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| Contentment values |
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| Dispute Message in Pixelpolis Neon |
Pixelpolis Neon is a retro-isometric cyberpunk city builder about the future of human society after work has lost its central meaning.
The central question is simple:
What happens to humanity when AI and robots take over most manufacturing, logistics and daily organization — and people no longer define themselves through work?
In Pixelpolis Neon, the answer is identity.
As automation provides the foundation of urban life, people begin to organize themselves around belief systems, lifestyles and ideological convictions. Society splits into distinct cultural groups that still have to share the same city and the same limited resources.
The final version of Pixelpolis Neon focuses on three major social groups:
Synth Punks – Pink
Creative, chaotic, emotional and independent. Synth Punks value freedom, nightlife, expression and personal autonomy. Their districts are colorful, loud and unpredictable.
Cyborgs – Blue
Logical, structured, technological and efficiency-driven. Cyborgs believe in rules, systems, optimization and digital progress. Their districts are clean, advanced and highly organized.
Traditionals – Orange
Family-oriented, responsible, food-focused and closer to nature. Traditionals value stability, community, craftsmanship, good meals and a more grounded way of life.
The player creates the conditions for society to grow. By building service hubs, streets and zones, the player shapes which groups are attracted to the city. Population moves in according to contentment and city’s overall situation.
All groups depend on shared resources produced by factories. These factories are powered and organized through available AI capacity. This creates the central tension of the game: even in a highly automated future, society still has limits. AI capacity, productivity, space and infrastructure must be managed carefully.
The challenge is not only to build a beautiful neon city. The challenge is to keep different lifestyles alive in the same urban system.
Each social group in Pixelpolis Neon will have its own type of service hub. The example image shows one of the Cyborg service hubs, designed to represent the technological and upgraded lifestyle of this group. Synth Punks, Cyborgs and Traditionals will each have buildings that match their identity within the society.
Each service hub can be extended upwards. There will be four stages in total, with every upgrade serving a larger population. A district can even have more than one service hub. This allows larger areas to support more citizens and gives players more freedom when shaping their cyberpunk city.
The new toolbar and gameplay. Industry buildings will be limited, and city building will organically develop around the new service hubs, which are the main hub of each district. Separate street colors for each district. A contentment value will determine if popuation moves in or out. Contentment constantly slighty changes, but can strongly be influensed by players support in disputes among the social groups.
