Vacation
Vacation!
Vacation, vacation, and now what? Well, the first thing I did was… you guessed it, I got struck down with the flu or a cold. My wife isn't doing much better, but she brought that whole thing home from the viral breeding ground (aka, kindergarten), presumably. But that won't knock me out (hopefully), so what now? Right, I'm going to keep working on my game project.
The Game Project
- Step 1: Design Game
- Step 2: Think a lot about genetics
- Step 3: …?
- Step 4: Profit!
Speaking of profit, one decision I made from the very beginning was not to include microtransactions or anything like that, not even ads. Maybe in the future there'll be an option to donate or something via PayPal or other payment providers, but completely voluntary. No in-game bonuses or anything. I always found that super annoying in old browser games… Buy Now 1000 Hyper-Coins for $4.99 – as if those coins actually get you anywhere in the end.
Or skins… Your Waifu Beach Outfit, for $9.99 in the ULTRA-SALE!!111eleven
Ugh. That's all I've got to say about that.
So What's the Game Actually About?
Right, the interesting part. Long story short: Exploring regions, rescuing endangered animals, breeding those same animals, and ultimately releasing them into the wild to increase populations or genetic diversity. The more you release, the more currency you get, and with that currency you can upgrade your buildings for better exploration, genetic research, breeding options, etc.
Will There Be Multiplayer?
Yep, this thing is going to be a browser game that's fundamentally designed to interact with other players. Trading with other players to swap animals, or offering your own animals for breeding, stuff like that.
Browser? How-So, Where-So, What-So?
Pretty straightforward. No action-packed combat or anything like that. Everyone can build their own breeding operation however they want. But I only want blue animals… sure, that'd be totally possible – you could start breeding specifically to end up with only blue animals.
There'll be a bulletin board (or something similar) where events get posted regularly. For example, they might ask for specific breeds because, say, animals with blue bodies are rare or nonexistent in Region A (basically endangered). Someone can help out by deliberately breeding and releasing those specific animals. Of course, you get a bonus on the currency you earn from releasing them.
Everything is Persistent.
What? Some of you probably just went "Huh?" That simply means: I release Bobby, this blue creature, in Region A. Someone else goes exploring and might encounter Bobby and even take them along. In Bobby's history, that person can see that Bobby used to belong to me or was bred by me. In Bobby's info, the new owner can even see Bobby's family tree and that Bobby is descended from Gerhardt and Hilda, etc. But if all players only breed and release blue creatures, then the other animals and genetic compositions will slowly but surely die out (which generates new events). So it's partly up to the player to regularly go exploring and make sure biodiversity is preserved (if that's the playstyle they're after).
CAN YOU PET THE DOG????
No.
Genetics
After the first few days of design, brainstorming, and thinking, I already started writing a Python library that lets me model the genetic system—or rather, different genetic models—for the game. Actually implemented it in a way that I could theoretically use it for multiple animal species. So maybe there won't just be one animal in the game, but several different species. Like, I'm probably going to start with snails and then add axolotls as a second species later. Or maybe I'll build a fantasy spin-off someday with dragons and unicorns instead of snails and axolotls.
Will this thing actually get finished? No clue. But the thought that other players will send expeditions into regions and randomly stumble upon Bobby – this snail creature that I bred – that's just too cool not to try. Let's see how far I can take it.