Connecting cells is already a thing via binding agents
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didn’t know those already existed. however those parts could be utilized as part of the transition
the 0.5.8 release Canidate suggests that it will be the case.
0.5.8 will additionally have an early multicellular prototype, which unlocks when you bind with enough cells. Once you are there you can start immediately creating specialized cell types. 0.5.8 release is just a few hours away.
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Out of curiosity, is it still planned for players to be able to become plants as well as animals? If so, there has to be an incentive to becoming a plant as well as a checkpoint in game based on chloroplast count or something. Then again, it may not be viable for plant routes to be implemented anyways due to boring game play/ inability to develop past multicellular.
After playing the multicellular prototype I’ve had a few thoughts about how organism growth works:
- tl;dr: instead of the current system where the multicellular organism has an invisible order in which it grows new cells one by one, the organism could have user created stages of life which it transforms into as the organism obtains enough resources for them. each stage could build upon the previous stage, or completely revamp the organism at each stage which would be reflected in the cost to progress to the next stage accordingly.
- I saw there is a “reproduction method” screen in multicellular which defaults to (and currently only has as an option) budding. Since these organisms are budding, it makes sense that they may have life cycles with stages of life. I think it would be cool/make sense for you to be able to design life stages in multicellular.
- Why? It would make more sense to design a “bud” or “nymph” cell type which then grows other, differentiated cells as you grow. However that bud cell type would likely be very specialized to survive as a single cell and have special characteristics (such as a stronger membrane, flagella to escape predators etc) that don’t need to carry over once it grows the differentiated cells that have flagella, or the epithelial cells that protect it from the environment.
- I suggest a “stages of life editor” to address this. What would that look like? A series of screens like the current multicellular editor, and in each screen you can create a new “stage of life”. This would help players who also want to see more clearly the order in which their cells will grow. It could look something like the below:
- It could include a little warning as well if any given stage doesn’t have enough resources to reach the next stage of life. Upon reaching the last stage, you would need to fill phosphate/ammonia reserves as you currently do to return to the editor.
- Unlike the current system, you won’t just pop out cells as you gain enough resources for them individually, you’ll gain all the new cells of a given stage once you have enough resources for it. If a stage removes a cell it could even get credited towards advancing a stage (such as in the case of a nymph specialized cell, the resources it contains could get refunded to your organism advancing into the next stage of life).
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idk if something like this is planned to be put in the game, if it is, please just politely let me know, but anyways
i feel like maybe it would be cool if, instead of simply clicking a button to enter the multicellular stage once you have a large enough colony, you could pass into the stage by adding on a part. its function could be to produce a big scaffold around your organism’s body, which is how multicellularity is accomplished on earth. in order to prevent players from simply tacking it on as soon as they gain a nucleus, the part could be made very costly and require a lot of atp to maintain, also maybe requiring a binding agent to be present on your cell, but i feel like it might be hard to build cells with all those required parts on them. either way, definitely would be preferable to just pushing a big button lol
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Still planned, but plant gameplay needs to enter the strategy mode much earlier, otherwise it’ll be super boring. So while it is still planned, that’s way off the intended path to finish the game so it isn’t any kind of priority to get done.
I think pushing the button is much better, because you actually need to bind with other cells. If you just had a part, you can rush to get that part and become multicellular. Now instead you actually need to use the binding agents which is a part required to reach the multicellular stage. Instead of just slapping on a bunch of parts while quickly speedrunning through generations.
Currently, many people are correct in pointing out that plant gameplay is pretty boring without much reason to play it since the possibilities offered by a plant creature are quite limited in the late game.
One posisble solution to that is a mode where, once during the game you are allowed to swap what species you are to a different species from you, lettings you continue the game as that species whilst the species that you leave behind continues to evolve.
This would make plant gameplay meaningful because it’d create a goal for you to work towards; creating the most resource-filled ecosystem possible by creating complex multicellular plants, and then using those resources provided to evolve larger and more complex herbivorous and predatory species.
It would not solve possible boring aspects of the gameplay, but it’d at least provide some sort of incentive to become a successful plant, and enhance later gameplay experiences for those that are willing to put up with the grind of becoming a plant.
A post i am currently working on will hopefully add some interesting elements to mid to late multicellular plant gameplay, so i will revisit that aspect of plant gameplay then.
What happens if your species dies out in the Space Stage due to an invasion of another alien species
Also make that so you can make Hydrogen Sulfide without the need to use the particles that come out of it
Please don’t double post, instead edit your previous post.
That’d be basically a random game over, right? I don’t think we should add those no matter how much the asteroid extinction wanters want to lose the game due to RNG, I don’t think that’s any good design.
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In regards to a previous post about life-stages, I believes it will hold merit in mid-late stage multicellularity. Since by that point, you’ll still potentially start out each generation as a single celled organism, ending in a multicellular organism to reproduce. This could be a species thing in order to niche portion, so that the new generation won’t need to compete with the adult generation immediately. Provided the previous generation doesn’t die, or the organism splits in two. Its somewhat based of this picture I googled this picture which I think best describes my thought on it to an extent.
(I got the game as a gift from a friend on steam and have really fond memories of spore)
In terms of playing as a plant or fungus when it’s an animal that will necessitate advancement throughout the game. Perhaps it would be best to create a minigame or minimode out of it. Which could offer a bonus, or awards for going through with it. Possibly a sort of split screen effect. Where there are different requirements to become “aware” that compliments your animal’s experience.
In regards to multicellularity if we’re going from 2D → 2.5D → 3D; than maybe in 3D we can create an early 3D mass of cells and introduce depth options. I would also think creating complex cells through the absorption of smaller cells to create organelles over evolving them, with possible gene trading as well. Though this would be limited to the microbial. Though early multicellular might be able to retain cell absorption for a limited time. Though I’m not sure what level of complexity that cap would be
With regards to the life-cycles discussion; this is way off of course, but I think a surprising amount of variety in gameplay strategies can be implemented in something as simple as having the ability to sequence which cells are created first. Already in this simple prototype, you can for example begin as a speedy cell with no pilus or protection or toxins in order to prioritize the quick gathering of compounds and then gradually adapt more predatory parts, such as toxin intensive cells or cells with hard membranes. I remember looking up sponges to see their reproductive strategy/life phases.
I can only anticipate how many more options will be available when the eukaryotic aspect of the microbe stage gets filled out.
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Unirronically this is a good idea, since moderm vertabrates evolved by neotony.
Also on an other stuff first multicellular animal life had an outer layer made of cells with flagellum and an inside filled with fluids an amobea cells. How do we incormporate such stuff in thrive.
And a third part, how will the game make your organism looks. Moving from a 2d movement segment to 3d movement segment of multicell stage ?
Maybe Transition from Early to Late Multicellular could be done by making your single-cell hexes 4-cell, 9-cell, 16-cell etc., You would basically have option to multiply all cells in your organisms to this next hex level for 100 MPs, and you would get to late multicell when you have 1000 cells. When moving from 1 to 1000 cell organisms game will turn from 2D to 3D as well. At end of transition, you will get choice to make your organism clip by itself, like circle rotating 90 degrees and creating sphere, to create radial/spherical symmetry organism. Or you could just turn your organism into torso made of metaballs, which would start appearing as you get more cells per hex. This could be better than current “20 cells to late multicellular” solution, as it would not allow cell types with 1 cell representative to become it’s own tissue.
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I came up with a small idea to make the change from Microbe to Multicellular feel more fluid than it is at the moment. I think that the “Become Multicellular” button we have now isn’t the smoothest of transition. My idea would be that when you first binded with another cell, the reproduction button would change into a counter, telling you how many cells you have to bind with. This would change back if you unbinded. When you binded with enough cells, the reproduction button would change into a button showing two cells binding to become one multicellular organism. Pressing the button would enter the Multicellular Editor, and the Multicellular Stage.
Button Icons (Not polished, just concepts)
Binded Cells Counter -
Become Multicellular Button -
I hope you liked this idea!
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zooids? you know those composite organisms
I actually very much like the idea of the reproduction button becoming a counter, and by extent, the progression button. This works perfectly in the context of the microbe stage where reproduction is otherwise blocked while in a colony.
It’s a good and simple idea!
However, we will need to consider consistency with later stages, which will not have bound colonies and member requirements that will not likely prevent reproduction. Thus in such stages, we would ideally need the buttons for reproduction and advancement to remain separate.
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For early multicell, there definitely needs to be the option to make new cells instead of duplicating a different cell. Also allowing toxins to be used from other cell parts should be added (this would also apply to microbe colonies).
Maybe a pheromone system to give early communication between organisms/cells. Being able to send/receive signals about food, prey, predators, and possibly even reproduction would give more intelligence to early organisms.
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