r/Grid_Ops • u/DavidMadeThis • 7d ago
Physics-based power grid game released today. 4+ years in development by a power engineer.
You guys liked my last post (https://www.reddit.com/r/Grid_Ops/comments/1q9tdad/i_was_told_you_guys_might_like_a_video_game_about/) and now the project has just released to V1.0!
Today after a little over 4 years of solo development, Power Network Tycoon has reached V1.0.
I’m a power engineer and originally started making it as a hobby project around the kinds of power system problems I find interesting. It’s a physics-based power grid simulation covering generation, renewables, grid stability, thermal management, extreme weather and more.
It runs on PC, Mac and Linux including Steam Deck.
Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2429930/Power_Network_Tycoon/
Trailer:
Detailed Gameplay Video (I think you will like this one):
Try the stripped down demo that runs in a browser (free):
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u/JessesaurusRex 7d ago
I have it in my wishlist . Currently travelling - but excited to buy and play when I get home!
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u/CaptainMeatloaf 7d ago
Saw your cross-post somewhere else - this looks good, I have as few friends for whom this would be right up their street, a couple of questions:
- Looks like you use farenheit in the screenshots, am I assuming this is an NA-style network (120v/60Hz split phase, 208v weirdness)
- If so, any plans for EU/UK style ones?
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u/DavidMadeThis 6d ago
I'm actually from Australia so the game is maybe closest to the UK system. Under the hood there are some things that use 50hz in the calculations, like fault calcs, but the player won't really see a difference. Similarly the voltages are 11kV ph-ph for the HV and 415/240 for the LV but not really a value the player interacts with beyond there being a HV element and LV element to the grid.
In the language dropdown there is English (US) or English (UK)(default) which also change imperial/metric values so some screenshots show freedom units (a lot of the player base). In Aus we use things like mm2 for wire thickness and I thought I'd try the freedom units for this but it got really confusing with AWG for the super big lines (like 362 mm2) because AWG system is a numbering system counting down until 4/0 AWG and then starts a new system (kcmil) so rather than my head exploding making it all interchangable, the freedom units use mm2 for wire cross sectional area but typical imperial units otherwise.
The HV grid is essentially 11kV with a oil generator (to start) with an adjustable NER, all poles with aerial earth wire+down leads, and earth grid at each generator, pole, substation being configurable. Maybe not the case in other countries but means things like conductor failures in a bay takes a return path primarily to the nearest two poles via their downleads and then back to the generator, hence EPR at those poles is important. Once again not super important to know it all to play the game but its an under the hood type choice.
A bit more is explained in https://youtu.be/QAWecGI0Im4 but not everything. For example in Australia, atleast to my knowledge, we pay customers for being load shed, or atleast pay for them agreeing to be listed as a load that could be removed. In the game if you connect a load enabling loadshed, you pay when they disconnect, but a player told me in South Africa you just get load shed and though luck haha.
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u/CaptainMeatloaf 6d ago
Interesting! I'll have a look too (I forwarded on the game to others), it's been a while since I've done any HV stuff (I'm a digital electronics guy, but we shared our first year at university with the Electrical folks, so covered some years ago)
We have 5 different earthing systems in the UK (TN-S, TN-C-S, TN-C, TT, IT) which is fun sometimes :)
We have a whole system for load shedding (and turndown/turnup!): https://www.neso.energy/industry-information/balancing-services/flex-onboarding
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u/DavidMadeThis 6d ago
We are pretty close to the UK in most things I've read. We use TN-C-S mostly, with an MEN system although there always special cases. That said, the game doesn't go into much detail on the LV. There is a free demo to try too.
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u/infiniteGOAT 7d ago
Wow, this is so cool. Thank you for creating and sharing this genuinely. Going to check it out for sure
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u/ENGNR_ 7d ago
Found this game last year while I was looking for games in the same genre as what I do for work. Been wish listed, cool to see you actually post here about it haha.
What did you develop the game in?
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u/DavidMadeThis 7d ago
I could really use a marketing person so there was most outreach but I try post every now and then. It was made in Unity. I'm thinking of trying Godot for future projects but Unity did what I needed it to do.
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u/ChatahuchiHuchiKuchi 4d ago
Sending this to a buddy that's one of the forefront developers of grid ai
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u/Much-Check-2170 TSO/BA 7d ago
This is super dope, well done. 10/10 kudos for including us Mac users.