ReStory Frugal Achievement — 10 Days Without New Parts

Quick answer: how to unlock Frugal

Update to hotfix 1.0.015, make a separate save, and begin only when your Parts Box contains useful spares. For the next 10 completed in-game days, do not buy replacement parts from the Parts Store. Use cleaning, soldering, working donor parts, and jobs that need no new component. Check the Steam achievement after each day transition; do not use an old early-unlock pop-up as proof of the current rule.

What the achievement actually says

Steam’s public condition is: do not buy any new parts for 10 days in a row. That wording is narrower than ‘spend no money’ and broader than ‘finish 10 repairs.’ Count completed calendar transitions, not repair orders. Repairs, decoration and ordinary story activity are not automatically disallowed, but any uncertain purchase is best postponed until the achievement appears.

Prepare before starting the streak

Build a practical Parts Box before day one. Keep common working components from matching donor devices, finish any license or tool purchase you already planned, and clear orders that obviously require a missing part. Save in a named slot such as FRUGAL-DAY-0 so you can retry without sacrificing normal shop progress.

• Keep working donor parts by exact model
• Finish planned store purchases before day one
• Avoid accepting a repair that clearly needs unavailable stock
• Write down the day shown when the run begins
• Preserve the day-zero save until the achievement unlocks

Parts Store, Parts Box, Marketplace, and licenses

Treat the Parts Store as prohibited during the streak. Taking an existing item from the Parts Box is inventory use, not a fresh purchase. A broken marketplace device may provide donor parts, but community reports do not yet prove that every marketplace transaction is ignored by the counter. Licenses unlock access rather than acting as replacement parts, yet reports about whether a license purchase resets the run conflict. The safest route is simple: buy licenses and donors before day one and make no avoidable purchase during the 10-day window.

A low-risk 10-day routine

Start the day by checking active tickets and inventory. Accept work only when the fault can be handled with cleaning, soldering, firmware, or an owned component. If a repair demands a missing part, leave it pending rather than buying immediately. Close the day normally, record the date, and repeat. Avoid rushing several days without checking because one accidental store purchase makes the failure point hard to identify.

Why Frugal may not unlock after 10 to 15 days

First confirm that 10 full day transitions occurred after the last new-part purchase. Then check whether a Parts Store purchase, marketplace donor, or license was bought mid-run. Update the game: official 1.0.009r notes fixed Frugal unlocking early, so launch-build videos may show behavior that is no longer valid. If a clean run still fails on 1.0.015, preserve the day-zero and current saves and report the build, start day, purchase history, and whether the game was closed during the streak.

Frugal FAQ

Does a part already in the Parts Box break the streak? The achievement says not to buy new parts, so using owned inventory is the intended low-risk route. Can I repair devices during the 10 days? Yes; choose work supported by cleaning, soldering, firmware, or existing stock. Does buying a license reset it? Current reports are not consistent enough for a guarantee, so buy licenses before starting. Did the achievement once unlock too early? Yes. The official 1.0.009r notes say that early unlock was fixed; use current-build behavior, not launch footage.

Return to the full achievement plan

Once Frugal unlocks, return to All 50 ReStory Achievements to mark it complete and choose the next compatible objective. Keep the protected save until Steam has synchronized the unlock.