Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure is the automation/real-time strategy hybrid of cozy gamers' dreams. Explore a world filled with Sparks, cute creatures that work and fight for the player. With a calming aesthetic and a relaxing environment that lets you play at your own pace, Oddsparks is a breath of fresh air in a time where farming simulators make you plow every field and pluck every onion.

We talked with Art Lead Christiane Ebrecht and Lead Game Designer Brenden Gibbons about the process of making Oddsparks and the challenges the team faced—as well as the future of the game. (There are also some early-game tips from the creators themselves at the end.)

Gibbons explained that the idea for Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure came from the team's love of automation games, and wanting to bring that love to more people. “We think a lot of people who think that automation games aren’t for them are mostly put off by the brown sci-fi coating that a lot of automation games have," said Gibbons. "We wanted to create something that was approachable for new players but with enough twists to make automation players happy.”

Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure started out as a fantasy tycoon game, though, before shifting direction. “As our Creative Director and Code Lead were working on the prototype, they ended up pushing the game towards more of an automation direction—and here we are!”

Making Oddsparks approachable without sacrificing the automation genre's inherent depth was always on the team's minds. “There are a lot of games that seem very friendly but are actually quite stressful and difficult," said Gibbons. "Stardew Valley, for example, can be cozy and cute—or if you want to, you can get out a spreadsheet and automate your farm, rush the community center, get 100%. It’s the same with Oddsparks.”

The team drew inspiration from all kinds of games, ranging from Animal Crossing and Pikmin to Timberborn and Factorio. As Gibbons put it, mixing automation with RTS means that “Oddsparks is swimming in a whole sea of inspiration.”

This rippled outward to influence combat. While some of the combat in Oddsparks was determined by “technical restrictions,” according to Gibbons, a lot of thought and planning went into the complexity of the RTS elements. “We had to figure out the scale of combat and how much attention we wanted players to give strategy (what kind of Sparks you have with you) versus tactics (how you control the Sparks mid-combat). In the end, we mostly wanted to keep things fun, simple, and readable, and that led to the combat we have now.”

Of course, some players want more thorough control of the fighting—and they can have it. "The tactics skill ceiling is high, so you can micro your Sparks if you want to,” said Gibbons.

Ebrecht touched on the creative process for Oddsparks and how the designs for the Sparks came about. “For art, and when the prototyping is mostly done, we first pick a general creature theme. For example, the Woodlands has the theme “bugs” because we figured they’re squishy critters and perfect for the starting area. And then we merge them with another animal class until we have something that is not only appealing but also feels nice to fight. Not too cute, not too weird.”

While creature design had a formula, the creative team had more freedom with enemies and NPCs. “We had so much fun with them, and everybody has their own little backstory for their favorites,” said Ebrecht.

Creating the player character took a bit of time, as well. “It was so hard to figure out what the model should look like—to make it recognizable but also have room for customizations," Ebrecht explained. "When it was finally done, we all breathed a sigh of relief!”

For Gibbons, the most rewarding part of the game was finally seeing people’s reactions. "When you’re deep in development, you just can’t see the wood for the trees, and even individual playtests sometimes felt like, ‘Okay, is this just one person’s opinion, or is the game actually good?’" said Gibbons. "When the demo was finally out, and we saw that folks were really picking up what we were putting down, that felt amazing.”

Accompanying the team through the development process were their lovable office dogs, who have their own lines in the credits—and future Easter eggs as well, potentially. And speaking of Easter eggs: For automation fans, there is an achievement that references an achievement in Factorio, so keep an eye out for that.

When it came down to advice for players, Ebrecht said, “Don’t be afraid of the automation aspect! Even if you’ve never played anything like Oddsparks or think you won’t get it, it’s so fun and easy to understand. Once you’re in it, you’ll see how deep the mechanics go and how rewarding the experience will be!”

Gibbons's advice was to “manage Sparks traffic.” Keep in mind that Sparks always walk on the right side, and you’ll be set! "Usually when something isn’t working or is working slower than you expected, it’s just because of that,” said Gibbons.

Pick up Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure on the Epic Games Store today and immerse yourself in the wonderful world of Sparks.