Hello all plutocrats!
We have added vertical integration to the game.
I'll tell you what it is.
A holding in the game is a supply-related company in which the owner has a controlling stake. Very often in your wishes I came across ideas about greater automation of various processes in the game, be it economics or politics. Therefore, it was decided to ease the role of the company owner and focus on the main thing - creating a competitive advantage in the purchase of raw materials and transport services.
First of all, this is a search for supplier companies with the lowest prices for raw materials.
Let's say you have an oil refinery. Cheap oil from your oil production company, coupled with low transportation tariffs, allows you to get significant savings, which improves the final margin of the refinery, and therefore its competitiveness in the market!
This is what vertically integrated Holdings are created for!
So. Before creating a Holding, buy out at least 1 company.
By default, all companies in the game purchase raw materials and services from third-party companies - i.e. at market prices, based on the average price in the country. You can see this in the Holding tab.
To replace third-party suppliers with your companies, buy a controlling stake in a company that sells its products below the market! The lower the price, the greater the benefit for the Holding Company, obviously.
Important - we have simplified the mechanics of linking companies to the Holding. There is no need to make the supplier company a subsidiary. You can simply buy it for your pocket money, and if it is capable of supplying the type of product you want to your other company, it will do so immediately! Yes, yes, the directors of your companies eat their bread for a reason...
For convenience, we also displayed information about the prices of each company's products in the table of companies, instead of the level of technology.
This saves time searching for a company in states with lower prices for raw materials or services.
Next.
In the Holding window itself, you can set the priority of suppliers and consumers if your Holding has grown and requires more fine-tuning. It can be individual, or it can be automatic - then the company itself will purchase with priority at the minimum price.
This window can also be used for quick navigation between the Holding companies.
The ultimate goal is to purchase raw materials and services from the Holding's supplier companies at the lowest price in the country, simultaneously depriving competitors of cheap raw materials, and sell your final products, for example, kerosene, at the highest price!
For clarity, we have displayed key indicators, including the Holding’s efficiency and total benefits, in a table.
Have a nice game!
Share your thoughts on what could be added or removed - and we will definitely think about it.
As promised in the fall, the next update will add presidential elections and a new type of company to the game - media. But I’ll tell you more about this in the developer diary next time!
Happy holidays to everyone!