The RETRORONTO Report #13
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Monday, November 10, 2025
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🌨️
Snowy -2C
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📅 Monday, November 10, 2025 | 🌨️ Snowy -2C |
Wishlists:
📈 +14
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Itch.io Views:
👁️ +670
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Followers:
🙌 +8
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Wishlists: 📈 +14 | Itch.io Views: 👁️ +670 | Followers: 🙌 +8 |
This is The RETRORONTO Report, your go-to source for all the latest happenings and updates in the evolving city of Retroronto!
One Year City Celebrations
The Hand Eye Ball, hosted by Hand Eye Society this past November 1st
November marks a full year since Retroronto first opened its pixelated streets to the public on itch.io, inviting players to explore a stylized, nostalgic take on Toronto life. What started as a small demo has grown into a living, breathing city, full of commuters, coffee drinkers, and the occasional streetcar delay.
To cap off the year, Retroronto made an appearance at SuperFEST, Hand Eye Society’s annual week-long celebration of indie games. The game was featured at Good Behaviour on Gerrard Street East and even appeared at the Hand Eye Ball, where players could take it for a spin on one of the organization’s signature Torontron Arcade Cabinets. It was a full-circle moment for the project, showing alongside so many other homegrown creations that define the city’s thriving game scene.
While the festivities continued, development is winding down for the season. This update marks the final one of 2025, with work shifting toward a well-earned rest before the next chapter begins in the new year. Between contract work, business duties, and a steady stream of bug reports and feedback, the team’s been balancing development and reality in equal measure, no small feat for any indie outfit.
Retroronto on one of HES’ Torontron arcade cabinets.
But even as the lights dim for the winter, Retroronto’s future remains bright. With new systems now in place, including the revamped stat mechanics and resume features, the groundwork is set for bigger things in 2026. For now, the city sleeps, the streetcars rest, and players are encouraged to take a well-deserved break of their own.
-Kurtis Everett, Reporter
When the demo launched in late 2024, Retroronto was only a fraction of what it is today. Over the past twelve months, more than a dozen new locations have been added, from apartments and coffee shops to hotels, parks, and clothing stores. The UI and NPC generation has been completely rebuilt twice, and over 100 bugs have been squashed along the way.
Footage of Retroronto prototype pre-grant, November 2023
By season, here’s how the city evolved:
Winter 2024–25: Shops and food vendors open. Players get new input options and day/night transitions.
Spring 2025: Apartments and home life arrive, cooking, bills, and talk-able NPCs included.
Summer 2025: The city expands with hotels, parks, and wildlife; major UI and banking updates follow.
Fall 2025: New customization, clothing, stats, promotions, and the résumé system cap off the year.
In the same year, Retroronto’s community quietly but steadily grew:
45+ members on Discord
61 Instagram followers
85 LinkedIn followers
2,600+ views and 1,000+ plays on itch.io
430 wishlists on Steam
First released trailer for Retroronto, November 2024
Latest trailer for Retroronto, September 2025
Retroronto also spent much of 2025 at conventions/festivals:
Toronto Game Expo
XP Summit
Toronto Games Week
Get On My Level
CNE Gaming Garage
SuperFEST
One year later, Retroronto stands on firmer ground technically, visually, and as a growing community project. Development will take a brief pause for the holidays, but the city’s future looks promising, with stronger foundations and a more connected audience than ever.
Resumes for Modern Commuters
Retroronto’s citizens can now put their best selves on paper. The new Resume Menu lets players view their new stats: Health, Smarts, and Charm, alongside their job highscores, all from the library’s computer.
Self-improvement isn’t just for show either. Reading books sharpens the mind, chatting with locals boosts charisma, and hitting the gym toughens the body. Each stat shapes how far you can go and what jobs you can take.
With new self-help books popping up at the library and more systems planned for the city’s computers, Retroronto’s getting serious about self-betterment, one rep, read, and conversation at a time.
-Lenora Vale, Reporter
Promotions and Progress
Managers across Retroronto aren’t just handing out promotions anymore, they’re checking your stats first. The new system adds multiple-choice dialogue when talking to managers, letting players start their shifts, apply for promotions or quit for other opportunities should they so choose.
Raise your Health, Smarts, or Charm and you’ll have a better shot at promotion, complete with a new title, higher pay, and bragging rights. It’s a small change with big implications for anyone looking to climb the city’s career ladder.
Work hard, talk smart, and maybe… your boss will finally remember your name.
-Guy Trenton, Editor
Where citizens say what’s on their mind, and we print it anyway.
Windy City Woes
By David C., 33
It’s that time of year again when the sidewalks become wind tunnels and you regret buying that one cheap umbrella from the corner store. Every gust feels personal, like the weather itself is judging your outfit choices. Hats are flying, newspapers are tumbling, and yet everyone pretends this is “crisp fall air.”
If “crisp” means walking at a forty-five degree angle, I’d like a refund.
Falling For The Fall
By Michelle H., 29
You can say what you want about the cold, but nothing beats the way Retroronto looks right now. The streets are lined with orange and gold, every park feels like a painting, and the air smells faintly of roasted chestnuts and bus exhaust. It’s perfect.
For a fleeting few weeks, the whole city feels softer, even the commuters seem to slow down to watch the trees. Maybe that’s worth the chill.
Poor at Sports
By Al M., 61
Every autumn, hope blooms anew and dies just as quickly for Retroronto’s sports fans. The posters go up, the bars fill, and the chants echo down the avenues. But when the playoffs roll around, it’s the same heartbreak on repeat.
At this point, we don’t cheer for victory. We cheer for resilience. And maybe that’s the most Retroronto thing of all. We’ll get ‘em next time!
Classifieds
ARGENTINE TANGO LESSONS
Learn to move with confidence (and maybe a little drama)! Weekly classes every Thursday evening. First class is free; after that, it’s $20 a lesson. Shoes optional, passion mandatory.
BE YOUR OWN BOSS!
Looking for motivated individuals ready to take control of their financial future! No experience necessary, just a credit card and an “entrepreneurial spirit.”
FOR SALE: VINTAGE RADIO SET
Classic tabletop radio from the 1960s, wood-paneled and beautifully tuned. Works perfectly after a little TLC and picks up both AM and the occasional mysterious station that may or may not exist.
Obituaries
REST IN PEACE “MARNIE”
(1948–2025)
Marlene “Marnie” Cafferty passed peacefully in her sleep last week at the age of 77. A lifelong Retrorontonian, Marnie was best known for running the little café tucked behind the old subway station, the one that never seemed to close, no matter the hour or the weather. Generations of commuters, students, and night shift workers found comfort in her coffee and conversation.
She was the kind of person who remembered your usual, even if you hadn’t been by in ten years. Her family says she was happiest behind the counter, humming to the radio and talking about the Leafs “if they ever decide to win one.” She leaves behind her son Douglas, two grandkids, and a city that feels just a bit colder without her warmth. Her son Douglas now runs her subway cafe to carry on her legacy.
Events
SWEATER WEATHER STREET FAIR
As the spooky season fades and the chill rolls in, local vendors are swapping pumpkins for scarves at this cozy outdoor fair. Expect hand-knit goods, hot chocolate stands, and an alarming number of cinnamon-based treats. It’s a perfect excuse to bundle up, stroll through the stalls, and pretend you actually enjoy cold weather.
CITY SPIRIT RALLY
Retroronto’s sports fans gather once again to cheer (and occasionally jeer) their beloved teams as another hopeful season begins. Live music, street food, and speeches from local “legends” will kick things off. Whether you believe this is finally their year or you’ve accepted the cycle of heartbreak, everyone’s welcome to join in the noise.
Changelog
Changes/Fixes:
- Fixed a bug where buying sodas at LcMacs would give the player coffee instead
- Fixed a bug where some freezer items in stores couldn't be consumed
- Adjusted Energy UI to now dynamically scale based on the player's maxEnergy (in turn affected by the health stat)
- Fixed a bug where newspapers couldn't be bought or read
- Adjusted 'stickiness' of UI controls in character customization (for the 3rd time sheesh)
- Adjusted sorting orders of benchpresses in gym
- Resume items will not be consumed if the player doesn't get hired
- Paycheques have been adjusted to include the job level in the total score, multiplying the total
- Landmark Tasks now generate target arrows to their locations when task is active
- Landmark Tasks when finished now grant a smart stat
- Fixed a bug where the Commerce Court Landmark Place and Park place overlapped during the Landmark Task
- Fixed a bug where icons on the city map wouldn't scale up
- Fixed a Bug where the InputUI would say 'Talk' when interacting with Dogs, now they say 'Pet'.
- Fixed a bug where the roommate NPC wouldn't generate after every subsequent visit to the basement apartment
- Fixed a bug where exiting fridges at homes with Esc would open the phone menu inadvertedly
Additions:
- Added a portion of a progression system, for Health, Smarts, and Charm stats for the player
- Added a Resume Menu when using the Library computer, that will show the player their stats.
- Manager dialogue will now check the player stats before hiring them
- When hired, Managers will give multiple choices for Work, Applying for Promotions, Quitting, and Leaving the convo
- Managers can now promote the player based on their stats, increasing their job level and changing their job name
- Added new library bookshelf dialogue for explaining new stats system
- Added a book reading mechanic to raise Smarts stat, can get a book at one of the bookshelves in the Library
- Added a weight-lifting mechanic at a benchpress in the Gym to raise Health stat
- Talking to NPCs slowly grows Charm stat every 5 conversations
- Added basic Stat UI beside Energy UI
- Jobs now have job levels that multiply the player's pay, gained from promotions
- Libraries behave like stores when grabbing books, player needs to check book out with librarian before leaving
Removals:
- Library Computer no longer has holding mechanic
Got feedback, questions, or concerns about the development of Retroronto? Join our discord server below!
EDITOR’S NOTES
Hello hello!
Very glad to be getting this one last update out, which is why I took an extra week to wrap it up properly. I really wanted to fit more in, but them’s the breaks with game development… you finish what you can, cut what you can’t, and save the rest for later. The new systems added this month, though, feel like a real leap forward, by helping players progress beyond just working and earning money, and bringing Retroronto closer to the kind of experience I’ve been aiming for.
So why is this the last update of the year? Starting November 12, I’ll be out of the country for a two-week vacation, and then likely spend the holidays figuring out where to go from here. It’s been about two years of development so far, with this past year being a big one for solo work on the game, making/sharing these devblogs, and more. If there’s one takeaway from all this, it’s that making games is easier and a lot more fun with a team. I’ll be taking time to recover from this solo burnout, and reflect on the next steps for both myself and Retroronto until 2026.
That said, there’s plenty to feel proud of! The game has grown, the community’s responded warmly, and I’ve learned more about the business, funding, and creative sides of indie development than I ever expected. Each year brought its own challenges to clear, and even if I’m a bit worn out, I still believe in what’s been built. Here’s hoping 2026 brings new opportunities, new energy, and maybe even a few new faces to the project. Thank you very much for all your support this past year, and see you all in the next one!
Cheers,
- Sean Browning
Disclaimer:
The names, classifieds, obituaries, and events featured in this publication are entirely fictional and not associated with any real people or entities. While the content is loosely inspired by the development of Retroronto, it is largely embellished for the sake of engagement and fun. The goal is to present the city and its progress as closely to a newspaper as possible. Please don’t take it all too seriously!