How to Play SaltaVidas

You start at 18 with $75 to your name, a high school diploma, no job, and nowhere to live — and no idea what you're doing. So: just like real life. The difference is that your character keeps aging whether you're watching or not — one game day every ~2 real hours — so you can check in a few times a day, make some decisions, and walk away. The game does not require your constant attention. It just quietly judges your choices in the background.

The story art and event narratives are AI-generated, directed by a human with actual opinions. Some careers in here may be under AI pressure in the real world. That's fine. That's kind of the point. Read more about that.

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The First Thing to Do

Get a job. Seriously, do this first. Open the Career tab, find something green (green means you qualify), and hit Apply. Fast food, retail, dishwasher, janitor — doesn't matter. You need income. Everything else flows from income.

Your Vital Stats (Don't Let These Hit Zero)

Six numbers run your life. Neglect them and things start going sideways — slowly at first, then all at once.

Stat	What It Is	What Happens at Zero
Health	Medical wellness	Death. Actual death. You get a eulogy.
Hunger	How recently you've eaten	Health starts draining. Eat something.
Thirst	How hydrated you are	Health drains too — and heat makes it worse. Drink water.
Energy	How rested you are	Everything you do works worse.
Hygiene	How clean you are	People notice. Shower. It's free at home and good for morale.
Fitness	Physical capability	Physical jobs and military careers flag you.

Hunger, thirst, and energy are the ones you'll manage most actively. Eat when you're hungry, drink when you're thirsty, sleep when you're tired. This is not complicated advice, but it turns out it applies in video games too. (Happiness lives over in your Life stats — let it tank and your work and family will let you know.)

One more to watch, and this one works backwards: Stress. It sits in your Life stats and you want it low, not high. Long hours, juggling several jobs at once, running on empty, poor health, and money trouble all pile it on; a calm day, rest, and anything genuinely fun bring it back down. Let it run high for too long and it starts dragging your happiness — and eventually your health — down with it. Don't grind yourself into the ground.

Weather — It's Not Just Decoration

The sky overhead is real weather: a thermometer (or the temperature next to the clock) shows how hot or cold it is right now, and the Calendar forecast gives you each day's high and low. It's not there to look pretty. Well — it is. But it also does things.

Step outside in bad weather and it costs you:

• Cold and wet — you can catch a cold, the flu, or something nastier. Illness drains energy and happiness for days.
• Hot and sunny — you dehydrate faster and burn energy, and if you let your thirst bottom out you can get heat exhaustion. Drink before you're parched.

Indoors you're fine — home, work, the mall, a café. The catch: if you're homeless, there is no indoors, and the weather hits about twice as hard. Getting a roof over your head isn't just about pride; it's about not getting pneumonia in February. Dress for the forecast, basically — except the dressing part is "go inside."

The Night Sky Is Real (Yes, Really)

Look up. The stars, the planets, the sun and the moon are all in their actual positions for the date you're playing and the city you live in — and they drift across the sky as your life ticks by, exactly like the real thing. The moon goes through its real phases, on the real day your city would see them.

Open the Calendar and you'll find an Eclipses page that predicts the next solar and lunar eclipse visible from every city — with local start and end times and how long it lasts. These are real, computed predictions, not flavor. So yes: you can plan a trip to another city to chase an eclipse, watch the sky darken, the stars come out, and the sun's corona flare at totality. We did the orbital mechanics so you don't have to. (There's also an orrery, because of course there is.)

Getting a Better Job (You Can't Buy Your Way Up)

There are 250+ jobs across 22 career categories and 10 tiers. You advance by actually qualifying — education, certifications, work experience, and in some cases specific skills you can only get by working a related job first. Money helps indirectly (paying for degrees and certs) but you cannot just buy a promotion. The game takes this seriously.

The Career Ladder in Plain English

• Service: Fast food → manager → corporate → CEO
• Trades: Apprentice → journeyman → contractor → your own empire
• Tech: Junior developer → engineer → CTO
• Healthcare: Medical assistant → nurse → surgeon (takes a while)
• Military: Enlisted → NCO → commissioned officer → general (there are PT tests)
• Legal: Paralegal → lawyer → judge
• Education, Finance, Science, Media, Sports, Public Service — all have their own ladders
• Religious vocations: Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Islamic, Buddhist paths — yes, really

Getting a Raise (Without Switching Jobs)

You don't have to change jobs to earn more. There are two ways your pay goes up where you are:

• Ask for a raise. After you've put in enough time at a job — and as long as your career satisfaction is decent — an "Ask for a Raise" action shows up among your work activities. Use it when you've been performing well.
• Quarterly performance reviews. Every few months your employer reviews you. A strong review can hand you a raise on its own — no asking required.

Both come down to performance. Doing your job's work activities, showing up, and keeping your character in good shape build performance up; chronic lateness, missing shifts, or showing up in rough condition drag it down. Strong performance now sticks — keep it high and the raises follow. (Raises top out at a job's pay band; past that, the move is a promotion to the next rung.)

Education — The Most Important Purchase You'll Make

Open the Life tab → Education. Degrees and certifications unlock job tiers. Without them, you'll hit a ceiling fast.

• Pay tuition upfront. Choose a schedule: full-time (faster, blocks daytime work), evening (slower, can still work days), or weekend (slowest, keeps your weekdays free).
• Attend class activities to maintain your GPA. GPA below 1.5 and you drop out — tuition gone, no credential. Keep your energy and hunger up while studying.
• A 3.5+ GPA earns honors. Doesn't unlock anything specific yet, but it feels good and the game notices.

Money — It Goes Fast, It Comes Slowly, Respect It

Paychecks are net pay (after simplified withholding). They land on payday. Everything else drains your account continuously: rent, utilities, food, transport, loan payments. The Finance tab shows you where it all goes and whether you're solvent.

Credit Score and Loans

You start at 650. Stay in good standing — no missed payments — and your score heals over time on its own, climbing fastest when it's low and leveling off as it approaches great-credit territory. Miss a payment and it drops fast (the penalty gets worse each time you miss the same loan), and that passive recovery pauses until you're current again. Hit 750+ and you get the best rates. Drop below 600 and lenders charge you double. Multiple loans are allowed, but the game enforces a 36% debt-to-income limit. Don't take on more than your paycheck can carry.

And your savings earn interest — money you park in savings grows a little every year, so building a cushion actually pays. It's slow and steady, but it compounds.

If You're Struggling

Low income qualifies you for food assistance (SNAP-style) and health coverage (Medicaid-style) — simplified game models based on real USDA and HHS figures. Check the Life tab. These systems exist specifically so you can survive the early grind without the game becoming impossible.

Insurance — Boring Until It Isn't

Health and auto coverage quietly change how much those expensive "bad day" events actually cost you. When a covered emergency hits — a medical bill, a car accident — your plan picks up part of the tab, and the rest counts toward a deductible and out-of-pocket max that the whole household shares and that resets each plan year. Employer coverage comes from one job you choose (over in Finance → Benefits), and there are Medicaid-like and military TRICARE-like options too. It feels like money for nothing right up until the month it saves your character from ruin.

Life Credits — Earn Them Daily

Life Credits (LC) are a premium currency you earn just by showing up. No wallet required. Spend them on convenience perks on your home tab.

📅 Login streak: Log in every real day to build your streak. Each consecutive day earns more LC (up to 4 LC/day). Miss days and your earning potential drops, but you keep whatever LC you've already earned.

📺 Rewarded ads (coming soon): Watch a short ad for +1 LC.

Perks are temporary convenience boosts — Energy Snacks, Focus Boosts, and more. Never permanent advantages.

Games — Play for Fun, Climb for Perks

Open the 🎮 Games tab — one place to browse every game, see its perk and where you rank, and start playing. The library is big: classic card games (War, Hearts, Spades, Cribbage, Bridge and more), strategy board games (Tic-Tac-Toe, Connect Four, Checkers, Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe, Backgammon, and Chess), and solo puzzles (Sudoku, Minesweeper, Word Guess, 2048, Nonogram, Hangman, Mahjong, Crossword), plus fast-reflex arcade games (Dino Dash, Slither, Peg Drop, Myriapod, Gold Runner, Astro Assault). They're free to play and a fine way to unwind — but they're also more than a diversion.

Tap ▶ Play on any game and you're in. For the board games you pick a difficulty — Easy, Medium, or Hard — and drop straight into a match against the computer (Easy and Medium bots make real mistakes, so you can actually win); or choose “Play a friend” to host a table at home and invite someone. Where you can play: Solitaire and Hearts go anywhere you are (and are the only two you can sneak at a desk job); the rest play at home or a casino. No games during class — focus up. And real-money play stays at the casino (21+).

Every game has its own leaderboard, and the best players earn something real. Finish in a game's top three and you hold that game's perk — a genuine, lasting boost to your character's life, not a one-time trinket. You keep it as long as you keep your spot, so it's a reason to actually get good. A few examples:

• Sudoku → Unflappable — real stress resilience: day-to-day pressure builds your Stress more slowly.
• Minesweeper → Careful — bad luck hits softer: when a negative event strikes (a surprise bill, a robbery, a health setback), it does noticeably less damage.
• 2048 → Compounding — your savings interest and your credit-score recovery both grow faster.
• Word Guess → Articulate — your interview prep pays off more: prepare for an interview and a sharper pitch gives you an even bigger edge.
• Chess → Longevity — the marquee prize: healthy living banks extra years of life faster, so you live longer to grow your bloodline.
• Tic-Tac-Toe → Quick Off the Mark — shorter commutes and travel time. (Checkers, Backgammon, Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe, Hangman, Mahjong, Nonogram, and Crossword each grant their own perk too.)
• The card games grant their own perks too — higher income, faster learning, stronger relationships, cheaper living, and more.

The leaderboard shows exactly what each placing earns before you sit down, and you can always see where you rank in every game (even dead last) plus the full standings. Beating real people counts for full credit; beating the computer still ranks you — and the harder the bot you beat, the more it's worth, so a Hard win climbs faster than farming easy ones. The harder, marquee games hand out the strongest perks.

Going Out, Drinking & Consequences

You can drink — at a bar, a club, or your own Home Bar once you install it. The game won't stop you. But it's a simulation, so it keeps score: get drunk and you'll feel it in your Vitals (Buzzed → Tipsy → Drunk → Wasted) and again the next morning as a hangover. Push your luck and the consequences get real — drive drunk and you risk a DUI; show up to work drunk and you get sent home; keep it up and you can get fired, even blackballed. The good news: there's always a road back.

It's a whole little arc — vices, mistakes, and earning your way back through references or rehabilitation at the Community Center. Read the full guide: Drinking, Consequences & Second Chances →

Fitness — The One That Actually Has Depth

Fitness follows a real exercise science curve called supercompensation. Here's the short version: exercise actually drops your fitness for a day or two (your body is being broken down), then it overshoots your previous level as you recover (days 3–7). Miss that window and you slowly drift back to baseline. Train consistently and fitness climbs over time.

Recovery quality depends on how well you sleep, eat, and hydrate in the days after training. Junk food and alcohol cut your gains. Home-cooked meals and a good night's sleep lock them in. The My Health tab shows you where you are in the cycle.

You don't need a gym or any equipment. At home, on the street, or in the park you can do bodyweight work — stretch, a quick jumping-jacks-and-pushups set, a full calisthenics circuit, or a brutal HIIT session. Each activity shows its intensity and the rough fitness it'll build before you commit. Intensity matters: a light stretch or walk barely nudges fitness (but you can do it daily), while heavy lifting, a hard calisthenics circuit, or HIIT drives the real gains — and demands real recovery (up to 3 days) before another hard session pays off. Reaching elite fitness takes consistent vigorous work, not casual movement.

Family — Optional, Meaningful, and a Little Stressful

Relationships build up in stages: you can start dating, grow it into a committed relationship, get engaged, and — at 22+ — marry. Moving in together and sharing finances are explicit choices you make along the way, not automatic. A partner can help: a shared household has one earner at a time, so a partner can chip in a modest contribution when you're between jobs — but it's never a second full salary stacked on yours, and it doesn't pad your career earnings or the leaderboard. Partnership buys you breathing room, not a cheat code.

Once married, kids can happen — biological (a "we're expecting" event after ~1 game year) or through adoption (costs money, has a waiting period). Family members have their own happiness. Neglect them and stress builds. Neglect them long enough and the consequences are realistic and uncomfortable.

You don't have to build a family. But it changes the late game. When you die, every living descendant is a continuation option — a chance to inhabit their life and keep the bloodline going. No descendants and you start a new bloodline from scratch. The game is gentler if you've been building a family tree.

Death — Don't Fear It, It's Not the End

Your character dies somewhere between 72 and 90, depending on health choices and a little luck. When they do, you get a life score — a summary of everything they earned, built, lost, and left behind. Then you pick a descendant (if any exist) and inhabit their life. The generation counter goes up. The bloodline continues.

A Few Things Worth Knowing

• The game runs while you're away. One day every ~2 real hours. Check in 2–3 times a day — that's the sweet spot.
• Work shifts happen automatically if you don't show up manually, and you won't get fired just for idling. But you can get fired for cause — chronic lateness, tanked performance, or showing up drunk — and once you're fired you can't reapply right away. More on getting fired, blackballed, and earning your way back →
• Housing matters. You start with no home — on the street — so getting a roof over your head is an early priority (and shields you from the weather). Better housing then unlocks activities — home gym, sauna, game room, proper kitchen. These aren't just cosmetic; they affect what your character can do each day.
• The Work Harder button gives +50% income for a tick but costs health and happiness. Use it when you need money fast, not as a default.
• Don't ignore the Here tab. It surfaces what you should probably do next. When you don't know what to do, it usually has a suggestion.
• You can invite friends. Registered players get an invite link. Friends who join give you a temporary income boost, and every player in your network grows your Social Influence — a small permanent bonus.
• The night sky does something. The five naked-eye planets — Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn — move through the sky on their real orbital cycles. When one enters retrograde, it glows with a pulsing ring. Each retrograde gives your character a small daily boost: Mars lifts Career Satisfaction, Venus lifts Happiness, Mercury lifts Energy, Jupiter lifts Financial Security, Saturn lifts Legacy. The rarer the retrograde, the stronger the effect. If you notice a stat bar glowing, a planet has your back.

Ready to Start?

Your life is waiting. No downloads, no account required — just play. The game runs indefinitely on a machine in someone's living room, which honestly feels appropriate for a game about the unpredictability of life.

Start Your Life →

Don't See Your Career?

SaltaVidas has 250+ jobs and more are added regularly. If there's a career path you'd love to see — plumber to plumbing contractor to plumbing empire, wildlife biologist, forensic accountant, long-haul trucker, underwater welder, rodeo clown — send it in. Every suggestion gets read by the actual human who makes this game.

Submit a Career Idea →