Video game Shenzhen I/O lets you be an electronic engineer in China in the near future

Certain things about the future are inevitable. Computer programming will become a powerhouse career, with its attendant technology shaping the direction of our history. Video games are set to become the go-to form of entertainment for the masses, bridging the interactive gap between fantasy and reality. And Shenzhen – much as many weary Hongkongers hate to admit it – will most likely emerge as China’s key centre for global relations.

The connecting factor between them, aside from their inevitability: all three elements form the basis of Shenzhen I/O. The independent video game from boutique American developer Zachtronics was released on the Steam Early Access distribution platform last month, and it’s already been hailed by critics as a cult classic.

Trying to explain the game’s concept isn’t easy. Basically, you’re a computer engineer in the near future working at a Shenzhen-based electronics company. On the surface, the gameplay focuses on seemingly mundane tasks such as writing code, building circuits and creating products for clients – but once you open the hood, everything is revealed.

“Shenzhen I/O is what you could call an ‘open-ended programming puzzle game’,” says Zach Barth, co-founder of Zachtronics, which is renowned for creating Infiniminer, the block-building precursor game of Minecraft.

“But at its heart, it’s about being an engineer – not just finding solutions to problems, but also things like checking your email, looking up documentation from multiple sources, and watching the success or failure of a product you worked on in the marketplace.”