PowerWash Simulator Developer Diary discusses cleanliness thresholds and dirt design

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of PowerWash Simulator here at Eurogamer, which for me makes this hour-long in-depth dev video a must-watch.

I often wondered while playing if some items autocompleted faster than others. If you haven’t tried PowerWash yourself yet, you should know that the game, after cleaning a certain surface, will automatically complete the rest of the object in question. (This also provides a nice “ding” sound.)

This topic is one of many covered in the developer’s video, which apparently focuses on how levels are created in-game, but also delves deeper into thoughts on dirt design, parkour, and the lack of fall damage from the Game.

“We’re very sensitive that we don’t want to frustrate people,” designer Nick McCarthy said, discussing the different thresholds the game uses for different objects. “We don’t want people to linger on an object longer than they should.

“These,” he continued, discussing a delicate boat window with a raised sill, “we might be a little more modest on a sill – give it something like 5 or 10 per cent , so you only have to clean 90% of the dirt on that object to make it ring.

“Thresholds are something we are always looking at, to try to improve,” he concluded. “People have different washing styles and that just means people have different experiences… Some people are very experienced, methodical… but some players may not notice there’s a little bit of dirt on top of a window… We try to find a good middle ground, set the thresholds in a way that’s good for everyone.”

After gaining 3 million players on PC and Xbox (including Game Pass), PowerWash Simulator is heading to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch. New levels are in the works, with a community vote to decide what gets added next.

While we wait for that, Liv recently took a look at PowerWash Simulator fans getting into the game’s speedrun.