Saudade 1999 is an indie simulation game set in a small countryside town during 1999. Players open and run a business alongside friends while balancing daily operations with personal time in a nostalgic environment that includes arcades, pool halls, and period-appropriate technology.
Gameplay
The core loop centers on managing a chosen business from opening to closing each day. Activities include stocking shelves, serving customers, hiring staff, and handling transactions to keep operations running smoothly. Outside business hours, players explore leisure options such as playing fully featured games in an arcade that features racing, fighting, and rhythm titles, or using a PC loaded with floppy disk and CD-ROM games. Additional pastimes include pool, bowling, darts, air hockey, and the card game truco. The setting incorporates radios, vinyl records, and CRT televisions to reinforce the late-1990s atmosphere.
Transportation plays a key role in expanding activities beyond the shop. Players drive vans, pickups, trucks, and cars through town streets and neighborhoods, managing deliveries that involve loading boxes into truck beds or securing gas cylinders. Traffic, local police presence, and varying districts add layers to these runs. At night the town changes character, with streets that feel less safe and encounters that differ from daytime routines.
Exploration extends to the wider community. Players can participate in street football, fly kites, or observe the subway arriving at the station. Landmarks such as a school, police station, church, supermarket, and affluent neighborhoods provide points of interest for group outings or solo wandering. The game supports both first-person and third-person perspectives, with full support for Brazilian Portuguese and English.
Game Modes
Online co-op forms the primary multiplayer structure, allowing groups of friends to operate the same business together. Participants divide responsibilities such as purchasing stock, sales, hiring decisions, and end-of-day tasks while sharing the same town space. The co-op experience extends to leisure activities and deliveries, where players coordinate routes or compete in arcade games and table sports during downtime.
Business selection adds variety within the co-op framework. Available options include a grocery store, video rental shop, LAN house, and additional types that players can choose at the start. Each business type influences daily routines and customer interactions while still allowing the same shared exploration and driving mechanics.
Exploration and Atmosphere
The town serves as a living backdrop that rewards curiosity. Streets connect different neighborhoods with distinct vibes, from quiet residential areas to busier commercial zones. Deliveries send players across these routes at all hours, exposing them to changing conditions and occasional surprises after dark. Leisure spots scattered throughout the map encourage breaks from work, turning free time into opportunities for group activities or individual relaxation with classic games and media.
Period details help ground the experience. Floppy disks and early CD games on the in-game PC, along with physical media like records and CRT displays, create a tangible sense of the era. Outdoor elements such as kites in the sky or impromptu football matches further populate the world with everyday 1999 moments.
Is It Worth Playing?
Saudade 1999 suits players who enjoy simulation games focused on business management and shared social activities in a co-op setting. The mix of operational tasks, vehicle-based deliveries, and varied leisure options provides a steady rhythm of work and relaxation. Those drawn to nostalgic recreations of late-1990s small-town life, complete with specific Brazilian cultural touches like truco, will find the environment particularly engaging. The game supports both focused group play and more open-ended exploration with friends, making it a solid choice for anyone seeking a relaxed yet detailed indie simulation experience on PC.
