The Shelf

The Shelf

Ten applicants. Eight flats. One rubber stamp.

The Shelf is a small British Twine concept game about housing applications, council flats, paperwork, and people trying to get by.

You play as the newly appointed Housing Allocation Officer for Fair Oaks Court, a run-down block of flats in the fictional town of Sunshine Heights.

Officially, it is called Fair Oaks Court.

Locally, everyone calls it The Shelf.

Built in the 1960s and once seen as the future of modern housing, the building has spent years declining into boarded-up flats, rumours, complaints, neglect and council paperwork. Now, with a regeneration grant and a handful of refurbished flats, the council wants it reopened.

Unfortunately, someone has to decide who gets to live there.

That someone is you.

About The Game

In this prototype version, you will review a set of housing applications and decide which applicants should be offered a flat.

Each application contains forms, notes, references and details that may or may not tell the full story.

The question is simple:

Who deserves a home?

But the answer may not be.

What To Expect

• A short Twine-based prototype
• British social realism
• Dry humour
• Housing application paperwork
• Character-led decision making
• A late-1990s / early-2000s setting
• A run-down council block with a history
• Ordinary people in difficult situations

This is not a full management sim.

It is not a city builder.

It is not about saving the world.

It is about reading between the lines, making difficult choices, and deciding who gets one of the few available flats.

Current Status

This is an early prototype / concept version of The Shelf.

The aim is to test the core idea:

Can a game about housing applications, paperwork and ordinary people feel meaningful?

Future versions may expand the building, the residents, and the consequences of your decisions, but this first version is intentionally small and focused.

Created By

The Shelf is being developed by Richie under the ByteSize Gaming name.