
See rivals
News & Media → Industry
Buy a rival
Who's Who → Schedule M&A meeting + Industry profile for bid
Jump anywhere
Ctrl+K
Load as normal. Saves upgrade automatically. Phone threads, people links, promoted rivals, and venture data should carry over.
Again: if a screen moved and you cannot find it, check the navigation announcement on Steam first, then this note for the new features.Thanks for testing. Week number + what you clicked helps when reporting bugs.— The Hydraflash