Net Carbon is a game exploring consumer choices that lead to carbon usage and how energy companies can reduce carbon emissions.

It is also a meta experiment to challenge players to keep their emissions low so the next player may also enjoy the game, as your net carbon emissions at the end of the game is the next person's starting emissions - if it gets too high over many play sessions, the game can no longer be played.

The game is currently a vertical slice prototype of the core mechanics and features within one level.

In the first half, the player must make a few choices about their lifestyle that will lead to differing levels of emissions, but can still choose to make a significant positive impact if they go out of their way to do so.

The second half explores the process of Carbon Capture and Storage that aims to retrofit fossil fuel-based power plants with lower emissions technology to reduce the amount of carbon that goes into the atmosphere while more viable renewable power sources come online.

Current Features

Make decisions in your everyday life and see how they can impact the environment.
Play small minigames as you maintain the powerplant and learn the process of Carbon Capture and Storage.
A counter that measures how much carbon is left in the atmosphere! The carbon you leave in the atmosphere is the starting value for the next person, so try and reduce as much carbon as you can!
If the Net Carbon reaches over 10,000, the game is no longer playable to mirror how if there is too much carbon in the atmosphere, the consequences will be too dire to fix.
A leaderboard system rewarding those who best reduce their carbon emissions.

Future features

The next steps we would take if we were able to develop this game further would be to achieve the full game scope:

Three levels to represent the increasing power draw from the national grid over the morning/afternoon/evening.
More things to maintain within the powerplant to more accurately explain and represent the process of CCS.
Visual changes to the game depending on the net carbon to showcase the impact our collective decisions have upon the planet.
A more varied range of choices in your everyday life that can impact the net carbon.
Inclusion of subtle narrative barks which express the ways the world right now is combating climate change in general.
Ways to positively impact the environment in the Apartment levels through campaigning for renewable energy subsidies or other activism.
All items in the Apartment can be turned on or off, trading certain settings such as music for a slight reduction of carbon emissions.

Net Carbon screenshots