Katerina Michael
Back to Level 5

Level – 5

Hydro-Grow Station

A hydroponic growing station for a post-apocalyptic survival-crafting setting — a garage-built machine assembled from salvaged tech, where once-priceless hardware ends up as spare parts keeping a single crop alive.

Discipline
Game asset & UI
Year
2026
Tools
Figma, Photoshop
Brief
Self-directed

Asset & interface

Upgrade Station

The base station plus three independent same-tier upgrades, each modifying a different system with its own visual identity. The skeleton stays the same throughout — dish, control unit, grow bed — so all four read as one machine family at a glance. Construction logic drives every component: the water chain (rain catcher → tank → valve → sprinklers) and the power loop are traceable by eye. The purchase interface is built around that set — a variant carousel, with resource costs pulled from parts visible in the concepts.

  • Isometric
  • Stylised asset
  • Same-tier upgrades
  • Figma
  • Upgrade Station screen: a cream panel over a painted post-apocalyptic yard, showing the Solar Rig upgrade with its description, two resource costs and an upgrade button

    Upgrade station UI screen

  • Base station

    The garage-built original — dish, control unit and grow bed, assembled from salvaged tech around a single crop.

    • Sketch of the base station: grow bed with a carrot, dish, sprinkler arm, fan and control unit

      Sketch

    • Flat colour pass over the base station

      Flats

    • Rendered base station in weathered wood and grey metal

      Render

  • Climate dome

    Climate control, in clean salvaged-consumer-tech style — the crop sealed under glass.

    • Sketch of the climate dome upgrade, enclosing the grow bed

      Sketch

    • Flat colour pass over the climate dome upgrade

      Flats

    • Rendered climate dome: a clean white rig under a glass dome with a dish lamp

      Render

  • Heavy irrigation rig

    The water chain upgraded, in military surplus — rain catcher to tank to valve to sprinklers, traceable by eye.

    • Sketch of the heavy irrigation rig upgrade with its pressure tank

      Sketch

    • Flat colour pass over the heavy irrigation rig

      Flats

    • Rendered heavy irrigation rig: the station in olive drab with riveted plating and a pressure tank

      Render

  • Solar conversion

    The power loop converted to solar, in raider graffiti — panels bolted over the bed and tagged.

    • Sketch of the solar conversion upgrade with its panel array

      Sketch

    • Flat colour pass over the solar conversion

      Flats

    • Rendered solar conversion: the station under a solar panel, tagged in neon pink and green with spray cans at its base

      Render