The Steal a PC Shop is a collection of progression tools rather than one single upgrade menu. It brings together Speed growth, movement and support equipment, Hacker Crates, temporary boosts, and a way to sell unwanted items. Use it when you know which bottleneck is slowing the next run: choose the Treadmill Upgrade for Speed, 2x Unbox Speed for Box timers, 2x Money for income, or equipment when the current game panel shows a useful option.
The most important rule is to treat the Shop names as categories and the live purchase panel as the authority for price, duration, requirements, and exact effects. The game does not present a complete, stable catalog for every item or level in the information available here, so verify those details before spending.
What the Steal a PC Shop contains
The Shop covers several different decisions. Some purchases improve a repeatable part of the Box-to-PC loop, while others are optional equipment or consumables. The table separates the known purpose from details that should be checked in-game.
| Shop item or system | Player-facing role | When to consider it | Details to verify |
|---|---|---|---|
| Treadmill Upgrade | Raises Speed gained from training | When a route, guardian, or return trip is too difficult | Current cost and level benefit |
| Trails | Movement equipment | When the Shop panel shows a worthwhile movement option | Exact bonus, name, and price |
| Pets | Support equipment that can be ridden | When you want to compare an available Pet with your current setup | Stats, cost, and unlock condition |
| Robots | Additional Shop equipment | When its displayed effect solves a current movement or progress problem | Exact effect and requirements |
| Hacker Crates | Purchasable Crates that can be opened for rewards | When you can afford the purchase and have room to process it | Price and reward pool |
| 2x Unbox Speed | Temporary Box-opening speed boost | When Box timers, not stealing, are limiting progress | Price and duration |
| 2x Money | Temporary Money-earning boost | When placed PCs are already producing income | Price, duration, and affected income |
| Sell System | Sells eligible unwanted items or rewards | When inventory or duplicate rewards need to be cleared | Eligible items, prices, and restrictions |
These rows are a decision map, not a promise that every account sees the same price or item list. Gameplay shows a Trail valued at 100 billion and a Treadmill upgrade costing 27.5 million in particular scenes, but those are scene-specific displayed values. Do not use either number as a universal current price.
Match a purchase to your bottleneck
Shop spending works best when it follows the point where a run is failing. Steal a PC asks you to steal Boxes, return them safely, wait for them to open, place PCs in the Base, and use their Money to fund further progress. The Shop helps at several different points in that cycle, so buying the most visible item is not always the best next choice.
Choose Speed support when the return is failing. The Treadmill trains Speed, and its upgrades increase the Speed gained from that training. Speed is relevant to reaching farther zones and carrying a Box back after a guardian starts pursuing you. If you consistently lose a Box before reaching the Safe Zone or Base, improve the movement side of the loop before buying a reward crate or a temporary income effect. The correct threshold is the one that makes a route repeatable, not a number inferred from another player’s footage.
Choose unboxing support when delivered Boxes are waiting. 2x Unbox Speed is a temporary boost for Box-opening time. It addresses the delay after a Box reaches the Base; it does not replace Speed training and does not by itself make a dangerous theft safer. If your Base is already holding Boxes and the waiting timer is the slowest part of your cycle, this boost has a clearer purpose than a movement item.
Choose Money support when your production setup is ready. 2x Money is associated with the income produced after PCs are placed in the Base. It is more useful when you already have PCs earning Money and enough Base capacity to keep the income cycle running. Buying it before you can place or retain PCs may leave the actual constraint unchanged. The current panel should determine whether the boost affects all income sources and how long it lasts.
Compare equipment instead of assuming its role. Trails, Pets, and Robots appear as Shop or equipment systems. Pets are explicitly described as rideable in gameplay, while the exact Speed, income, escape, or combat benefit of these items is not established. Treat a displayed stat or description in your current panel as the deciding information. Do not infer that a Trail is only cosmetic, that a Pet improves Money, or that a Robot defeats a Threat unless the item’s own description says so.
How the Shop fits the Box loop
The Shop is easiest to use when you connect each purchase to a visible checkpoint:
- Prepare the route. Check Speed, the Treadmill, the target zone, and the path back to the Safe Zone or Base. If the route is not repeatable, the Treadmill Upgrade is the relevant Shop-adjacent decision.
- Steal and return the Box. A Shop purchase does not remove the need to outrun a zone guardian. Carry the Box back successfully before evaluating the next bottleneck.
- Place the Box in the Base. The Box must enter the Base process before it can open. A 2x Unbox Speed purchase belongs here only if the opening wait is slowing an otherwise successful cycle.
- Open and place the PC. Once the Box produces a PC, use available pen capacity so the PC can contribute to passive Money. If there is no room, capacity is the constraint rather than a Shop boost.
- Spend the income deliberately. Use Money for the next improvement that removes the observed failure: Speed for failed returns, capacity for a full pen, or an income boost when production is already working.
This order prevents two common category errors. 2x Unbox Speed does not increase the Speed used to escape with a Box, and 2x Money does not shorten the Box-opening timer. Likewise, a Hacker Crate is an opportunity to obtain a reward, not proof that its contents or value are fixed across purchases.
Equipment and crate decisions
Trails, Pets, and Robots should be compared using the item card currently shown to you. All three are discussed in connection with Shop or equipment actions, but the game does not establish a complete name, price, level, or effect table here. That matters because a high displayed price can describe a particular item or moment rather than a permanent Shop rule.
Pets have one especially clear interaction: gameplay mentions riding them. That tells you how the item can be used, but it does not prove a universal movement multiplier, Money bonus, or protection effect. If the panel lists multiple Pets, compare the actual displayed attributes and the cost of the next useful alternative. Keep the current item until the replacement gives a measurable benefit for your route or income plan.
Robots are also associated with Shop and equipment sequences, yet their exact effect on movement, Money, Threats, or another system is not established. Read the current description before buying. A purchase can be reasonable when its stated effect solves a current problem, but it should not be justified by a guessed role.
Hacker Crates are consumable purchase choices. Gameplay shows a Hacker Crate being bought and opened, and another scene connects a Hacker with Money, but these moments do not establish a fixed reward pool, guaranteed PC, price, or payout. Buy one only when you can accept an uncertain reward and still afford the upgrade needed for your main loop. If the Shop displays a reward preview, use that preview rather than assuming every Hacker Crate is identical.
Buy a Hacker Crate and temporary Shop boosts
This Shop moment shows a Hacker Crate purchase alongside 2x Unbox Speed and 2x Money, supporting the article's comparison of uncertain rewards and temporary boosts.
Selling and temporary boosts
The Sell System is useful for clearing unwanted rewards, but its exact scope is not fully defined. Before selling, check which item the interface selects, the displayed return value, and whether the action is reversible. The game does not show a confirmed fee, universal price formula, or complete list of sellable items here. Keep a potentially useful PC or equipment item until you have compared its displayed output with the replacement and confirmed the sale result.
Temporary boosts deserve the same before-and-after check. For 2x Unbox Speed, note the current Box timer, activate the boost only when you have a Box ready to process, and compare the live timer after activation. For 2x Money, place or keep PCs earning in the Base, then check the income display while the boost is active. The exact duration and whether every income source is affected remain mutable details, so plan around the timer shown in the game rather than a value from a guide or video.
Shop spending priorities
Use this order when you are unsure what to buy:
- Failed thefts: prioritize Speed training or the Treadmill Upgrade. A boost that starts after delivery cannot repair a route you cannot complete.
- Successful thefts but slow openings: consider 2x Unbox Speed when the current price and duration make the saved time worthwhile.
- Open PCs but weak income: consider 2x Money only after confirming that PCs are placed and actively producing Money.
- No Base room: resolve Base or pen capacity before buying more crates or chasing another PC.
- A displayed equipment upgrade: compare its current description with the problem you are trying to solve; do not infer a hidden bonus.
- Unwanted rewards: use Sell after checking eligibility and the displayed return value.
The priority can change as your Base improves. A player who is still learning a short route usually benefits more from reliable Speed and capacity than from an expensive Trail. A player with a stable route and several producing PCs may get more value from a timed boost, provided the purchase does not consume the Money needed for the next permanent upgrade.
Prices, duration, and effect limits
Several Shop details are intentionally not listed as fixed values. The current evidence does not provide a complete catalog for item names, prices, stats, reward contents, temporary-boost duration, sell values, or unlock conditions. The 27.5 million Treadmill example and 100 billion Trail example are useful illustrations of what a player may see in a particular scene, not reliable global constants.
Before spending, open the relevant Shop card and verify four things: what the item changes, what currency it consumes, whether the effect is permanent or timed, and what condition or capacity it requires. Recheck the panel after updates or progression changes. If the interface does not show a claimed bonus, treat that bonus as unconfirmed and choose based on a visible effect instead.
The Shop is therefore best understood as a set of tools around the main loop, not a mandatory purchase list. Build a reliable Box return first, keep enough Base capacity to process the result, and then spend Money where the live game shows the largest current bottleneck.
First-time Steal a PC Shop questions
Should I buy 2x Unbox Speed or 2x Money first?
Choose based on the current delay: use 2x Unbox Speed when delivered Boxes are waiting on opening timers, and use 2x Money when PCs are already placed and producing income. Check the live price and duration before buying either temporary boost.
Does the Shop have a complete fixed price list?
No. The available information shows example prices, including a 27.5 million Treadmill upgrade and a 100 billion Trail, but those are scene-specific values. Use the current Shop panel for the price of the item and level you are buying.
Do Pets, Trails, and Robots all increase Speed?
That is not established for every item. Pets are described as rideable, and all three appear in Shop or equipment contexts, but their exact bonuses should come from the current item description rather than an assumed universal Speed effect.
What should I do before buying a Hacker Crate?
Make sure you can afford the purchase without delaying the upgrade that fixes your main bottleneck, and check any reward preview the Shop provides. A purchase or opening scene does not establish a guaranteed reward, fixed price, or universal payout for every Hacker Crate.