1. Your first night
You've just taken over The Rusty Anchor. It's tired, a bit grim, and the regulars have seen landlords come and go. Your job is to keep it open, keep it busy and slowly turn it into the best pub in town.
You start small, with just you and your other half behind the bar. Don't rush to spend. Get a feel for a normal week first.
2. The pub day
Every day the pub opens at its set time, customers come in, drink, chat, sometimes kick off, and then it's last orders. At the end of the night you get Tonight's Report, which shows who came in, what sold and where the money went.
You can check old reports any time from the Reports button.
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3. Money & Sunday bills
In every money breakdown:
- Green is money coming in (sales, room lets, bonuses).
- Red is money going out (stock, wages, repairs, fines).
- Grey is neutral, info only.
Sunday is bill day. Rent, wages and the rest all land at once, and it's the biggest money moment of the week. A good Saturday can be gone by Monday if you've not planned for it.
💡 Before you buy anything, check the cash forecast. If it says you'll be tight on Sunday, wait.
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4. The bank & going bust
You can dip into an overdraft of up to £1,000. Go past that and the bank gives you a recovery period to get back on track.
If your cash is still too far under when that runs out, the pub company changes the locks. That's Last orders for good, and the run is over.
It's not all bad. You get a post-run report showing exactly where it went wrong (understaffing, fights, waste, repairs, pricing and so on), then you can start again at a new pub, wiser for it.
💡 If you're in the red, stop spending on upgrades, cut waste and get your prices back near the local average until you're out of it.
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5. Staff
Not enough staff means queues at the bar, and people who wait too long just give up and go home. Your report tells you how many walked out.
Too many staff on a quiet night is just wages going in the bin. Staff have moods too, and they don't always get on.
💡 Busy nights (Fridays, Saturdays, match nights) need more hands. Quiet weekday afternoons don't.
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6. Stock, prices & waste
Prices: the game compares your drink prices to the local average. Go well above it and fewer people will come in or stay. Go too low and you're working for nothing.
Waste: stock that's spilt, poured away or goes off is money down the drain. Don't over-order stuff that doesn't sell.
You can stop selling drinks that aren't worth stocking.
💡 Keep an eye on the waste line in your report. If it keeps creeping up, you're ordering too much.
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7. Maintenance & repairs
Things break: coolers, pumps, glasses, tables, and the odd window after a scrap. Maintenance is always cheaper than emergencies. Leave something to fall apart and the repair bill will be far bigger than the upkeep would have been.
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8. Trouble & barring
Fights cost you three ways: damage, fines and lost custom, because people don't come back to a pub where it always kicks off.
When someone causes trouble you can decide whether to bar them. Barring the troublemakers keeps the peace, but some of them spend a lot.
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9. Doing the pub up
You do the pub up bit by bit, one table or item at a time. Each upgrade makes that part of the pub better. You can also cancel a build if you tapped it by mistake.
Upstairs rooms can't be let out until they're up to health & safety standard. Get them there and they're a steady extra earner.
As the pub improves, the crowd changes too. A nicer pub pulls in a different sort of customer.
💡 Timing is everything. An upgrade bought the day before Sunday bills can tip you into the red.
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10. While you were away
The Rusty Anchor opens every day even when you're not playing. A skeleton crew keeps it ticking over, but the pub does much better when you're there.
- When you come back you get a "while you were away" report showing what happened, including any trouble, so you can decide who to bar.
- The skeleton crew doesn't clean, so expect a mess.
- You'll never lose your licence while you're away.
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11. Your phone & mates
Everything comes through your phone: texts from staff and regulars, important messages and the mates app.
Invite your friends with a code and they turn up as regulars in your pub. Inviting mates also earns you a reward.
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12. Saves & devices
Your pub is saved in the browser on the device you're playing on.
- Clearing your browser history or data can wipe your save.
- Switching device? Use "Playing on another device? Load your save" on the start screen to bring your pub with you.
- On iPhone, use Add to Home Screen so it plays like an app.
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13. The landlord's top tips
- Play a quiet first week. Learn the rhythm before you spend.
- Always check the cash forecast before Sunday.
- Fix things before they break.
- Staff up for busy nights. Walkouts are lost money.
- Keep prices close to the local average.
- Bar the real troublemakers. One bad apple empties a pub.
- Read your report every night. It tells you exactly what's going wrong.
- Went bust? Read the post-run report. That's where you'll learn the most.
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14. Pub talk
| Word | What it means |
|---|
| Guv'nor | You, the landlord or landlady. |
| Regulars | The faces who are in every week. Look after them. |
| Barred | Banned from the pub. Sometimes for life, sometimes till they say sorry. |
| Last orders | The final call before closing. |
| Last orders for good | Game over. The locks have been changed. |
| Kicked off | There's been a scrap. |
