Getting started
Summertime Saga is a dating game which allows you to explore places, meet interesting characters, and play various minigames. In order for you to fully enjoy your adventure, we invite you to take a look at the gameplay advice given on this page.
Contents
General advice
Talk to people! (And when I say talk, I really mean listen!)
Most of this game is about interacting with the different characters, and the dialogue is the main way to receive information about what you should do next. Pay attention and act on any hints you get, even when the main character is just talking to himself.
Go places and click on stuff
Explore different locations on the map: look all around for interactable objects and additional screens. Things you can click on become highlighted when you move your cursor over them, so move your mouse all over the place. See the sections § Map and § Location for more info.
Come back at night (or the next day… or just later in the game)
Revisit a character or location at a different time of day to see if anything changes. The biggest changes happen between daytime and nighttime, but you should also pay attention to the difference between morning and afternoon. Also check in every once in a while to see if anything has changed based on the day of the week or previous events you have completed. See the sections § Time of day and § Day of the week for more info.
Come back with money
The solution to many game's objectives is to buy an item from the various shops in the mall, and that means you're going to have to take on some summer jobs. Until the very last stages of the game, you'll always need money for something; so if you have some free time during the day, go earn some! See the section § Money for more info.
Level up your stats
Another barrier between you and tits is low stats. Many dialogues and objectives rely on your skills. In order to progress, take some time to train yourself! See the section § Stats Tracker for more info.
Cheat mode
The cheat mode is designed to make it easier and faster to progress in Summertime Saga. That's why it's best suited for returning players. The choice to opt in is proposed in the first screens of a new game, it cannot be modified during the game. The changes implemented are:
- The starting money is increased to $999.999, enough to buy all items and finish all routes.
- The four stats are already maxed, thus allowing the player to ignore all trainings.
- The majority of minigames can be skipped.
Cheat mode has any effect on the stories except for one scene with Roxxy during the shooting range minigame.
User Interface
Summertime Saga user interface is displayed as a HUD in the upper part of the screen. This interface is permanent and only clears during cutscenes and minigames.
Map
The map gives access to the town map and lets you move around by selecting a building or place. It's unlocked on the first in‐game day. When it's disabled in sublocations or occasionally during certain events, the icon then appears greyed out.
On the open map, it's replaced by that of a bed for an instant teleportation inside the main character's bedroom in one click.
Location
With 30 locations in the game, and more than twice as many sublocations, it's essential to keep an eye on the location information, or you may quickly get lost.
Day of the week
Each week is split into seven days from Monday to Sunday. The exact day of the week rarely matters – basically, attention is required if a character or message tells that an event happens on a specific day of the week. But weekends are quite different from the rest of the week. On Saturday and Sunday:
- School is closed. The students are doing something else and any quests that takes place in school has to wait until Monday. As a consequence, if a character refuses to help because you have to go to school, he may be more receptive on weekends.
- There's a service at the church each morning.
- Mayor Rump has a stage set up at the mall.
- Lots of little dialogue differences.
- At least one secret event can't happen.
Also, the telescope in the bedroom is not reliable as this object is still under development.
Time of day
Each day is split into four periods of time: morning, afternoon, evening, and late night. The most obvious changes are between the daytime and nighttime periods, but they all work a bit differently. Some differences:
- Daytime versus nighttime screens.
- All locations open morning and afternoon; some locations still open in the evening; many locations closed at late night.
- Quest items may be available only at nighttime, or only during daytime.
- Sneaking into places are done in the evening but no actions are allowed at late night.
- Characters follow a routine; for examples students are at school in the morning and practice their activities in the afternoon.
The characters' pages help to find out where they are located at a specific time of day. Note that these locations may change depending on the route played on.
Money
You won't go far in Summertime Saga without money. To inflate your wallet, the Diane's garden minigame is available from the first day, for a wage around $90 per minigame. As your story with the lady progresses, you will get a raise for the milk delivery. Take the opportunity to invest in a delivery bike and you will be able to work for Tony's Pizza. Last but not least, the fishing minigame rewards you with fish to sell at the pier.
Money can be deposited at the bank using ATM. Interest will then be paid to you every week, and a letter will be received in the main character's mailbox.
Four other features are available from the Phone menu by a single click on the smartphone. This icon displays dynamic notifications for new achievements and new messages.
Stats Tracker
The Stats Tracker presents the main character's skills. Four stats have to be improved to unlock the storylines:
- Dexterity — Follow Master Somrak's instructions in the gym.
- Strength — Train with Kevin in the gym. Talk to Kevin in the school cafeteria, then convince Erik to trade with him.
- Intelligence — Play the Maze Runner minigame on the computer in the main character's bedroom. You must have it fixed beforehand with the parts sold at Consum-R.
- Charisma — Win rap battles in the park at night.
Goal Tracker
The Goal Tracker is a reminder of the current objective for each route. Note that this feature is still under development and does not include hints for every routes. Don't worry as some of them can persist after you've completed the route. The image of the respective character disappears when his or her route is finished.
Achievements
Achievements get unlocked as you progress in the game, complete routes or find secrets.
Text Messaging
The Text Messaging feature is represented by a speech bubble. From time to time, you will receive messages from other characters. You will then have to open the corresponding message by clicking on its preview in order to progress to the next step since this behavior is mandatory.
Inventory
Pregnancy
In the course of the love stories, player is able to make a woman pregnant. From then on, the progress of some routes are paused until this event ends. The pregnancy evolves over 4 weeks until the birth. Another 2–3 weeks have to pass until the baby is sent to daycare and normal activities can be resumed. The phone messages must be read as they are mandatory steps.
Pills for pregnancy planning are available at the clinic:
- Birth control pills prevent pregnancy, reducing the chance of conception to 0%. You have to question Roz about the schedule on the 1st floor; then use the phone on the 2nd floor and get the storage card near the counter. You can now take the drug from the closet inside the storage room on the 2nd floor.
- Fertility pills raise the chance of conception from 20% to 40%. They can be acquire after finishing Diane's route. First you have to talk to the nurse on the 2nd floor, then to Roz on the 1st floor, and finally enter a room on the 3rd floor where you meet Dr. Priya Singh after searching the cases.
The drugs are used by clicking on the items inside the inventory. Their effects are permanent but not definitive, since each type of pill cancels the effect of the other.
Cookie Jar
The cookie jar allows you to check and replay the animated scenes previously unlocked. It can be accessed from the Main Menu of the game. The content is persistent and won't be erased when you begin a new game.
Change log
Curious to know what's new in the game? The change log displays the version history and the changes made to Summertime Saga since its very first release. The list can also be consulted from the game home screen.
Saves and persistent data file
Saves and persistent data file are stored in these locations:
- Windows:
<SS-game-folder>\game\savesand%AppData%\RenPy\SummertimeSaga - Android:
Android/data/summer.time.saga/files/saves - Mac:
/Users/USERNAME/Library/Renpy/SummertimeSaga(folder may be hidden) - Linux:
<SS-game-folder>/game/savesand$HOME/.renpy/SummertimeSaga - Other:
%USERPROFILE%\.renpy\SummertimeSaga
Save file naming
Save files look like 1-5-LT1.save. The naming format is as follows pageNumber-pageSlotNumber-LT1.save. For example, 1-5-LT1.save is the save file for the 5th slot on the 1st page, and 2-3-LT1.save is the save file for the 3rd slot on the 2nd page, and so on.
1-5-LT1 (1).save is not a valid save file. In this case, the last part "(1)" from the name of the file must be removed to use it.
Android installation
Summertime Saga app for android devices is not available on Google Play Store. It must be downloaded from the official website then installed manually. Here are the steps to follow.
- Removed all previous installs of the game.
- Make sure you have at least 2GB of free space available on your device; 1GB is required for downloading, another 1GB is recommended for the installation and the future saves.
- You may also need to disable Google Play Protect: open Play Store application, tap on Menu button and select Play Protect option. Disable the options Scan device for security threats.
- Download the last version of Summertime Saga on the official website exclusively. Private download servers are provided for Patreon contributors. Choose ANDROID platform and validate.
- Open the download folder of the web browser, and click on the file whose name begins with
SummertimeSagaand ends with.apk. Do not install the game on an SD card. It won't launch from an external storage. - Enable "Unknown sources" setting on your device:
- On Android Nougat or lower: The exact names of the settings entries may vary, but the overall process should be similar. Navigate to your device's Settings menu, then look for an entry titled either Security or Lock screen and security. Simply tick the box or toggle the switch next to Unknown sources, then press OK on the popup.
- On Android Oreo or higher: When you launch Summertime Saga install file, you'll be prompted to allow the permission. Tap Settings on the prompt, then toggle the switch next to Allow from this source on the following screen. Hit your back button, then you can resume installation.
- When the install is completed, open your app folder.
