2023_PWN_V5_No1_web

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How successful has it been?
FuturLab announced in May 2023 that
since its creation, 7 million players have
joined in on the power washing game.
It’s an amazing achievement for a
small studio like FuturLab.
Kirsty Ridgen, the Co-CEO of
FuturLab said of the milestone, “With
over 7 million players, we are honoured
that so many people have found their
zen with PowerWash Simulator. The
strength in our community is palpable.
Since we launched into Early Access,
the support for our soothing sim has
been immense, and we are extremely
grateful that this has continued to
strengthen past release.”
The game first launched in May of
2021 and fully released the following
year in July 2022. By September
2022, FuturLabs announced 3 million
players had joined in on the scrubbing
fun. Now that number has more than
doubled.
Up until recently, PowerWash
Simulator simply had players power
washing cars, houses, trains, literally
everything dirty requires players
to clean. Its monotonous, precision
gameplay became a relaxing form of
escapism, with every cleaned environment
another achievement. Players
could go through a career mode and
build their power washing business,
starting with simple tasks and working
up to more demanding jobs. There’s
also a challenge mode which tests
players speed to clean under a time
limit. Moreover, others can join in on
the fun and make cleaning go quicker.
Since then, however, due to its
incredible success and popularity,
PowerWash Simulator has “crossedover”
in to new, more celebrated
realms of the video gaming world.
Over the past few months, Power
Wash Simulator has received free
updates, two from Square Enix, letting
players clean the iconic Croft Mansion
from Tomb Raider, and a Midgar
Special Pack, featuring Hardy Daytona,
Scorpion Sentinel, Seventh Heaven
and more for cleaning, from Final
Fantasy 7 Remake.
The game, which was initially
only available on Microsoft Windows,
Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S., has
also crossed some incredible access
thresholds in recent months and is
now available on the following additional
platforms: Nintendo Switch,
PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4.
But perhaps its greatest achievement
to date was announced in May
2023 when PowerWash Simulator
expanded to…wait for it…Bikini
Bottom. As in the home of cartoon
icon SpongeBob.
Unlike past themed expansions,
the SpongeBob SquarePants
PowerWash Simulator Special
Pack will be a paid release, meaning
interested gamers will have to cough
up $8 to play.
It’s considered a small price to pay
for gamers to gain the chance to pressure
wash Conch Street, The Bikini
Bottom Bus, The Krusty Krab, The
Patty Wagon, The Invisible Boatmobile,
and The Mermalair. The game is to be
released sometime this summer.
For the first time ever, FuturLab
even redesigned the PowerWash
character model exclusively for this
Special Pack.
“Well, you couldn’t go wandering
about under the sea looking like that,
you’d give yourself away as a landlubber.
Now, you’ll fit right in with
the crowd as a true Bottomite, with a
custom-designed gear that could rival
even Sandy Cheeks’ best inventions.
We’ve been ashore-d that your power
washer will work just fine underwater,
powered by advanced technology
from the SpongeBob SquarePants
universe: imagination,” the company
stated in a release.
It all begs two significant questions:
First, how exactly do you pressure
wash underwater? And second, in a
day and time when most pressure
wash operators are struggling to find
the labor force they need to run their
businesses, how is it possible that so
many people out there are fascinated
with the art of pressure washing?
Perhaps in your next job advertisement,
you could begin by stating
“Are you a fan of the video game
PowerWash Simulator…???”
VOL. 5, NO. 1 | SUMMER 2023 | PRESSURE WASH NEWS | 17