Clean and relax with a satisfying powerwash
PowerWash Simulator is a simulation video game wherein you can relax and just blast away dirt and debris. Developed by FuturLab, this 3D first-person game lets you clean various objects and locations with your handy power-washing tools at your own pace.
Similar to House Flipper, PowerWash Simulator aims to be accurate in terms of what really entails when handling a power-washing business. While it can be hard to spot the last remaining tiny patches of dirt and end up getting stuck in the same level for a long time, the game is overall both an enjoyable and challenging experience.
Does PowerWash Simulator have a story?
In PowerWash Simulator, you play as the owner of a local power-washing business that’s been commissioned with cleaning up the numerous large objects and locations in your town. Armed with your trusted hose and nozzle, you must completely wash down everything that’s covered in dirt and grime to earn money—using only the intense power of a high-pressure water stream. Your jobs will vary from hosing down a car to blasting away mud from an entire playground’s various playset components.
There are four game modes you can access: Career Mode, Challenge Mode, Free Play, and Specials. The first one features the main story campaign that lets you learn the strange secrets of your seemingly-quiet town. Here, there’s no timer or final score to worry about; simply clear everything to complete the levels. Doing so also nets you money for buying cool upgrades to your tools and improving your business. Meanwhile, Challenge Mode adds the timer and best scores to beat for those looking to prove their skills.
If you’d like to replay your favorite levels without the story, simply enter Free Play to powerwash to your heart’s content. On the other hand, you can try out unique cleaning jobs—such as polishing a Mars space rover while on Mars—in the Specials mode. There’s lots of variety when it comes to the jobs you’ll take on so the game doesn’t ever really get boring despite the length of time it takes to complete certain huge levels.
Is PowerWash Simulator worthwhile?
The strongest selling point of PowerWash Simulator is that its gameplay is highly satisfying. Watching the water sluice off layers of grime to reveal sparkling-clean surfaces is both fun and addicting—most especially when a section lights up briefly to indicate that you’ve successfully cleaned it. Plus, the lack of any time pressure in most of the game modes allows you to go at it at your own pace. It also helps that you have unlimited water—unlike in House Flipper, where most resources need to be bought.
A common issue to be found here is that it can be hard to spot small patches of remaining dirt on an object unless you re-wash it. Fortunately, the game has a helpful system that auto-cleans an area for you once you get it to a nearly-complete percentage. The only real big drawback here is that most of the levels are massive and will actually take hours and perhaps even several gaming sessions to complete. Even with the best equipment unlock, you won’t be able to finish them fast enough.
Pretty great for any player
All in all, PowerWash Simulator is a great relaxing game to try out if you find the act of cleaning a calm pastime. Not only does it offer various modes that don’t pressure you into finishing quickly, but it also lets you clean the levels however you want. While it can be tedious to complete levels in one sitting, it’s still a pretty satisfying game to experience.
