Business Simulator

I have just finished a business degree in which we had to do plenty of 'simulations' of what it is like to run a new business, taking it to a successful position in the market.
It's pretty embarrassing that Business Simulator is probably better than a lot of the programs that we were using to get a proper qualification!
Now, Business Simulator is definitely not the flashiest of programs. Do not expect anything remotely resembling 'graphics' as we'd understand them now. Fortunately, it's not really needed here.

The important thing is that the economic models underneath are still as good now as they were back in the days of way back when, when this was all put together.
The game takes your little business from when it is first launched to its initial public offering (IPO) on the stock market. In there you have to make sound business decisions based largely on internal memos that you receive as well as the sort of financial reports that one might expect when running a business. You have both process decisions and 'make decisions' (the biggies) in the game, with increasing options as your company, and its competitors progress closer to the elusive IPO level.
Billed as an executive training tool when it first came out, Business Simulator is surprisingly compelling even for those entirely unconnected with business. I rather think of it as akin to a football management game, only with a different way of ultimately keeping score - how much money your company is or isn't making at each point in the game compared with your competitors.
As a nice little diversion from the frustrations of the actual work of a business degree, Business Simulator was a game that I could reasonably play without feeling guilty about goofing off - in fact it looks similar enough to real work that on occasion I could even play it in labs during real classes!
The interface for making decisions looks pretty primitive, but after having used it for some time, it is easy to vouch for Business Simulator as being one of those overlooked gems - a game where all the work has gone on 'under the bonnet' to make sure it works right, rather than worrying too much about impressing with flash gimmicks. Give Business Simulator a try - you just might like it. Corporate greed forever!