Revamping the Wiki

Development Sections
-Art and Graphics
--Animation - A page concerning how animation will be implemented, as well as showcasing my concept animations and any more which are created.
--Art Style - This will explain Thrive’s art style - realism mixed with science fiction - and showcase examples, such as the shattered theme and the rules regarding it.
--Concept Art - A page containing links to all of Thrive’s concept art.
--GUI - This page will contain some examples of GUI already designed and explain the rules governing its implementation.
--Models - Images of Thriving Cheese’s microbe and organelle models, along with any organism models (including those made by Tré Wisemen).
-Design
--Biomes - This page will list all biomes and explain how they will be implemented.
---Food Web - The current food web page with added visualisations.
--Compound System - Here the compound system will be detailed, along with its implementation in each stage.
--Controls - As of yet, there hasn’t been much of a consensus on controls, but this page will store any agreement we come up with.
--Evolution
---Auto-Evo - The current Auto-Evo page, but updated.
---Fossilisation - A short explanation of fossilisation.
---Names - The current names page. I never even knew that was there.
---Niches - The list of niches, unless they are now obsolete.
---Population Dynamics - Basically just Seregon’s lengthy population dynamics explanation.
--Gameplay Modes - A short page, the main function of which is to link to the four gameplay modes.
---Observer Mode - An explanation of observer mode.
---Organism Mode - An explanation of organism mode.
---Strategy Mode - An explanation of strategy mode.
---Sandbox Mode - An explanation of sandbox mode.
-Other
--Censoring - This page will contain a quick explanation of how much censoring Thrive will have, where it will be found and the player options regarding it.
--Concept Race - The current page on concept races.
---The Uteen - We can’t not keep this page.
--Content Sharing - The current content sharing page.
--Difficulty Levels - Explanations of the default difficulty levels and how they change gameplay, along with a description of the custom setup options.
--Easter Eggs - All the agreed upon Easter eggs and their locations.
--In-Game Points Systems - Explanations of MP, RP and any other in-game points systems we come up with.
--Loading Screens - A quick explanation of loading screens and how they’ll be implemented.
--Menus - Lists of the options available at each menu in-game.
--Opening Cutscene - Suggestions for the opening cutscene.
--Thrive Content Library - An explanation of how the Thrive Content Library (or whatever the name is) will work.
-Sound
--Sound Effects - A description of sound effect implementation, and a list with links to those already created.
--Soundtrack - The current soundtrack page, but updated.
---Music Style - A description of the musical style we are aiming for, and the detailed styles for each stage.
-Programming
--Official Releases - Links to the official releases and their details in terms of programming.
--Procedurals - How procedural generation will be implemented.
--Programming Languages - A list of what programming languages will be used, the reasons behind these choices, and where they’ll be used.
--Prototypes - Links to the prototypes created.
-Gameplay Stages
--Microbe Stage - A less detailed version of the current microbe stage page.
---Microbe Stage GDD - The current microbe stage page for those who want more detail.
---Microbe Editor - More detail on the microbe editor explained in the GDD, with images as proof of concept.
----Organelles - A list of organelles, their functions and MP costs.
--Multicellular Stage - A description of the multicellular stage, which will become more detailed as we move towards creating it.
---Behaviour Editor - This page will detail the behaviour editor, including an explanation of ~sciocont’s hex-grid based interface.
---Disasters - An updated version of the current disasters page, listing all the disasters and their effects.
---Environmentally Transient Organisms - The current page.
---Organism Editor - A description of the organism editor, its GUI and functions.
----Organs - A list of organs, their functions and MP costs.
----Skeletal GDD - The skeletal creation GDD made by ~sciocont, NickTheNick and Seregon.
---Mating - Descriptions of how organisms will mate in-game.
--Aware Stage - A description of the aware stage, which will become more detailed as we move towards creating it.
--Awakening Stage - A description of the awakening stage, which will become more detailed as we move towards creating it.
--Society Stage - A description of the society stage, which will become more detailed as we move towards creating it.
---National Aspects
----Arbitrary Mechanics - The current arbitrary mechanics page, with links to more detailed explanations on the pages below.
----Culture - The processes behind PCG.
----Government - Government types and respective effects.
----Economics - How economics will work in the society, industrial and space stages.
----Religion - How religions will be generated.
----Population (Pops) - How pops will function.
---Nation Editor - How the nation editor, which governs how a player’s nation functions, will work.
---Research Web - This page will list all researches and show the current tree/web linking them.
---Society Centres - A description of the society centres in-game.
----Military Centres - The current page on military centres, unless they are now obsolete.
---Squads - The current squad page.
----Squad Editor - An updated version of NickTheNick’s description of the squad editor.
---Supplies - How supplies will work.
---Tech Editor - Detailed explanations of how the tech editor will work.
----Function Parts - A list of function parts and their uses.
---Underwater Civilisations - This is not an explanation of how underwater civilisations will work - rather, it is an explanation of how they won’t work, including proposed theories and the reasons why they won’t work.
--Industrial Stage - A description of the industrial stage, which will become more detailed as we move towards creating it.
--Space Stage - A description of the space stage, which will become more detailed as we move towards creating it.
---Ascension - The description of ascension, basically winning the game.
----God Tools - An explanation of how god tools will function and at what stage they become available.
---Planet Editor - PPG and player terraforming.
--Transitions Between Stages - Descriptions of the transitions between each stage and the next.
Main Pages
-FAQ - The list of FAQs from the forum, but with more information and more questions, with links to relevant pages.
-Get Involved - How to get involved.
-Home - The current home page.
-Important Links - Links to the website, forums, ModDB page, Youtube channel and everything associated with Thrive.
-Thrive Abbreviations Dictionary - Self-explanatory.
Revolutionary Games - A description of who we are and our mission statement.
-History - A detailed history of Thrive’s development, from its origin to today and the future.
-Outreach
--Forum - A link to the forum and description of its uses.
--Podcasts - Links to the podcasts.
--Wiki - A description of how the Wiki should be used and its purpose.
-Team Members - Short bios about each of the team leads and other major members.

Animation in Thrive is currently not implemented and has not yet been discussed in detail, but there are many aspects of it which have been agreed upon, along with early demonstrations of animation for reference in programming.

Microbe Stage

Two concept animations have been created to demonstrate the current concept for the microbe stage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c-4sJRDbwk and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CnkJd0HZNU. However, many of the mechanics shown in both animations are now out of date. Please see the microbe stage current concept [link to Microbe Stage GDD] for an up to date description of this stage. Test animations involving the microbe models [link to Models] have also been made, and can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/user/OverlordDragonX/videos

Within the microbe stage, the main animations will be parts of the player’s and AI cells. Flagella and cilia are planned to move side to side during gameplay to create the illusion of swimming motion, while the possibility of movable joints within microbes are to be discussed and implemented at a later date (an example of an early moveable joint concept can be seen in the editor animation linked above).

Compound and agent clouds will also be animated, dissipating within the water to interact with other cells. Currently, the exact method by which these clouds will function is up for debate [correct me if I’m wrong]. The water itself will also be animated, moving in several layers to create the illusion of currents. It’s possible the fluid dynamics implemented will be paired with this animation, the water shown to be flowing as it actually flows in the game.

There will also be a large amount of animation implemented into the GUI [link to GUI]. Functionality and interactivity will be prominent, with buttons changing colour when hovered over. Also planned are ATP and compound [link to Compound System] gauges for the player’s cell to indicate the proportion of the total storage capacity is filled with each compound. These will fluctuate as compound stores change, shown by an animated bar.

Early on in Thrive’s development, the art style was fixed on a mix of realism and science fiction, as evidenced by the concept art [link to Concept Art], GUI [link to GUI] and other art assets. These are the descriptions of realism/simulator and science fiction art styles as given by Gotrol:

‘1 - Simulator style. Getting as close to the real as possible. As many polygons as possible, photo textures, no enhancing visual effects (like bloom, dynamic particles, etc…). Gives a really accurate representation of what the real model is, on the downside the graphics feel “boring” and artificial. Examples- DCS series, Lock-on, LFS, iRacing, MFSX.’

‘2 - Sci-fi style. Epic skyboxes, aesthetically pleasing color mixes, extensive application of post processing, great design (and polygon number) of models. Definitely a beautiful sight, but tends to stray away, or “overdo” the realism. Examples- Mass Effect series, EVE online, Mirrors Edge.’

As a result, the majority of permanent art assets associated with Thrive will have an overriding sensation of science, technology and life, with the GUI being mostly dark and mechanical (but often intertwined with growing and green) and in-game graphics being as high quality as is possible while retaining processing power. Player created creatures, vehicles, buildings, etc. will be different, having their visual style chosen by the player as they create them. AI assets will have their visual style decided upon by evolution [link to Auto-Evo].

Shattered Theme

The shattered theme is based upon the idea of shards of glass containing the buttons of the GUI. As a result, buttons may be used interchangeably with shards. There are several rules governing the placement and use of shards in the GUI:

1. They must be convex polygons, having no angles larger than 180 degrees.
2. Each shard must either be its own button for one link, or have several pieces of information but nothing selectable.
3. Ideally, GUI should be minimal, with as little of the screen as possible obscured by shards.
4. Smaller shards should have fewer angles, and consequently larger shards should have more. This removes the possibility of fractals, creating a definite frame of reference for the player and sticking to the feeling of a broken glass.

Concept art for Thrive can be either images used as experiments in organism, tech or landscape visualisation, or art created specifically to show how something will appear in-game. Currently, the majority of concept art has been the former. Most of these are creatures in the multicellular, aware and awakening stages, so anything other than these will be highly valued.

All published concept art for Thrive can be found here: http://thrive-game.deviantart.com/favourites/, while still more can be found on the forums.

[This is based off Invader’s original post and is consequently slightly out of date, so will need to be revised. Most of these will have links to corresponding Wiki pages.]

A
Auto-Evo - The system in game which controls organic, planetary, or technical evolution

B
Behaviour Editor - Part of the OE or TE where a player sets up AI and special animations for a tech or organism.

Belgium - Someone tried to swear, and the censors turned it into Belgium

C
CE - Culture editor

D
Darwinian - Refers to the current theory of evolution through natural selection.

Direct Edit - A controversial action, constantly under debate, in which a player can make a small change to their organism by accessing the Organism Editor during gameplay.

E
Editor - Any in-game content editor such as the OE, TE, PE, CE, etc

ETO- Environmentally Transient Organism - An animal that moves in between biomes regularly.

F
FP - Function Part. See below

Function Part - Something that adds function or abilities to a Tech Object. Think of a car. The Function Parts in a car would be the engine, wheels, axles, fuel container and control mechanisms. The rest of the car is simply structural or aesthetical, but do not add function or abilities to the car. Function Parts are included in the game to allow for objects that are too complex for players to create or for the Tech Editor engine to understand to be included in Tech Objects. There will need to be a variety of Function Parts, and they will need to be able to be textured with different materials and have shape and size changes applicable to them.

G
God tools - A panel of tools which give the player God-like abilities which are unlocked over the course of gameplay.

GM or God mode - Once a separate mode with god tools (see above). The concept of God Mode has been dropped, in favor of simply using the God Tools mentioned above, but God Mode is often referenced.

H

I
Invention - This is a minor, more specific breakthrough by your people. Inventions spring off of Researches. For instance, the Research Athletics leads to the Inventions of Combat Sports, Field Sports, Team Sports and Water Sports. Not all civilisations will invent all of these types of sports, thus Inventions help to diversify nations.

J

K

L
Lamarckian - Refers to lamarckian evolution, an outdated theory of evolution that assumed mutations were created by an animal's actions and passed on from there.

LAWK - Life As We Know it

Levelling - Levelling up a Research or invention is where the player improves the technologies or discoveries they have made. The related Function Parts will become more efficient, powerful, durable or otherwise improved for their purpose. Related bonuses to SCs or nations will be increased.

M
Manakin - A poseable "manakin" representing an organism that can be loaded into the Tech editor to provide a template to build around. A common typo, actually spelled "mannequin".

MC - Military Center. Like a Society Center, except that it is for the express use of the military.
N
NPC - Non=Playable Character (organism)

NPN - Non-playable Nation (faction)

O
OE - Organism editor

OP - Original post, aka the first post on a thread

Org. - Organism in gameplay

Org. Mode - Organism mode, the mode of gameplay in which a player controls a single organism.

P
PE - Planet editor

PPG - Procedural Planet Generator, an engine in the game that decides what a planet can be like.

Procedurals - Pieces of code that use algorithms or formulas to approximate real-world results, used for textures, gaits of animals, evolution, etc.

Q
QFT - Quote For Truth- someone has quoted a post because they agree with it.

R
RTS mode - Strategy mode

Research - This is a major breakthrough by your people. Researches can be thought of as technologies in other games, however the word technology or tech is too similar to Tech Object, and could more easily lead to confusion.

Research Points - Research Points are used by the game to know when a Research or Invention will be discovered. Researches and Inventions will be discovered when the player reaches a certain quota of Research Points or by chance after a slightly lower quota.

S
SC - Society centre (a staple of Strategy Mode gameplay) Basically, any city or town your species lives in.

Share Code - A string of text which can be read by the game to create an organism, or anything else made in the game's editors*. To a person reading it, it will ideally be fairly clear which sections represent what part of the organism/object. The name ‘share code’ refers to its use as a way of sharing an in-game object in a way that can be easily copied and pasted via a forum or similar website from one game to another, as well as, of course, its code-like appearance.


Strat. Mode - Strategy mode, the mode of gameplay which is much like an RTS

T
TE - Technology editor

Tech - Technology used in gameplay

Test mode/test grounds/test space - Referring to the area/mode inside an editor in which organisms, AI, and technology can be tested.

TO - Tech Object. See below.

Tech Object - Something used by the people to perform or help perform a task. Tech Objects can be anything from weapons to buildings to spaceships. Tech objects are created by the player in the Tech Editor or selected from premade Tech Objects and run through some manner of evolution algorithm that is yet to be determined. Tech Objects are granted abilities through their construction and Function Parts and are given tags by the player or AI in order to show what they should be used for. This will stop the AI trying to go to sea on a furnace.

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

Revolutionary Games is the name of the independent game developer creating Thrive. We aim to create a free, open-source game which both accurately shows evolution and makes for a fun gameplay experience. Our goal is not money (which is impossible anyway, as we’re doing it for free) or fame, but to simply make a game. Anything else is a side effect.

Thrive will take many years to develop, even for the skilled individuals [link to Team Members] trying to make it a reality. We realise and positively embrace this statement, hoping that one day a game can be made which shows that a small open-source community can make something for free which rivals, and regularly avoids the problems of, the multi-million dollar games created by games companies. Many people will view our mission as impossible, and justifiably so, but we certainly don’t. The timescales for completion and hurdles to jump may be huge, but nothing incredible ever worth doing is easy. Independent games, in only the last decade, have exposed flaws in the views of the games industry, proving that groundbreaking games do not have to come from someone with groundbreaking money or a groundbreakingly large team. Thrive is another step on the natural progression ladder of independent games, though to make it such a difficult task as this further adds to the acclaim it will be given once all barriers have been torn down.

We have all poured our hearts and souls into this ridiculous, incredible, seemingly insurmountable project, but only by doing so do we stand any chance of success. If we ever wish to see the fruits of this eternal labour, we must never forget that fact, lest Thrive slowly slither out of the hopes and dreams of those who imagine a day when we can stand proud atop the world and announce, “Stop telling us we’ll never achieve the impossible, because we just have.”

When EA originally announced and promoted a game centred on the evolution of a creature from single-celled organism to space-faring civilisation, many were immediately hooked. However, what eventually became Spore failed to live up to expectations - evolution was inaccurately portrayed, the stages felt too simple and everything was given a child-friendly makeover. While it wasn’t a bad game as such, it certainly wasn’t what it promised to be - an evolution simulation game.

Angry at the disparity between what had been promised and what had actually been given, several members of the Spore community independently felt that an alternative should be created which addressed Spore’s main problems. Little was done until 2009, when a member of the Spore forum (the Sporum) posted screenshots of a game known as Evolutions! already in development. The screenshots showed a highly realistic editor and gameplay environment, both in terms of evolutionary function and graphics. The poster also detailed how much of the game would work, and people were once again hooked on the concept as they had been for Spore. However, it was soon revealed that the post had been a hoax intended to incentivise EA into creating a sequel to Spore at the threat of competition, but so many people were convinced by the concept that a team was actually set up to turn Evolutions! into a reality, with the original poster as the team’s head.

Though progress was made towards creating an evolution game via a development forum, many members found the original poster difficult to work with, so split off and created a new forum, along with a new name for the game: Thrive. While Thrive continued to grow, the forum for Evolutions! was overrun by spam bots, with an increasingly unorganised team and non-existent progress. Eventually, the original poster decided that no progress was going to be made, and so shut down the forum, leaving Thrive as the sole evolution game in development. Many members at that time are still part of the current team.

After moving to yet another forum, the Thrive development team stayed strong, rebranding itself as Revolutionary Games in late 2010. However, though interest was high, little programming was done in the early stages. Most of the effort went towards setting up the concept for how the game should run during each stage, while concept art and music followed suit. Internet activity for Thrive grew, continually attracting new members to the project, eager to see it become a reality. Yet the lack of progress meant that established members left at a similar rate, keeping the total number of active team members down. Despite this problem, game features and systems were gradually carved out, with the development of Auto-Evo [link to Auto-Evo] being the largest of these hurdles.

By mid 2012, though conceptualisation was progressing at a steady rate, the total nonexistence of any actual programming meant the situation was reaching a crisis point. The last remaining programmer left, angry at the way the project organised itself. Coincidently, this coincided with a (relatively small in relation to what came later) traffic spike, bringing many new contributors to the project and pushing it forward through the setback. The source of the spike has yet to be completely traced, though it was likely the result of a comment posted on a popular YouTube video. Come the end of 2012, a target was set to have at least a decent prototype for the microbe stage by the end of 2013. At the time, it was thought impossible, even by Thrive’s standards, but the second major traffic spike followed shortly after, the result of a comment on a Reddit post. Yielding vastly more people than the first, it resulted in a boost in progress like none before in the game’s history. Newcomers insisted on a better forum layout, before joining the team and aiding in the programming effort.

More progress was made in the months following the Reddit traffic spike than in the previous three years put together. The first prototypes were created, a fully-fledged website was published, a microbe stage GDD [link to Microbe Stage GDD] was outlined and the prospect of having something substantial for the first stage by the end of 2013 as had been the target looked good. Though activity died down during the summer (discounting a concept animation and finalisation of the Skeletal GDD) and almost ground to a halt in the following months, there was still enough interest to keep the project alive. In early November, several new programmers joined in a single week, prompting the programming team to declare that an early engine release and prototype would be ready by the end of December.

Once an early release for the first stage is released, the aim is to add graphics, AI evolution and an editor over the course of the next year, leading to an all but completed microbe stage by the end of 2014. By this time, we hope to have started work on the multicellular stage, with subsequent stages being developed at a rate of approximately one a year. Estimating completion times this far into the future is tricky, as it depends on how much publicity can be gained by promoting what is there to show, namely the microbe stage. Though each stage grows in complexity and difficulty exponentially, the hope is for current progress at each stage to attract enough contributors to make them a reality.

Willkommen im Thrive-Wiki! Hier können Entwickler des Evolution-Spiels Informationen  teilen und für Besucher sichtbar machen. Achtung: Das Wiki ist momentan noch in Arbeit, mancher Inhalt ist ungenau oder nicht mehr ganz aktuell,wir werden aber unser Bestes geben, solche Fehler zu beheben und sicher zu stellen, dass unser Wiki nur finale Konzepte enthält.
Thrive wurde grösstenteils vom Konzept eines Computerspiels namens Spore inspiriert. Spore hätte ursprünglich ein realistisches, wissenschaftliches Spiel über Evolution werden sollen, doch das schlussendliche Produkt wurde immer kindischer bis es fast nichts mehr mit Wissenschaft oder Wirklichkeit zu tun hatte. Thrive jedoch will dort erfolgreich werden, wo Spore scheiterte.  Thrive wird ein kostenloses Open-Source-Computerspiel sein, erschaffen von einer Online-Community, die ausschliesslich aus Freiwilligen besteht. Unser Team will zwei Haupt-Ziele erreichen: Kreatives, fesselndes Gameplay, welches die Intelligenz des Spielers respektiert und fördert, Gameplay, welches so realistisch wie nur möglich bleibt und auf unser Auffassung wissenschaftlicher Theorien basiert. Es soll den Spieler ind die Wunder des Universums miteinbeziehen und ihm erlauben, die virtuelle Welt um sie zu beeinflussen, wie er es möchte.  Unser Spiel wird mehrere Editoren enthalten, in denen der Spieler Kreaturen, Technologien, Kulturen oder sogar ganze Sonnen-Systeme verändern und erschaffen kann.
Gameplay
Thrive will dem Spieler den evolutionären Fortschritt von einer einzelnen Zelle zu einer komplexen Zivilisation beeinflussen lassen.
Man beginnt die Einzeller-Phase als winzige Zelle in der Ursuppe, die der Ursprung allen Lebens auf deinem Planeten ist. Hier erkundet der Spieler zum ersten mal im Organismus-Modus, in dem man nur die Kontrolle über eine einzige Zelle hat, die Welt. Besagte Welt ist war dreidimensional, doch die Kamera ist in einer Top-Down-Perspektive gefangen. Die Ziele sind recht simpel: An Nährstoffe kommen, die in deiner Zelle durch das Verbindungs-System verabeitet werden und gegen die anderen Zellen bestehen, die dir begegnen. Währen die Generationen vergehen verändert Auto-Evo (automatische Evolution) dich und die Zellen um dich herum. Doch der Spieler kann seine Evolution auch selbst in die Hand nehmen wann immer er will. So nimmt er im Zellen-Editor direkte Änderungen an seiner Zelle vor. Um in die Nächste Phase vorzudringen muss der Spieler ein bestimmtes Enzym einnehmen, welches der Spezies des Spielers erlaubt, mit Artgenossen zu verschmelzen, was die Entstehung von Mehrzellern zu folge hat.
An diesem Zeitpunkt tritt der Spieler in die Mehrzeller-Phase ein. Er spielt nun einen komplexeren Organismus mit weiter entwickelten Organsystemen. Mit dem Beginn der Mehrzeller-Phase wird die Kamera aus der Top-Down-Perspektive befreit und rotiert, um drei-dimensionale Bewegungen und Ansichten zu erlauben. Trotzdem verfügt der Spieler bloss über den Organismus-Modus. Wieder spielt protzentuale Evolution eine Schlüsselrolle in der Entwicklung der Spezies des Spielers und der Spezien rund herum. Wenn der Spieler direkte Veränderungen an seiner Spezies vornehmen möchte benutzt er nun den Organismus-Editor. Sobald die Spezies des Spielers über genug Intelligenz verfügt wird die nächste Phase eingeläutet.
Auch in der bewussten Phase spielt Evolution noch eine grosse Rolle. Ein Wettkampf um die Plätze in der Nahrungskette beginnt. Schliesslich möchte niemand den Kürzeren ziehen, wenn es um Futter geht. Das Gameplay geht so weiter bis die Spezies des Spielers die Hürde des Bewusstseins überwindet, nach der die nächste Phase beginnt.
Die Aufbruchs-Phase begleitet die Spezies des Spielers in ihren ersten Schritten in Richtung Zivilisation. Kommunikation wird kompexer, die Spezies beginnt , mit ihrer Umgebung zu interagieren, sie basteln Werkzeuge und Waffen. Die Evolution hört hier auf, da die Zeitspanne drastisch verkürzt wird, Milionen Jahre werden zu Tausenden. Die Spezies bildet einen Stamm und die Zusammenarbeit  der Stammesmitglieder schaltet den Strategie-Modus frei, welcher dem Spieler erlaubt, das Geschehen wie in einem Real-Time Strategiespiel zu beeinflussen. Diese Phase zeigt dem Spieler auch viele Elemente einer Zivilisation wie zum Beispiel ein System, das Kulturen prozentual generiert, den Technologie-Editor und der Nations-Editor.
Die Gesellschafts.Phase beginnt, wenn der Spieler das erste Gesellschafts-Zentrum errichtet, zum beispiel ein Dorf oder eine Stadt. Diese Phase erweitert viele der Gameplay-Mechaniken, die in der vorherigen Phase eingeführt wurden, was mehr Gameplay-Tiefe und Beschäftigungen erzeugt. Wenn Dokumentation entdeckt wird, wird die Einsicht in das Forschungsnetz freigeschaltet, auch wenn dieses schon hinter den Kullisen der Aufbruchs-Phase eine Rolle spielte. Das Forschungsnetz erlaubt der Nation des Spielers auch, in bestimmte Forschungszweige wie Militär oder Gesundheitswesen zu investieren.
Die Industrialisierungs-Phase setzt die Entwicklung der Zivilisation fort, doch in allen Aspekten der Nation erfolgen Revolutionen. Grösser, besser, teurer. Alles beginnt mit der Entdeckung der Dampfkraft. Technologie führt zu einem Boom in Sachen Bevölkerungswachstum, Wissenschaften, Kriegsführung, Produktion, Agrikulur, Gesundheitswesen usw.
Die Weltraum-Phase startet wenn der Spieler sein erstes Raumschiff in die Weiten des Weltalls schickt. Entlick öffnet sich dem Spielerdie ganze Galaxie. Nun kann man Eroberungen, Handel, Kolonialisierung, Erkundung und noch viele andere Sachen betreiben. Ab diesem Punkt erhält man durch gezielte und schwierige Forschung die God Tools, Werkzeuge, die dem Spieler ermöglichen, grosse Veränderungen an seiner Galaxie durchzuführen. Sobald man den  Aufstieg erreicht hat, wird die Spezies des Spielers in Energie umgewandelt und alle God Tools werden dem Spieler zugänglich gemacht. Diese God Tools ermöglichen einfache Beeinflussung aller Instanzen des Spiels - so werden alle Editoren und Gameplayelemente zusammengemischt  und erlauben dem Spieler das Universum frei zu gestalten. Auch der Beobachtungs-Modus wird freigeschaltet, welcher dem Spieler erlaubt, sich unabhängig von seiner Spezies zu bewegen und die Galaxie frei zu erkunden und andere Spezien bei ihrer Evolution zu beobachten.
Entwicklung von Thrive
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Willkommen im Thrive-Wiki! Hier können Entwickler des Evolutionsspiels Informationen teilen und für Besucher sichtbar machen. Achtung: Das Wiki ist momentan noch in Arbeit, mancher Inhalt ist ungenau oder nicht mehr ganz aktuell,wir werden aber unser Bestes geben, solche Fehler zu beheben und sicher zu stellen, dass unser Wiki nur finale Konzepte enthält.
Thrive wurde grösstenteils vom Konzept eines Computerspiels namens Spore inspiriert. Spore hätte ursprünglich ein realistisches, wissenschaftliches Spiel über Evolution werden sollen, doch das schlussendliche Produkt wurde immer kindischer bis es fast nichts mehr mit Wissenschaft oder Wirklichkeit zu tun hatte. Thrive jedoch will dort erfolgreich werden, wo Spore scheiterte. Thrive wird ein kostenloses Open-Source Computerspiel sein, erschaffen von einer Online-Community, die ausschliesslich aus Freiwilligen besteht. Unser Team will zwei Hauptziele erreichen: Kreatives, fesselndes Gameplay, welches die Intelligenz des Spielers respektiert und fördert, Gameplay, welches so realistisch wie nur möglich bleibt und auf unser Auffassung wissenschaftlicher Theorien basiert. Es soll den Spieler in die Wunder des Universums mit einbeziehen und ihm erlauben, die virtuelle Welt um sich zu beeinflussen, wie er es möchte. Unser Spiel wird mehrere Editoren enthalten, in denen der Spieler Kreaturen, Technologien, Kulturen oder sogar ganze Sonnensysteme verändern und erschaffen kann.
Gameplay
Thrive will dem Spieler den evolutionären Fortschritt von einer einzelnen Zelle zu einer komplexen Zivilisation beeinflussen lassen.
Man beginnt in der Einzeller-Phase als winzige Zelle in der Ursuppe, die der Ursprung allen Lebens auf deinem Planeten ist. Hier erkundet der Spieler zum ersten mal im Organismus-Modus, in dem man nur die Kontrolle über einen einzigen Organismus hat, die Welt. Besagte Welt ist war dreidimensional, doch die Kamera ist in einer Top-Down-Perspektive gefangen. Die Ziele sind recht simpel: An Nährstoffe kommen, die in deiner Zelle durch das Verbindungs-System verarbeitet werden und gegen die anderen Zellen bestehen, die dir begegnen. Währen die Generationen vergehen verändert Auto-Evo (automatische Evolution) dich und die Zellen um dich herum. Doch der Spieler kann seine Evolution auch selbst in die Hand nehmen wann immer er will. So nimmt er im Zellen-Editor direkte Änderungen an seiner Zelle vor. Um in die Nächste Phase vorzudringen muss der Spieler ein bestimmtes Enzym einnehmen, welches der Spezies des Spielers erlaubt, mit Artgenossen zu verschmelzen, was die Entstehung von Mehrzellern zu folge hat.
An diesem Zeitpunkt tritt der Spieler in die Mehrzeller-Phase ein. Er spielt nun einen komplexeren Organismus mit weiter entwickelten Organsystemen. Mit dem Beginn der Mehrzeller-Phase wird die Kamera aus der Top-Down-Perspektive befreit und rotiert, um dreidimensionale Bewegungen und Ansichten zu erlauben. Trotzdem verfügt der Spieler nur über den Organismus-Modus. Wieder spielt prozedurale Evolution eine Schlüsselrolle in der Entwicklung der Spezies des Spielers und der Spezies rund herum. Wenn der Spieler direkte Veränderungen an seiner Spezies vornehmen möchte benutzt er nun den Organismus-Editor. Sobald die Spezies des Spielers über genug Intelligenz verfügt wird die nächste Phase eingeläutet.
Auch in der bewussten Phase spielt Evolution noch eine grosse Rolle. Ein Wettkampf um die Plätze in der Nahrungskette beginnt. Schliesslich möchte niemand den Kürzeren ziehen, wenn es um Futter geht. Das Gameplay geht so weiter, bis die Spezies des Spielers die Hürde des Bewusstseins überwindet, nach der die nächste Phase beginnt.
Die Erwachens-Phase begleitet die Spezies des Spielers in ihren ersten Schritten in Richtung Zivilisation. Kommunikation wird komplexer, die Spezies beginnt , mit ihrer Umgebung zu interagieren, sie basteln Werkzeuge und Waffen. Die Evolution hört hier auf, da die Zeitspanne drastisch verkürzt wird, Millionen Jahre werden zu Tausenden. Die Spezies bildet einen Stamm und die Zusammenarbeit der Stammesmitglieder schaltet den Strategie-Modus frei, welcher dem Spieler erlaubt, das Geschehen wie in einem Echtzeit-Strategiespiel zu beeinflussen. Diese Phase zeigt dem Spieler auch viele Elemente einer Zivilisation, zum Beispiel ein System, welches Kulturen prozedural generiert, den Technologie-Editor und den Nations-Editor.
Die Gesellschaftsphase beginnt, wenn der Spieler das erste Gesellschafts-Zentrum errichtet, zum beispiel ein Dorf oder eine Stadt. Diese Phase erweitert viele der Gameplay-Mechaniken, die in der vorherigen Phase eingeführt wurden, was mehr Gameplay-Tiefe und Beschäftigungen zur Folge hat. Wenn Dokumentation entdeckt wird, wird die Einsicht in das Forschungsnetz freigeschaltet, auch wenn dieses schon hinter den Kulissen der Erwachens-Phase eine Rolle spielte. Das Forschungsnetz erlaubt der Nation des Spielers auch, in bestimmte Forschungszweige wie Militär oder Gesundheitswesen zu investieren.
Die Industrialisierungsphase setzt die Entwicklung der Zivilisation fort, doch in allen Aspekten der Nation erfolgen Revolutionen. Grösser, besser, teurer. Alles beginnt mit der Entdeckung der Dampfkraft. Technologie führt zu einem Boom in Sachen Bevölkerungswachstum, Wissenschaften, Kriegsführung, Produktion, Agrikultur, Gesundheitswesen usw.
Die Weltraum-Phase startet, wenn der Spieler sein erstes Raumschiff in die Weiten des Weltalls schickt. Endlich öffnet sich dem Spieler die ganze Galaxie. Nun kann man Eroberungen, Handel, Kolonialisierung, Erkundung und noch viele andere Dinge betreiben. Ab diesem Punkt erhält man durch gezielte und schwierige Forschung die God-Tools, Werkzeuge, die dem Spieler ermöglichen, grosse Veränderungen an seiner Galaxie durchzuführen. Sobald man den Aufstieg bewältigt hat, wird die Spezies des Spielers in Energie umgewandelt und alle God-Tools werden dem Spieler zugänglich gemacht. Diese God-Tools ermöglichen eine einfache Beeinflussung aller Instanzen des Spiels - so werden alle Editoren und Gameplayelemente zusammengemischt und erlauben dem Spieler das Universum frei zu gestalten. Auch der Beobachtungs-Modus wird freigeschaltet, welcher dem Spieler erlaubt, sich unabhängig von seiner Spezies zu bewegen und die Galaxie frei zu erkunden und andere Spezies bei ihrer Evolution zu beobachten.
Entwicklung von Thrive
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