Welcome to the world of Recettear!

The first thing I suggest you do, before you start the game, is to run the configuration utility. You can get to this by clicking "Play" on your Steam client and choosing "Launch Configuration Tool".

This will show you a number of the technical options available for running the game, as well as give you an overview of the controls. Don't worry if you don't understand all the options/controls -- you shouldn't need to mess with them unless things go wrong or feel weird when you run the game.

Oops, I just jumped in, and now I can't figure out how to play it! What are the controls?

(Well you can always quit the game and run the config first. :P Anyway...)

This game defaults to ZXCV + arrow keys for its keyboard controls. (This is a common control scheme in Japanese indie games and some other games.) You can edit the controls in the config.

The game also works with gamepad (though I can't comment on it personally since I don't use one).

Why can't I fullscreen this?

The game might have some trouble running in fullscreen on Windows 10. Win10 apparently breaks native fullscreening for a number of games, unfortunately. I don't have Win10, but someone who has it recommends Borderless Gaming -- see this thread for more details.

How does this game even work? Is there a manual? I can't find it! Help!

The manual is located in the same folder as the game files -- in your Steam\steamapps\common\Recettear folder, there should be a subfolder called "manual", and in it, a file called manual.htm . Double-clicking that should open it in a browser, which will allow you to navigate through the manual.

How do I save the game? Does it autosave?

The game doesn't autosave, but you can save during the intermissions between time slots. You can also save when you're in a dungeon, but the save only counts you as before you enter the dungeon. To save the game, bring up the menu and select the save option. You also get to choose what slot to save your game to, so you can use multiple saves if you want. (Reloading saves to affect the RNG has limited effect, though.)

Quick tip on time management

It takes you no time to travel between the shop and the Adventurer's Guild, despite the Adventurer's Guild looking really far away, but if you go to any of the other town locations, it takes up one time slot the way normally going to town does.

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If you've got more questions, feel free to post them here.