Ethics Empire is a business management simulator where you grow a business empire from nothing using different properties to make money and keep your ethical standards high. Some ways of playing are safe but slow while others are risky but fast. It is up to you if you want to play by the rules or break them to make a quick profit.

The game has three main property types and each one does something different. Business properties give passive income every second but they can close which stops your money. You can also use Corner Cuts on them to make more profit but this increases the chance of being sued or the business closing because it is unethical. Investment properties do not give passive income. Instead their sell value goes up over time and can give you a big payout after a long wait. Investment properties are mostly safe. Perk properties are different and each one gives a unique bonus like regenerating Ethical Points, reducing lawsuit chances, or lowering emissions. You can only place a few perks so each one is important.

Ethical Points are important and affect how much money your empire makes. You can see them in the My Empire menu. Doing bad things lowers them and doing good things raises them. Businesses that create pollution can also lower Ethical Points and some perks can help reduce that. Every 100 points above or below the starting 1000 changes your income by 10 percent and there is no limit.

Lawsuits come in different severities and each business has its own risk. Minor and major lawsuits can cost money, Ethical Points, or even your properties. When you get sued you can see what the penalties are and then decide if you want to settle or fight. Settling gives a set penalty but fighting costs money and you might get no penalty, a normal penalty, or a bigger penalty. You have to make the decision fast because there is a timer.

The game has a save system that autosaves every 30 seconds and lets you make, name, and delete multiple save files. The Build Menu shows up when you click an empty property tile so you can place new properties. The Property Menu lets you look at and change properties you already placed. Placing a property has a small animation to make it feel alive.