What makes automation games so addicting?

[@Thor_the_Doge]

If you want the equivalent of a PhD in automation games, look into Minecraft Gregtech modpacks (SUSY, GTNH) and Factorio Pyanodon mods. Could show you another perspective on factory game design. Cool project tho.

[@stray1239]

at first I wasn't sure if the VSauce at 0:53 was real or just my imagination it was real I'm not insane yet

[@zejugames5045]

Love how your video title ("What makes automation games so addicting?") was so accessible for first-time viewers like me... much less intimidating than Devlog #1!

[@BBGDev]

That’s great to hear!

[@Terminarch]

Maybe have a moderately expensive radar-like system that reveals dense resource nodes which can be harvested many times... making resources cost resources in exchange for better efficiency since you can find the node that you need and focus it down with a bunch of collectors at once.

[@lukecronquist6003]

I liked forager with belts, your game has potential. As for an an infinite sink, I think permutations and combinations could be a more interesting way. For example how each shuffle of a 52 card deck is probably unique to any other shuffle in human history, just because the way the math works out there's so many combinations (52! = 8 x 10^67). If that could be worked into research progression then perhaps it would be better than a simple number goes up like factorio infinite research etc. Maybe it would literally be like, just to use playing cards for an abstract example, you research the 3 of clubs, then you can click on that and research another card to make it a research branch. There are 3 main design problems to solve: 1) how to make that card permutation meaningful to game-play. Perhaps logarithmic; card 2 has a strength of 10 and card 3 has a effect of 100, I dunno. 2) How the permutations can be exchanged in the ingame economy to not be too rigid, 3) How to store it efficiently in memory. Yea, the sink is always the hardest part in game design

[@clemfandango3067]

I haven’t heard mention of this yet - but what about power? If the machines like the crafter require power that opens you up to not only more machines (generators etc) but could allow for sinks for wood and coal and such. Maybe you could add robot spiders that spin electrical webs to act as power lines - that would give another little creature to continue that trend as well.

[@BBGDev]

I definitely do want to add power into the game at somepoint (probably pretty soon). The difficulty has been in deciding the best way to go about it. I could manually connect machines with wires, use range-based transmission (like power poles in factorio), or have global power. I'm leaning toward global power because the map isn't really big enough to justify other methods, but then I need to indicate that fact to players somehow. I do like your idea of electrical spiders for the actual generation though, could definitely use that.

[@shockingchris9809]

​@@BBGDev one way that modded Minecraft does a global power is really simple and I think efficient enough. I think it's actually additions but I may be wrong. Many types of machines can generate power each tick, in their case, GP or GridPower. And that power is literally an amount that pops up on the screen when near one of the generators (water mill that water passes by, solar panels, wind mill. Then you have a 32/32 or whatever. Machines that need power pull from that amount per tick. Generators have to match or exceed the power or some or none of the machines work. Simple as that. It creates the game loop of continuation of power supply creation or better power supply and in a mostly automation game , your number can go higher, obviously. 👍

[@shockingchris9809]

In my own game, I am planning on going the route of area power. My power generation is all sustainable power gen, so Water Wheels, Solar, Wind power, but as tech and research increases, the transfer of power goes from having to be placed next to the generator, to have cables, to power transmission as a raycast (unity) checking for power boxes/spreaders in the area and distributing them equally. Those power spreaders will then search in a grid around themselves and spread the power equally among machines. Best of luck!

[@diablo.the.cheater]

You see, that is the problem, we do not like automation games, we like automation.

[@m_35-dh2ei]

I had some ideas that might bring problems for the player: A material that needs to undergo a craft in a certain amount of time otherwise it burns away A recipe sequence instead of a crafting machine (press, then insert gears, then press) The ability to overpower machines for extra speed Some form of energy/power requirement for machines, so that the player has to build up a generator as well

[@BBGDev]

Thanks for the ideas! I'll definitely be adding power and some form of overclocking relatively soon, just need to figure out the best way to go about power transmission.

[@siderisanon7860]

A really nice analysis of the genre.

[@allabouttutorial477]

Idea for resource spawn, making bees that increase spawns of certain resources in the area of the collector, game is looking great!

[@BBGDev]

I like the idea! I think having all sorts of different bees with unique abilities like that would make things a bit more interesting.

[@aussiescorner3954]

Hi there, very amature indie game dev. I tried to start working on an automation game recently but realized it was out of my knowladge range at the moment (couldn't even get the grid based placement down) but I just wanted to say this game looks great, I love the friendly crafter robots I can't wait to see how this turns out. Subscirbed

[@vrajved]

There's this game on mobile: exp minima, its really addictive but it's a text based rpg like how can I get addicted to this

[@BBGDev]

I'll have to take a look at that!

[@BFVybeDev]

maybe for a machine. you can add stuff like stoppers, which pause the line for a certain amount of time. that the player can set the time it holds the line then recontinues it. I think that could be fun for some gameplay. also you could add stuff like launchers that launch objects a certain distance. to make the world feel more alive this could also make you able to have more space. because the objects being launched would have collisions. meaning you can place other objects into them! just I thought love where you're taking the game. good job!

[@BFVybeDev]

wouldn't*

[@BBGDev]

I like the ideas! That whole launching mechanic stood out to me, I know the create mod for Minecraft has a similar thing, so It could be an interesting way to deal with longer distance transportation. That, or maybe a drone based system. As for stoppers, I do want to add in a logic system (aka read data from an object and disable/enable another depending on that output). So that could be achieved that way, but I can look into a unique object for that too. Thanks!

[@BFVybeDev]

@BBGDev np, would be cool to see what ideas you have for your game glad I could give some steady bases!!

[@kyalhuntley1883]

Great video! Love that its shorter

[@blackcitadel9]

Temp freeze the lifetime counter if the resource is being interacted with. It's really annoying to watch the node disappear whilst I'm mining it.

[@BBGDev]

This should already be implemented, and I was unable to recreate the issue. Let me know if it continues to happen though (and maybe send me a video of it too).

[@LinkLaine]

I (and all my friend) have a problem with automation game. for factorio it is the moment where you realise that you need to redesign your entire factory and that very not pleasant feeling resulting in droping a game.

[@trixy247]

can you help me, im trying to make my own but im not sure how to get a conveyor system

[@DivideBy0YT]

the colors in your youtube profile picture are basically jus the colors for the pan flag but 2 of them got swapped lol

[@artemonstrick]

A lot of bla bla but you didnt answer the question

[@BBGDev]

Near the beginning, I dove into the mechanics that I personally identified as contributing most to why automation games are so addicting (the segment on a continual cycle of problem and solution). I apologize if that wasn’t a satisfying answer!