Indicator

After reading this page

• You've learned what indicators are
• You've learned what predefined indicators exist in the Tygron Engine
• You've learned what other parts of a game can influence indicators
• You've learned how to alter existing indicators in your game
• You've learned how to add and remove complete indicators

Indicators

Indicators are the targets which exist in a game. They are named after Key Performance Indicators, a measure by which organizations evaluate their success. Indicator are a primary part of your game, and serve as the guiding element by which players can determine whether they are making progress.

Types of indicator

A number of indicator types exist in the Tygron Engine. Most are global indicators, which means they are the same for the entire world. Others are specific to a stakeholder, which means they are only of concern to that specific stakeholder.

Stakeholder-specific indicators

Please read more about the various Indicator types.

Budget

The amount of money available to a stakeholder. Most actions in the Tygron Engine require money by default. Actions which require spending more money than the stakeholder has available is not allowed. Should the stakeholder end up with a negative budget, their final score will be 0 until their budget has restored.

Building

The amount of constructions that a stakeholder must reach. The targets for this indicator are subdivided into different types of constructions, such as luxury housing, offices, green and leisure. This indicator is unique in that a player will be penalized for exceeding their goal.

Global indicators

Green

Green is the amount of green in an area. More trees and open (grassland) areas increase the score for green. Buildings and concrete decrease the score for green.

Parking

Parking is the amount of parking spaces in an area. Many buildings have an associated need for parking spaces in the area. By building parking facilities, the score on the parking indicator can be increased.

Livability

Livability is the extend to which an area is pleasant to live in. More open spaces, luxury buildings and green increase livability. Densification, poor quality buildings and lack of nature decrease livability.

Water Storage

The amount of water storage capacity in an area. A greater capacity for storing water means an area becomes more resilient when faced with rain. Areas of open water, water-permeable surfaces and other means of storage increase the score for water storage.

Qualitative

The qualitative indicator is a special indicator, in that no complex calculation model exists behind it. It simply tallies points that are scored for this indicator. When creating a game, you can define specifically what actions increase or decrease the score on a qualitative indicators. Although a qualitative indicator is a global indicator, you can add as many as you like to a game.

Indicator Properties

Each indicator has a number of properties. Changing these properties will change the appearance of the indicator for the players.

Name

The full name for indicator. This is the name that will appear as the title of the indicator in game.

Short name

The short name for indicator. This will appear in areas where multiple indicators are summed up.

Color

The color for the indicator. The color will be used to display the indicator in graphs and charts.

Description

The description for the indicator. Most indicator have a fitting default description, but by customizing this text it is possible to guide the players towards specific actions, provide hints or refer to other sources of information.

Target

The goal to reach for this indicator. This is the most important property, because by setting the target, you are directly instructing the stakeholder what they should strive for in the game. Depending on the selected indicator type, one or more values can be entered for targets. For example: for a budget indicator, you only need to set the amount of money the stakeholder should have remaining. For the building indicator, you can enter a separate goal for each type of building.

Influencing Indicators

During the game, players are able to influence indicators by taking actions. Almost every action has an effect on at least one indicator. It is up to the players to apply their actions appropriately to increase the score on their indicators. It is possible to adjust the effects actions have on indicators. For more information on this, please read about changing function values.