Power to the People
- February 8, 2022
- Rhombico Games
- 20h median play time
Get on SteamIn "Power to the People", you are tasked with building and maintaining a power grid for a growing population, while managing resources and dealing with potential disasters. Your goal is to sell energy, earn money, and expand your network to ensure continuous power supply.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Power to the People is a fun and engaging management game that challenges players to creatively solve energy distribution problems.
- The game features a charming art style and immersive sound design, enhancing the overall experience.
- It offers a unique blend of education and entertainment, raising awareness about sustainability and energy management.
- The game lacks depth and variety, leading to repetitive gameplay that can become tedious after a few hours.
- Power line mechanics are flawed, often resulting in frustrating overloads and explosions that detract from the enjoyment.
- The tutorial is too brief and steep, leaving players unprepared for the complexities of managing the power grid.
- gameplay33 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
Gameplay is characterized by a mix of challenge and reward, focusing on designing and optimizing energy systems for cities, though some players find the mechanics simplistic and lacking depth. While the tutorial is well-paced, the game can become frustrating as difficulty increases without providing adequate tools to manage challenges. Overall, it offers a relaxing yet engaging experience for strategy enthusiasts, despite some criticisms regarding content limitations and mechanics.
“Gameplay is both challenging and rewarding, as you design and optimize energy systems for a growing city.”
“Although it can be difficult at times, the game is very satisfying and has a soothing gameplay.”
“This 'Sim City Lite - Power Edition' is surprisingly addictive, easy to get into with relaxing gameplay at first and with many disasters and bigger challenges later.”
“This game lacks the depth and realism to be a simulator, but also lacks sufficient mechanics to be a puzzle-type challenge.”
“Its okay for the first few maps but once the difficulty curve ramps up a while into gameplay I just feel more frustrated by a lack of tools to actually overcome challenges.”
“I really wanted to like this game, I like the premise and the art style but the gameplay itself is just awful.”
- graphics19 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 37 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
Overall, the graphics of the game are generally praised for their charm and aesthetic appeal, with attention to detail in buildings and landmarks. While many players appreciate the visuals and sound design, some have noted issues such as glitches and a desire for further improvements. The game runs smoothly on various systems, but there are mixed feelings about its depth and gameplay experience.
“The art style is charming, and the sound design complements the immersive experience perfectly.”
“First and foremost, I really enjoy the graphic style of the game, the attention to detail in the buildings and landmarks, and the music that is very catchy.”
“Very nice game, the UI is neat and the graphics are awesome, with lots of details here and there!”
“My graphics card was guzzling electricity to render the game on my high-powered PC, complete with an energy-sapping monitor.”
“The graphics were decent, the gameplay was solid, and I didn't encounter any major bugs.”
“The game has minimalist graphics and three fascinating modes.”
- story8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The game's story is minimal, with many users noting a lack of depth and similarity across missions, leading to disengagement. However, some find humor in the narrative of an electrician facing natural disasters, which adds a lighthearted touch to the gameplay experience. Overall, the storytelling aspect appears to be inconsistent and not a strong draw for players.
“A funny story, an electrician struggling with natural disasters.”
“The main mission will teach advanced techniques as you play.”
“Power to the People is a simulation of the city's energy system with a large number of missions, difficulty levels, and a variety of game options.”
“☐ no story”
“Each mission is fairly similar.”
“After the second mission, it was hard to start a third, and I stopped shortly after.”
- music5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews; while many players appreciate its catchy and aesthetically pleasing horn-heavy soundtrack, some find it repetitive and note that certain audio choices, like electrical buzzing, can be unpleasant. Overall, the music complements the game's graphic style and enhances the immersive experience.
“It’s aesthetically pleasing, has that horn-heavy soundtrack that almost every city-builder uses to lull you into a trance, and there wasn’t any part of the formula that I didn’t feel was locked solid.”
“First and foremost, I really enjoy the graphic style of the game, the attention to detail in the buildings and landmarks, and the music that is very catchy.”
“Great music & simple but nice graphics for a game like this.”
“My only criticism is the music seems to get a bit repetitive, because I spent so many fun hours in this game already.”
- optimization5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
Overall, users report that the game's optimization is lacking, particularly when managing multiple power lines, which leads to performance issues. Additionally, there is a lack of clear performance metrics to aid decision-making, and running the game on a 4K monitor exacerbates these problems.
“Energy storage is 100% efficient, and all types beyond lithium-ion are roughly the same in performance.”
“There is no easy way to see predicted performance metrics to help you make choices, like capacity factors, levelized costs, and interest rates.”
“I was running on a 4K monitor, and that seems to affect performance no matter what you do on Chrome OS.”
“The game is not well optimized.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is praised for its strong replayability, offering depth and a fun management experience that encourages multiple playthroughs. Users appreciate the balance of challenge and enjoyment, making it a worthwhile investment for players seeking engaging gameplay.
“It's really well made, has a good amount of depth and replayability, and has a nice aesthetic.”
“Very fun management game, has a lot of replayability as well as a good learning curve.”
“The price is nice, the replay value is good, and it's an all-around fun game.”
- grinding3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect initially addicting and enjoyable, but it quickly becomes tedious and frustrating, especially when unexpected challenges arise. Many feel that the amount of grinding required can be overwhelming, leading to a loss of enjoyment over time.
“Grinding in this game feels rewarding and keeps me engaged for hours.”
“The grind is challenging but satisfying, making every achievement feel earned.”
“I love how the grinding mechanics are balanced; it never feels like a chore.”
“Addicting and fun until you start having a stupid power line or six all go out for no reason, which makes it so tedious that the fun just drifts away.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Seems like a fun idea, but in practice, it's more tedious once you get past the first week or so.”
- humor3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its humor, featuring a comedic storyline about an electrician facing natural disasters, which resonates well with players and elicits laughter. Overall, it is recommended for its entertaining and funny content.
“The game is great and funny, and I would recommend it.”
“A funny story about an electrician struggling with natural disasters.”
“It made me laugh.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is notably affected as the power grid expands, leading to frequent bugs such as power lines failing to function and buildings not connecting properly. While the graphics and overall aesthetic are appealing, players report encountering various glitches that detract from the experience.
“As your power grid grows, how things connect gets very, very buggy - lines won't carry power or adjacent buildings won't connect, and so on.”
“The game offers some nice graphics and a nice aesthetic; however, there are some ugly glitches here and there.”
