Thoughts On Viral Gameplay & Transition

Including gameplay as a virus should be quite simple if we approach it correctly. In cell stage, you are a cell, in a struggle for survival against other cells. Now, you can, if you 'absorb the gluers', become a colony of cell, and then become an organism. On the other hand, if you don't, colonies of cells will still emerge.

A virus is basically a specialised cell that evolves to prey on these colonies. A simple virus could emerge by a probably quite small cell evolving a way of penetrating a larger cell and reproducing many copies of itself, which can then do the same to every cell in the colony. The side effects that weaken the colony could develop later.

If we get that sort of gameplay working, then we could add a viral section onto the cell editor including that method of reproduction. Then, we should create a few virus 'abilities', and slowly build up more and add them to the editor, making the cell editor the 'microbial editor'. We can't have a separate editor for viruses, making the structure would have to be done in the cellular one, so making them one makes sense. Creating a purely viral editor would mean duplicating a lot of the microbe-making features.

In gameplay, the abilities (causing coughs, temperatures, etc.) would probably be randomly acquired in copying, and usually have very little effect on gameplay. Certain things, like a virus that attacks a certain area, would, because you would have to approach that area, with the reward of becoming more specialised and effective at reproducing and resisting.

A smooth transition into viral gameplay might be a bit tricky, with you suddenly being able to reproduce from host cells, so to begin with it should be quite slow and ineffective, but it you continue to do it better traits will make it easier. Once you have become quite good at it, you should become dependant on it, with other cells becoming better in the appropriate area while the virus becomes better in a different area. Other cells would have become so complex and large with tough membranes and walls, they wouldn't be able to become a virus either, so there wouldn't be any turning back once you choose your path.

Also, could virus be a stage in a separate 'branch' of the game? Not a long one, but it would mean we could make the gameplay at least a bit different to cellular. And viruses (advanced, modern day viruses) can't really be called cells, so having them under cellular... That would made our cell stage one step closer to the realism level of Spore's.


Sorry for the length, longpost is eternal, but we don't have much on viral gameplay. So, discuss viral gameplay here.

Viruses are not cells, and they are not alive. So we will not be playing as viruses. Infectious cells, however, are fine. I'd think it's not the most important thing to consider, though.

well what about parasites there how r we going to put them in game we would have to have an editor for a parasite to, and parasites can be very microscopic or bigger but we should see how we can become a parasite in game because that would be interesting

This also brings up another possibility- Partnerships.
In the real world, animals work together (microscopic and larger, but right now I'm just talking about the microscopic ones). For example, Komodo Dragons. Also in animals such as elk, sheep, deer, etc.
In each of these animals, bacteria play a large roll in their survival. Would partnerships like this be able to show up in-game? And if so, how? Same questions with the partnerships of larger animals and parasites, like Mike's question.

PCaddict wrote:

This also brings up another possibility- Partnerships.
In the real world, animals work together (microscopic and larger, but right now I'm just talking about the microscopic ones). For example, Komodo Dragons. Also in animals such as elk, sheep, deer, etc.
In each of these animals, bacteria play a large roll in their survival. Would partnerships like this be able to show up in-game? And if so, how? Same questions with the partnerships of larger animals and parasites, like Mike's question.

Symbiosis is an important and interesting part of many natural relationships. We might be able to work it into Biomes, but it may prove to be too complex.

Symbiosis in-game will be nothing more than non-consumptive resource exchange. Basically, two organisms provide resources that the other uses without eating them.

Example one: Anemones are a resource for clownfish because they are shelter. No one else but clownfish can use them because they've adapted a protective slime that keeps them from getting stung. Also, a primary part of the clownfish's diet is the sea anemone's leftovers - other fish that the anemone has stung and paralyzed, but hasn't gotten into its orifice.
Clownfish are a resource for anemones because... I have to google this.
They help circulate water about the sea anemone, bringing it food. They also maintain the anemone's health by eating off dead tentacles.

<3 Wikipedia.

Mysterious_Calligrapher wrote:

Symbiosis in-game will be nothing more than non-consumptive resource exchange. Basically, two organisms provide resources that the other uses without eating them.

Example one: Anemones are a resource for clownfish because they are shelter. No one else but clownfish can use them because they've adapted a protective slime that keeps them from getting stung. Also, a primary part of the clownfish's diet is the sea anemone's leftovers - other fish that the anemone has stung and paralyzed, but hasn't gotten into its orifice.
Clownfish are a resource for anemones because... I have to google this.
They help circulate water about the sea anemone, bringing it food. They also maintain the anemone's health by eating off dead tentacles.

<3 Wikipedia.

The problem is implementing. How do we program that in a simple way?

~sciocont wrote:

Viruses are not cells, and they are not alive. So we will not be playing as viruses. Infectious cells, however, are fine. I'd think it's not the most important thing to consider, though.

We could have some sort of short pre-cell mini-stage as the first cell forms, the split could happen then. And viruses are close enough to alive to offer some sort of gameplay, even if not as free as cellular. But if you really don't think we should make viruses playable, then let's do that.

Parasites would be interesting, as mike pointed out, and smaller ones that live inside other organisms might result in some quite different gameplay.

As for the organism to organism symbiosis discussion, shouldn't that have its own thread?

But the bacteria-organism partnerships... Well, that's tricky, as far as I know we aren't having actual viruses, just random diseases. Therefore partnerships might be quite tricky. And it's not something that can be put in the editor, either, as it's separate species working together... Although that seems the only way to do it. But something like that would mean players could seriously overpower their creations. But at least these wont make it into gameplay, we aren't Spore.
Bacteria-organism partnerships will have to be a extremely rare random mutation that occurs in parts of the body which are involved with attacking while having the correct conditions for bacteria to thrive. That seems the only way we can do it.

Well, that just about ends this thread. There doesn't seem much more to discuss.

Okay. Scio, if we flag an organism as a resource for another one, we have to specify whether it is a "food" resource or a "shelter" resource. We should probably also have a category for "food provider."
I do realize that this is adding tags to tags, but that's what I've got.

Mysterious_Calligrapher wrote:

Okay. Scio, if we flag an organism as a resource for another one, we have to specify whether it is a "food" resource or a "shelter" resource. We should probably also have a category for "food provider."
I do realize that this is adding tags to tags, but that's what I've got.

That seems pretty straightforward.

~sciocont wrote:

Mysterious_Calligrapher wrote:

Okay. Scio, if we flag an organism as a resource for another one, we have to specify whether it is a "food" resource or a "shelter" resource. We should probably also have a category for "food provider."
I do realize that this is adding tags to tags, but that's what I've got.

That seems pretty straightforward.

Can't program, can organize. That's more or less what it boils down to, but I don't forsee the coders having too many problems with my tags, as they're mostly under-the hood, and just adding pages to a package.