Is this related at all to Tiny Glade? Seems like a very similar concept, but shifted to a gritter, darker aesthetic (which is very cool)...the name must at least be a nod to it?
Yes! That was exactly my initial thought - take Tiny Glade (or any cozy sandbox builder) and turn it into brutalist inspired architecture.
I really liked the idea of taking a familiar aesthetic in this game genre and flipping it into something completely opposite.
Really great job from the developer. They captured the aesthetic well. Brutalism does create a sublime beauty (especially when those buildings have good upkeep), but I'm glad we no longer make buildings like that anymore.
Here's my theory about modern architectural design. Let's say you've got two students that have to do a final design: (a) chooses a rococo or neoVictorian (humanist design); and, (b) chooses a spare modern design. Both of them are required to draft facades, elevations, etc. The modern design is literally easier to draft — literally less time. That means any school of architecture that both rewards "good grades" and "project completion under pressure" will naturally select for students who like "modern" (brutalist?). Those students then become professors, and the whole system reinforces.
It's also that it's really difficult to find anybody who could build rococo or neoVictorian buildings. And if you do, it's a lot more expensive. So the designs are not built, making it impossible for young people to gain experience building it.
That's exactly it. Modern buildings are cheaper, so they get built. Cash rules everything in construction, and nobody wants to build expensive unless they have an idealist client.
Or they do what they don't like, under the pressure of the moment, in order to pass, and keep their sense of taste in a separate place from passing that one class.
Regression to the mean, then? It’s not that those other architectural styles aren’t appreciated, but when it comes down to a project being completed on time + on budget, unless one is building for a king with time and money to spare, it seems like of course you’d inevitably end up with the sparer more utilitarian approach. I guess that could be a bit bleak of an outlook. We definitely shouldn’t need rich patrons funding personal passion / vanity projects in order to continue to explore neovictorianism or whatever.
Less "regression to the mean", and more evolutionary architecture. Selection of the fittest applied to schools of architecture, with grades being the selection pressure.
Steam has some helpful features for game buyers. I can buy the game without installing it, steam keeps my save data and allows it to easily move between computers, steam allows me to keep a library of games without having to manage them on disk, and I only have to share payment info with one processor. I think these features are some of the main reasons people use app stores.
I think it's code for "hey developer, if you're reading this, please upload to steam! Some people [maybe them] have deeply ingrained habits, and so would prefer to buy from a familiar market"
Which is totally fair. I have my own deeply ingrained habits :)
[1] https://localwiki.org/davis/Social_Sciences_and_Humanities_B...
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNjfGUh-Rhk
So close I bet you could replicate it in the game.
So happy to see you found Tiny Brutalism! But can someone explain to me what this place actually is? Haha, I’m new here
Which is totally fair. I have my own deeply ingrained habits :)
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specs:
Windows 10 / macOS 12+ / Ubuntu 22.04+ Any GPU from the last ~8 years, integrated is fine, M1 Macs are plenty 4 GB RAM ~250 MB disk
It's a small game, no dedicated graphics card needed.
"""
[0] https://placeholders.itch.io/tiny-brutalism#post-17475584