Venture Towns Info/Guide

Edit on November 10th, 2012: Check out the guide at AdeptGamer~! http://adeptgamer.com/forum/pages/venture-towns-guide/ It’s still under construction so the building info will be at the spreadsheet linked below.

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As Kairospot is down for the moment, I’ve nabbed a copy of my semi-guide post from Chrome’s cache.

Since this is based on the Japanese version, a lot of translations will be a different. Hopefully, this will still be of use until the actual guide is written.

BUT! I know THIS will definitely be helpful to everyone though:

Compilation of Lists — like combos, buildings, special characters, etc.  (in progress):

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ApJcOk7MQHDMdHd0NXJha1FXLTlqdER1RldDYzhkRnc

To anyone that reposts any information from this entry or the Google Docs spreadsheet: PLEASE have the courtesy to follow the Creative Commons license. Thanks.

On a similar note, if anyone finds the info written here or the spreadsheet on another site without proper acknowledgement, I’d appreciate it if you’d notify me (via comments here) so I can get the stolen work taken down. Thanks~!

UPDATES:

Thursday, Dec 15: Replaced the Japanese text for the “Tips for High Growth” topic with the official English translated lines from the game.

Sunday, October 28th: Removed links to Kairospot posts and just included the information directly into the post instead.

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Here’s the goofy nunuu translation~! :B It’s not 100% accurate but also not horribly off either. XD (At least, I don’t believe it to be.) It’s really just to give people an idea of what’s going on in the game. But for those that are completely illiterate to the language, I don’t think this will actually give them enough information or incentive to play. 😛

Last Updated: Monday, November 7th~

• Added a minor section that explains the radius size for creating a combo. (See [CMB] Comboing.)

Tuesday, November 1st~

• Added cost to the Bonsai Championship, something something Blue Sky Market, and Political & Economic Summit in the Town Development Project section.

Saturday, October 29th~

• Added cost to the Kairobot Neighbourhood Festival and Japan Game Expo in the Town Development Project section. Also fixed some minor errors in other events.

Friday, October 28th~

• Suddenly realized that the monetary cost for every Town Development Project increases with each use. Removed values except for the Space Research one since I just unlocked it and haven’t used it yet.

Thursday, October 27th~

• Added a Tidbit heading in the How to Play section.
• Confirmed the duration of the Secondhand Book Fair.
• Moved the Miscellaneous section from the Table of Contents into its own section.

Wednesday, October 26th~

• Added link to information about plants and trees in the Miscellaneous section.
• Added a little more info about what carries over to a new game.
• Confirmed the duration of the Bird Watching Committee and Political & Economic Summit projects. Also included cost for the latter.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
As I can’t create in-post link anchors, please use your browser’s Find/Search to jump to the sections you wish to read about. For example, if you want to read about How to Play, type HTP in your Find/Search field.

[HTP] HOW TO PLAY
Translation of the How to Play section in the game. See quoted text below.

[TRP] THE RESIDENT’S PROFILE
Explanation of Resident Profile window (with screenshots).

[CGJ] CHANGING JOBS
Details on how to switch occupations and also explanation of the screens the player will encounter while doing so.

[CMB] COMBOING
Just a little section with examples of combo arrangements.

[SRP] SELLING RESEARCH POINTS
Information about the yearly service Mr. Pumpkin provides.

[TDP] TOWN DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS
Ways to help your citizens and town becoming successful!

[MSC] MISCELLANEOUS
Links to useful posts and a gallery with some translated screenshots.

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[HTP] HOW TO PLAY

This game is a simulation of corporation management.

You expand the town by building and placing houses and companies on the map. The continued growth of the residents (through personal development and jobs) will contribute to the industries and economy.

ICONS/NUMBERS ABOVE PEOPLE & BUILDINGS

Numbers in white with a black outline that appear above shops indicate the amount of money a resident spends.

Numbers in yellow that appear above an Office indicate the salary earned by a resident.

When a resident comes out of a shop, a little icon such as a rice ball may appear over his or her head. This indicates that the resident has discovered research points in the respective category. (For what it’s worth, the rice ball is for Food.)

TIP FOR HIGH GROWTH

“Try to build stores around offices or next to other stores. Build houses near woods or parks to boost Land prices and growth.” – officially English translated line from the How to Play section in the English version of the game.

MOVEMENT OF RESIDENTS

Residents earn a living working at the Office and the money earned is used toward purchases at shops and the like. However, their spending budget is restricted by the amount of their savings (which is the number indicated to the right of the green coin purse icon in a resident’s profile window). Once their funds run low, they will head back to the Office to work.

Residents can only move as far as their movement range allows them to. There are items and transportation that will allow them to increase their maximum movement range though.

[See [TRP] THE RESIDENT’S PROFILE section for more info~!]

TOWN DEVELOPMENT

[This is in reference to the second sub-menu item (町おこし) under 産業, which is the second menu category.]

These are special events that affect the entire town. As residents uncover more jobs and level up in them, new development projects may be discovered.

[See [TDP] TOWN DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS for more details. ]

BIG SPENDER

When the popularity of a shop is high, there is a chance residents will spend 4 times the maximum commodity price. Popularity can be increased by placing plants near them.

[I just noticed one of residents had a yellow aura before going into the shop. Once inside, the “大人買い” popped up over the building. Seem like the aura is an indicator that they’ll splurge.]

THE ROLE OF PLANTS

Plants help increase the overall land value. They may also increase the land value and/or popularity of surrounding facilities, and residents passing by them could discover research points. Also of note is that the maximum number of certain plants and trees may increase if you place many of them on the map.

RESIDENT INTERACTION

Sometimes, a resident will wander to the park (公園) and shortly after, he or she will be joined by a fellow resident. As they socialize, research points may be discovered and their parameters (such as IQ and Appeal) will also improve.

The length of the conversations are dependent on their Appeal (魅力) and the amount of research points discovered and stat improvements are based on how high the Talent stat (才能) is.

INCREASING THE POPULATION

Throughout the years, new residents will move in based on the town’s situation. [<– I’m actually not 100% certain the translation is correct.] Upon moving in, a new resident will provide your corporation with a one-time payment that’s worth 6 times the amount of his or her home’s land value.

ABOUT BUILDING LOCATIONS

Where to build structures is an important matter to consider. For example, placing trees and plants near a park will increase the land value. The compatibility of stores and facilities also needs to be considered when determining where to place a building.

RESEARCH POINTS

There are 4 types of research points: Food (食品), Service (接客), Recreation (娯楽), and Culture (文化).

Research Points can be obtained when residents enter stores. These points can be used to research new industries and create items. However, the probability of discovering them is dependent on a resident’s IQ and the shop he or she enters.

There is a limit for how many research points you can have on hand but you can increase the maximum by mastering jobs.

[Note that many jobs don’t increase the max limit of every research category. In the screenshot above, everything except Food was affected as indicated by the numbers outlined in blue.]

NEW INDUSTRIES

New industries can be discovered through jobs and town conditions. These industries can then be researched and built.

ITEM CREATION

At the beginning of the game, it’s not possible to create items. However, as the town develops, you will be given the option to do so. Creating items can provide various positive affects such as raising a resident’s abilities, increasing land value, boosting the maximum walking distance, etc.

THE RESIDENT’S HOME

A resident’s home develops based on the amount of savings he or she has and types of roadways nearby. Through hard work, the resident will be able to renovate and increase the size of the house.

RENT

Rent is collected from residents at the end of every March and the amount of payment the corporation receives is dependent on the types of homes as well as land value. Note that the rent is never deducted from a resident’s savings.

CHANGING PROFESSIONS

Residents may occasionally change jobs at the Office. With the exception of the Salaryman profession, new jobs can be discovered based on the surrounding stores.

Changing jobs may not only provide residents with higher paying jobs, they may discover new industries as well.

In order to change a job, a resident must make a payment to the corporation to undertake a test [literally “challenge”]. The chance of success depends on the resident’s stats as well as the job he or she is looking to obtain.

PETS

Residents with high Appeal may purchase a pet which they will take on walks. If they happen to go to the park with it, they will spend more time socializing there. However, should a resident’s Appeal drop, there’s a chance that his or her pet may run away …

ABOUT DEVELOPING THE TOWN

From village to urban area

As the number of residents increases, the village will automatically develop into an urban area. New industries will be available at this point. Continue to research and invest so your urban center can reach the status of a small city.

From urban area to small city

[‘m uncertain of this part but I believe it’s something like this:]

To meet the requirements of a small city, more residents must move in and they must also hold certain jobs. The key is whether or not the residents will obtain those particular jobs.

[Original text: 住民数が更に増えて専門職を持った住民が数人いることが条件です。住民を専門職に転職させられるかがキーになります。]

From small city to metropolis

To reach of a metropolis, you will need many residents, many types of professions, as well as many different Specialty Districts.

Specialty Districts

Specialty Districts are created when compatible shops are placed near each other. For instance, when the Pachinko Parlor, Game Center, and Bowling Alley are built within the vicinity of one another, they will form the “Red-light District”.

The land value and commodity prices of the structures and shops involved in a Specialty District will increase greatly. Stores around them will also benefit.

There are also other districts such as the “Celebrity District”, “Gourmet District”, and “Student District”, etc. Joining districts together will allow you to achieve very high land value and commodity prices!

The Area of Effect of Specialty Districts

When a Specialty District is created, its effects also influences the surrounding buildings.

[Cannot translate the rest without guessing: 影響を受けるマスは専門街を中心に上下左右ナナメ各1マスずつです。
The Japanese Kairosoft wiki site also covers this at the start of the District combo list. There’s a little visual example too: http://wikiwiki.jp/kairopark/?%BA%E2%C8%B6%A5%BF%A5%A6%A5%F3%A5%BAV#ybf7f503
Although I think it’s illustrating single combos rather than the area of effect of a single combo.]

TIDBIT

After completing the game once, when you opt to create a new character for a new game, you will be able to select from the character graphics from many of the residents that were in the completed game. However, special/unique characters will not be available.

[Note that if you DO create a new character, it will overwrite your existing “first resident” and will become the “first resident” for subsequent new games as well.]

GAME TIPS

When a Specialty District is adjacent to a home, the land value of the home will rise which leads to a larger rent payment come end of March. Also, building shops around an Office may allow residents to discover new professions easier.

DATA THAT CARRIES OVER TO A NEW GAME

The stats, the job, and the house of the resident that you first created can be brought over to a new game (if you decide to continue using him/her) as well as store levels and the list of all the Specialty Districts that you’ve unlocked through the course of the game.

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[TRP] THE RESIDENT’S PROFILE

(First screen of the Resident Profile was included in the quoted section above.)

Er, not sure if it’s a glitch or not but the instruction on the bottom is meant for the item usage screen. Similarly, the “Move cursor up or down to select job” (I think it should actually be “change job” but whatever), only appears on the bottom of the first profile screen when you move the cursor over the occupation name. I wonder if Kairosoft simply forgot to put the instructions on the proper screen? :O

Things of note in the above screenshot:

• Types of homes play a large factor in land tax calculation as the larger/more expensive the home, the greater the tax on it. This means you’ll receive a larger chunk of money from the affected resident at the beginning of April when the taxes are due.
• Various pets provide bonuses of sorts. In this case, the dog increases diligence. (Not sure if this only happens as long as the pet is with the resident and whether it also gives a boost when obtaining Diligence points.)
• Big Spender and Bonus are related to auras. When a resident wanders out of his or her house in a yellow aura, he or she will go on a spending spree at a store (Big Spender) or receive a big fat pay at the office (Bonus).

As mentioned in the How to Play section, residents can only move a certain amount of steps away from their home. By default, the walking distance and max range are the same. The latter can be increased with different types of transportation or items like the Sports Drink (スポーツドリンク). As shown above, the resident has a bicycle which increases max movement range by 3.

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[CGJ] CHANGING JOBS

(The “hatsu” character probably should have been translated as “Beginner”. Oh well.)

Jobs are a big part of this game as they will provide the residents of your town with ample spending money. And it’s imperative that they spend since they contribute to a large source of revenue for your company.

To change jobs:

• Select a resident or his or her home on the map. You can also go into the Resident List (住民表) in the Info menu (情報) and choose the resident that way.
• In their profile, select the name of their current job. (It will always be in the peach-coloured rectangle.)

You will then be taken to the Job Change Challege window and presented with the list of current occupations available as well as their salary and the number of residents employed in each job (which is what the “In Town” means. I’m unsure if workers will eventually leave town on business trips or whatever).

In the sample screenshot above, the Topiarist is highlighted. Underneath it shows the rate of success of obtaining the job. As you scroll up and down the list, you will see the chance of success the resident has with each occupation. The Manager is in red as that is the selected resident’s current job.

After choosing the job, you will be taken to the next screen~

Every challenge costs money. If the resident fails, you will not receive that money back so make sure you can afford to take the challenge.

It seems that their stats are a determinant for the success rate. Unfortunately, at this moment, there is no list indicating high how stats have to be for a job candidate to succeed. (It most likely varies from job to job.) However, from looking at the stats in the screen, you can see that Hitoshi is lacking in Diligence and Talent.

You can judge whether or not stats are adequate for passing a challenge by looking at the symbols next to the stats. If you’ve played Grand Prix Story, these are the exact same symbols used to indicate the proficiency of tires on various terrain; a red circle means good, the green triangle is poor, and a blue X is terrible. I’ve yet to see the double circle, which means great or excellent, but it probably exists.

Once you’ve decided to go ahead with the challenge, choose Yes (はい).

Afterwards, the game will show a little progress bar as it decides whether or not the resident will pass.

In my case, he did! 😀 Good job, Hitoshi!

On the flip side of things, here’s a case where a resident will most likely fail:

Notice the difference in colour for the percentage rate and also note that Diligence has a blue X to it. This indicates that grandpa James here is severely lacking in that category. And even though he’s got red circles for the other stats, it’s not enough to to push his chance of success above 50%.

So did he fail?

Unfortunately, he did. 😦 To add insult to injury, James LOST a Diligence point too.

Sadly, losing a few stat points is a common occurrence so you should really think twice before committing to any challenges that have a low chance of success. There may be times when the resident doesn’t become shocked though. In such a circumstance, no points will be lost.

Other notes about jobs:

• When the Proficiency Level of a job reaches 100, the job is considered Mastered. Once mastered, you will be able to increase the limit for specific research categories. Which research categories are affected are indicated on the second page of both the Jobs window as well as the Job Change Challenge window.
• You can keep residents on jobs for as long as you like but it’s recommended that you switch them over to higher paying ones once a job is Mastered.
• For new jobs, try to allocate some residents to them so you can quickly master them.
• If you’re worried about a resident failing the challenge, save before going through with it. If he or she really doesn’t pass, then reload. XD

Here’s also a post elsewhere in this thread about the trends on success rates:

OMG. The farm is ADORABLE. *___* And Princess Peach’s castle was among the graphics in Edo Towns folder too. @_@ I think the Kairobot head in the sandbox looking place was also there. I wonder if they’ll be used in this game?

Anyway, the reason for this post is for a discovery I made about changing jobs. I’m leaving it out of my chunky first post since I don’t think it’s something really important to the gameplay.

I’ve noticed a little pattern in how the game determines the 15% success rate and 63% success rate. It seems that as long as a resident has at least one horrible stat (one of the blue X (X) next to it), the chance of success will always be 15%. For the 63% success rate, at least one stat would have a green triangle (△) next to them.

Figuring out the ideal stats for each job is insanely time-consuming as it requires constantly comparing stats between residents. I wish someone could just get into the code and check all the information for the jobs. XD

Anyway, I got this information:

For the Pâtissier job (バティシエ) – Possible minimum stats for IQ, Diligence, and Appeal is 50. (A diligence stat of 55 is still a red circle.) However, Talent needs to be over 70 to even get a 63% chance of success.

For the Pro Golfer job (プロゴルファー) – Both IQ and Talent need to be high. I’m guessing IQ needs to be around 75 for it to have a red circle next to it since 70 still had the triangle and 80 was a circle. For Talent, it’s probably over 70 as well. I couldn’t test this one since both the guys that had over 70 were already pro golfers. However, a 68 was a triangle and 56 was an X.

I chose to look at these two since they’re my highest paying jobs at the moment. The Pâtissier one is 320,000 yen while the golfer one is 400,000 yen.

Basically, you’ll want to identify the best candidates for a job by comparing stats. This is easily done on the third page of the list of Residents (住民表) from the Info menu (情報), which is the 4th heading on the main menu, as it will give you an overview of all the stats for all citizens.

If you pick one resident for a job and and see a certain stat value being evaluated with an X, look for a resident that has about an additional 5 – 10 points of that same stat value. Chances are, this other resident will have rate of success of 63% or higher.

Ahaha. Just looking at the Japanese wiki and apparently, one job is “Space Alien”. ^^; It’s the highest paying one at 990,000 yen. D:

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[CMB] COMBOING

This image was taken from Zaibatsu Towns 2 (http://kairosoft.net/mobile/zaibatu2.html) but it definitely still applies to this game.

The most important thing to note about combos (a.k.a. Specialty Districts) is that they are created within a 3 x 3 window and that it always “begins from the top of the window”.

If you look at the examples, the left and middle ones show combos that work as all necessary structures fit within the top three squares of the 3 x 3 window. In the middle example, A and C are actually large structures that take up 4 squares. (Think Zoo or Theme Park.) Due to the fact that their corners fell within the combo radius, a combo was made.

Finally, the right illustration is an example of an arrangement that doesn’t work as facility C doesn’t fit within the required 3 squares.

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[SRP] SELLING RESEARCH POINTS

(Oh wow. I didn’t even try to center the words. XD)

Not sure if he’ll swing by every second week of April in everyone’s game but Mr. Pumpkin will buy research points in exchange for money. There’s always a set amount of points (indicated at the top left hand side of the window) that you can distribute between the 4 categories.

Edit: It seems that Pumpkin will randomly drop by as the game progresses. I don’t know what the condition is that determines when he’ll show up.

The points to sell will always be in increments of 5.

The sell values will differ with each year. In the screenshot above, Food, Service and Recreation are high value which means you’ll get more money if you sell points from these categories. There may even be some years where the value is Normal/Regular.

On the bottom right, you’ll see the amount of money you’ll get from the quantity you’ve currently elected to sell. Note that you don’t HAVE to use up all the points but, I haven’t paid much attention to this service so I’m not sure if unused points will carry over to the next year or not.

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[TDP] TOWN DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

Despite the fact that the “Industry Discoveries” is highlighted in the screenshot, the focus of this section is the for the menu item under it. 😛

(Larger image is here.)

The game offers various types of projects to promote growth for the town and its citizens. While their effects are temporary (I’m not entirely certain this is the case for all of them since I’ve yet to unlock most of the projects ^^), they affect the entire town and can last for several weeks so they will help immensely in the short term. In fact, a short influx of money or research points can make a big difference for you in the long run as it could mean something like giving you the ability to quickly build Specialty Districts.

The following is the list of projects that can be unlocked in the game. All monetary values indicated are base costs as they will eventually increase:

(Original source: http://wikiwiki.jp/kairopark/?%BA%E2%C8%B6%A5%BF%A5%A6%A5%F3%A5%BAV)

[I’ve removed the money requirement for each project since I realized that it increases with each use. It would be appreciated if someone could provide the initial cost the Secondhand Book Fair~]

Bird Watching Committee (野鳥を眺める会)
Cost: 30 points from each research category
Effect: Increases maximum walking distance of residents
Duration: 13 weeksUnlock Condition: Available at the start of the game

Secondhand Book Fair (古本フェスティバル)
Cost: ???万 + 10 points from each research category
Effect: Residents will discover research points more often
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Available at the start of the game

Cats and Dogs Carnival (ワンニャンカーニバル)
[It’s literally Woof Meow Carnival but I have no idea what the hell “woof meow” is meant to be.]
Cost: 40 Food, 40 Hearts, 60 Recreation, and 60 Culture points
Effect: Residents take their pets on walks and hang around parks more often
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Available at the start of the game

Bonsai Championship (盆栽選手権)
Cost: 300万+ 50 Food, 80 Recreation, and 100 Culture points
Effect: Residents will work more often and the chances of getting a pay bonus increases
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Discover 2 types of professions

Local Manga Market (国内マンガマーケット)
Cost: 50 Food, 50 Service, 100 Recreation, and 80 Culture points
Effect: Causes residents to spend as much as they can
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Manga Artist (まんが家)

[Literally Excavation Blue Sky Market] (発掘青空マーケット)

[I’m totally stumped on the translation. I think it’s a play on another Kairosoft title known as 青空 発掘カンパニー: http://kairosoft.net/kairopark/hakkutu.html]

Cost: 800万 + 100 Food, Service, and Recreation Points and 120 Culture Points
Effect: Boosts Mr. Pumpkin’s purchase price for research points(?)
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Researcher (研究者)

Political and Economic Summit (政治経済サミット)
Cost: 1000万? + 180 Food, 160 Service, 180 Recreation, and 180 Culture points
Effect: Temporarily raises the land value of the entire town
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Scholar (学者) and Politician (政治家)

Japan Game Expo (日本ゲームデックス)
Cost: 800万 + 100 points from each research category
Effect: Residents will discover new professions easier
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Voice Actor (声優) and Programmer (プログラマー)

Space Research Council (宇宙研究評議会)
Cost: 1,000万 + 200 points from each research category
Effect: Residents will be given a temporary boost to all stats
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: Scholar (学者) and Pilot (パイロット)

Kairobot Neighbourhood Festival (町内カイロくん祭り)
Cost: 6,666万 + 500 points from each research category
Effect: A mysterious event!
Duration: 13 weeks
Unlock Condition: 1 Comedian (お笑い芸人), 1 Prime Minister (総理大臣) and 5 Recorder Players (たて笛奏者)

(Note: The Japanese wiki explains that this festival bestows one random resident with a mode of transportation (animal or vehicle), a cosplay set, or money.)

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[MSC] MISCELLANEOUS

Screenshots with translations:http://www.flickr.com/photos/8764128@N05/sets/72157627939248512/with/6268109830/

On building and planting & land value:

Holy crap! I JUST noticed that everything you’re trying to build/place is subject to land value. ^^;;;;;;

For example, the basic land value (i.e. empty space) is 500,000 yen and the Woods (森林) has a base cost of 100,000 yen. This means that 50万 + 10万 = final cost of 60万 for you to place the forest in the spot.

Likewise, the Bicycle Store (自転車屋) has a base cost of 120万 but it costs 170万 to actually build and place it.

I feel so dumb for not realizing this even after a few years of building. =___=;; And I ONLY noticed this when I was trying to place a Woods when I had 30万 available to spend. I kept wondering why the game was flagging me for insufficient funds.

and

Random discoveries:
Pumpkin keeps randomly appearing every year now. One year, he showed up in May, and this year, he appeared in February. What determines this guy’s schedule!?
ENSURE THAT COMBOS AFFECT HOMES. OMG. The land value skyrockets which means you make lots of money when the residents pay rent. *___* (This is mentioned in the game’s “manual” too. ^^)
On that thing about how land value affects the amount of pay to place something: I just built the farm which has a base cost of 800,000 yen. However, its actual placement value is 1000万 (800万 + 200万) since the thing takes up 4 spaces. (4 x base land value which is 50万).

To complicate matters, combos that raise land value ALSO factor into this. For the area I’m trying to place the farm, the Spa District (温泉街) combo, which raises land value by 20%, is causing me to pay more! The funny thing is, if 2 squares of the farm touch the combo, I’ll need to pay 1074万 since the land value ends up being 274万. But if I place the farm off by one square, it’ll be 1026万 (land value at 226万).

Since I am beyond horrible at math, I can’t figure out how the game is dividing the 20% (assuming that that’s even being done).
Roads and paths are the only things not subject to varying land value (as far as I can tell).
Trees and other scenic things (like the rock) do not get affected by land value increases from combo

House upgrades and roads:

Oh! I have some information about that! ^O^

As emma mentioned earlier, residents with 40万円 in their savings triggers the upgrade to the detached home (戸建). It’s the white one with the orangey-red roof. A regular ol’ pathway (あぜ道) near the house should do the trick~!

I can’t recall exactly but I think 80万円 is the next trigger. But you need the paved road (舗装道路) near it for it to happen. The house will become that tiny apartment looking thing which is oddly referred to as a mansion (マンション). Apparently, it’s the Japanese term for apartment??

The next one comes at 155万円 and it also requires the brick path (レンガ道). You get the large palatial residence (大豪邸) which reminds me of the Lincoln Memorial structure. ^^

This is the highest I’ve gotten the upgrades too.

Oh yeah, sometimes, a resident will do the “Excuse me …” bit and tell you that they want to upgrade their home and then continue to give you the information of what road type is required. ^^ (Of course, being everything is in Japanese, it’s kind of hard to tell. ^^

Additional Bonuses from Plants and Trees:

^_^~ Every item with のタネ at the end is a “seed”. The yellow ball is a Land Value Seed (lit. Seed of Land Value Up).

Ugh. Turns out specific trees and plants actually do help residents discover research points. Another one produces seed items or items in general, I think.

Edit:

The trees and plants in question are:

実のなる木 (Uh, Fruit Bearing Tree??)
Automatically produces items. Items will be available in the first week of December. However, I planted 4 but only received 2 items. In a previous reload, I think I got 2 seeds and a cosplay item but only at 2 of these trees.

So the moral is not to spam these type of trees since having more of them doesn’t mean you’ll get more items.

Azalea (つつじ), Rock (大きな岩), Hydrangea (あじさい), Bamboo (竹林), Sunflowers (ひまわり), and ウメモドキ (Winterberry)
May obtain research points when passing by.

Also, it seems that a rule of thumb is that if you see that there’s a limit to how many of a certain tree or plant you have in the Build menu, there’s a good chance that they have some special effect.

As with other Kairosoft games, the Cherry Trees are limited since although they don’t provide either of the bonuses above, they probably still give the highest amount of land value increase compared to any other scenic items. Of course, it’s only the highest during the Spring months.