One of the challenges of building Power Network Tycoon has been creating a world that feels rich and alive, even though there are no people or cars buzzing around. It's a game about infrastructure, but I didn't want it to feel sterile or empty. So, I’ve been focusing on environmental details that add atmosphere and make the game visually and audibly satisfying. I’d like to share some of the things I've worked on to create a sense of atmosphere like adding lighting, subtle sound effects, and ambient visuals. To make it look like there is activity happening on the island, I decided to add street lights and house lights to the game. These progressively turn off and on with the day/night cycle. They need to be within range of a substation to have power but they don’t draw power from the grid. This was a decision I made as I didn’t want you to have to think about connecting all of them, or disconnecting them to save energy. They add a nice touch to show activity on the streets when viewed from afar.
From the beginning I looked at adding ambient noise, like wind blowing, the sounds of traffic, and insects chirping. While these are small details that may go unnoticed whilst playing, I felt they were important to add to give life to the environment. There are other sound effects that are linked to game play and are more noticeable, for example placing an asset like a substation will make a satisfying thud, and connecting conductors to substations makes an electrical buzz. The ambient traffic sound also gets louder and has more levels to it as you get closer to a busy area of the map with a high density of buildings. Community interactions occur with the player through speech bubbles that appear on the top of buildings making it feel like a particular resident has an opinion about something, even though you cannot see people. Sometimes it’s general information, like if they’re happy with the island's progress, but sometimes it’s specific, such as a house on the outskirts that wants to be connected.
More recently I've experimented with ways to make the night sky look more dynamic and interesting. This was based on player feedback. I received a few comments that the night sky in particular looked strange, and players lost immersion when looking at it. Originally, I tried instantiating a bunch of simple white cubes or planes for stars and rotating them around the world at night. It sort of worked, but it affected the performance of the game. The best solution I've found so far is using Unity’s particle system. I created a very basic white dot material, and used it to simulate stars. Depending on the player's graphics settings the system adjusts the number of particles (i.e., stars) in the sky. It’s simple, flexible, and super lightweight on performance. With no people, vehicles, or wildlife, the environment needed other kinds of motion and subtle visual detail. Here are a few things I’ve been playing with:
- Tilt-shift: Adds a soft blur and depth, helping the world feel more like a miniature model (which fits the “tycoon” genre aesthetic).
- Wind lines: Visual streaks that give the sense of breeze or weather patterns adds motion without needing animated trees for example.
- Color grading: Gives each time of day a unique mood. A warm, dusty sunset or a cold, blue night can change how the world feels.
- Light flickers on lights and windows to simulate power surges or renewable energy issues (like relying on solar panels as the sun sets).
These little things combine to make scenes feel alive, even if the world is otherwise still. I’ve enjoyed including these elements to the game, without them the game would feel “off”, and in my opinion the immersive factor would suffer greatly. It’s fun to experiment and add these little tweaks and subtle changes.
Building a world without people is a unique challenge, but it’s also been a rewarding creative exercise. By focusing on the small details, light, sound, motion, and mood, I’ve been able to give Power Network Tycoon a sense of place that feels alive, even in stillness. These touches might not scream for attention, but they do a lot of heavy lifting when it comes to immersion. As development continues, I’m excited to keep layering in more of these atmospheric elements. Sometimes, it's the quiet details that speak the loudest.
As always, thanks for playing and being part of the Power Network Tycoon community. I’m looking forward to hearing your feedback on this latest change. I welcome you to try the game on Steam or itch.io.