How do layouts, popularity, and scenery work?

Question

This game is pretty complex :-)

I understand the price, but then there is popularity and scenery. Popularity seems to indeed increase the popularity of the facility, but what does scenery do?

Plus there are the layouts effects which give you hearts that boost both popularity and price (but I had trouble determining the effects). Do they really boost the popularity and price, and does that count into pop./price shown on the first info tab?

What are the good layouts for baths and rooms?

Answer 1

Scenery increases the pop of the facility and the satisfaction a customer gets after using it. This is particularly important for guests. Layout effects occur when you place compatible facilities near one another or incompatible ones. They do not have any effect on popularity or price but they have an effect on the bonus, AKA the 2nd facility tab. Most people tend to focus on bath layouts; I have a pretty decent layout for a bath (F) which will give you, in terms of compatibility, 5 for YTH, 5 for ADLT and 4.5 for SNR but only 1 for GRP. As for the bath next to it, same bonuses bu only 4 for SNR.

Answer 2

Popularity - Popularity points are cumulatively used to determine your inn's popularity. The more total popularity you have, the greater the number of guests that will visit your inn regularly.

Scenery - Scenery directly affects the amount of satisfaction points a guest gets from using the facility. Decorative objects provide different amounts of scenery points, and facilities directly next to natural decorations receive more scenery points than facilities places further from the decorations.

Layouts - Utilizing layouts allow you to maximize the number of facilities that receive bonuses from placing units within 3 tiles of each other. Layouts can be used to increase price, popularity and scenery in facilities.

An example of a layout with many combos that boost the popularity, price and appeal of each facility: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yTmLyuI0jAM/UASABejnHnI/AAAAAAAAApY/wNVZ31eqTVI/s1600/IMG_8669.png

http://sixthfore.blogspot.com/2012/07/hot-springs-story-layouts-improved.html

This site walks you through some of the reasoning for certain layouts, explains why things go where, and nicely demonstrates how using shop/facility/combos affect the game / future games.