Island evolution: diverging paths (🧬Evolution Simulated #6)

Another video in the 'Evolution Simulated' series, showcasing simulation videogame The Sapling, where we follow one planet for a longer time. We study all the ecosystems that all evolve, and how they change over time.
Frequently asked questions: thesaplinggame.com/faq
Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/99...
Itch: woseseltops.itch.io/thesapling
Twitter: / thesaplinggame
Website: thesaplinggame.com/
Fan initiatives:
* Discord / discord
* the-sapling-encyclopedia.fand...
* Reddit / thesapling
0:00 intro and recap
0:38 reaching new lands
1:20 aquatic carnivores
2:32 genetic drift south of the ring
3:28 western island ecosystem
5:12 nut eaters
5:49 old and new herbivores
6:45 the first land carnivore
7:09 planet overview

[@Chareddragon]

So I’ve noticed that the system has a preference for bipedal terrestrial land animals. Is there a way to tweak the system to allow for more variety in body length and limb appearance going from aquatic to terrestrial

[@Jo-de3st]

Im pretty sure its just because limbs can only be removed and not added, as is the case in real life. And in this case specifically the animals started with only two front limbs.

[@HarryGlaister]

There is probably a very low chance of getting new limbs,not impossible, just unlikely.

[@Chyll07]

I've been thinking the same, and it is interesting that there not many of any animals developing more than two in any case. Bears watching.

[@emanuelecresci2681]

Since avolution can't just spawn new limbs he would have to start with animals that already have 4 limbs

[@dinodare1605]

Not really, their flippers were morphing into legs, that's not necessarily a preference but a natural adaptation. Gaining hind legs would be a different evolutionary journey that didn't happen with that lineage yet. We are bipedal, but our arms were our ancestors front legs. Things get repurposed. The arms didn't just sprout.

[@j.w.-]

Some cool insticts I would love to see: -Territorial behaviour -Defending similar species, maybe based on colour or pheromones -Hunting in packs -Migrational behaviour (Changing seasons involved maybe?) -Go dormant to preserve heat during changing seasons, requiring less food while dormant -Changing colours maybe???

[@AbstractTraitorHero]

I actually have seen trees go DORMANT when I had a four season rotation where water rose up & covered most of the map. THESE TREES? Survived till the next season, they went dormant underwater & rapidly sprang back to life when the water fell again. It felt absolutely wild & a beauty of evolution, adored that it could happen.

[@The_Darke_Lorde]

The migration and dormancy can happen with seasons. Instincts and the ability to make nests/burrows can do it.

[@gamesforgames1727]

migration already exists (For example the "If you feel cold run away") and territorial behavior already exists a bit annoying to set up tho evolution in this game would almost never make it

[@grenadaball7655]

Actually the dormant thing already kind of exists there is a burrow mechanic and I'm pretty sure creatures can hide in burrows

[@gamesforgames1727]

@@grenadaball7655 Oh yeah I'm just not used to that word I forgot what if meant but yes its in the game

[@stultifiction]

Fascinated with this games development progress

[@PowerpixelYT]

wow

[@stoatsarebetterthanbeavers]

we salute your generosity kind civilian

[@luxterna1106]

dayum

[@Belownegative]

You should get more likes than this dude

[@dreamzplayern1684]

You are appreciated

[@pietrocasella2195]

I think bugs and flowers could really complete the ecosystem in this game

[@lirachasmody]

There are flowers in the game, albeit theyre part of the grass plants

[@flechedesneiges5114]

And there are bugs too...

[@justinpatterson5291]

Playing as a bug. Maybe a pest or parasite would be kinda interesting from a gameplay stand point. If it were a multi-player game. You could weaken larger foes by infecting them. So that other, larger creatures can take them down.

[@ThighErda]

@@lirachasmody Yeah they don't evolve well though. They need to be *more* viable.

[@Leyva0scarVRL]

@@lirachasmody no, they are part of all plants

[@fomalhaut_the_great]

Haha, the thorny leaf -> active predator effect made me chuckle

[@Deathlawli]

I really love the "rage island": one family joined late the race to the lands and on that one island they evolved they ended up as crazy beasts that attack everyone around them when they hurt their toes !

[@I-Stole-Your-Toast700]

"Ow I stubbed my toe" *commits genocide*

[@erianpeterson3431]

So the alien version of Australia?

[@reiteration6273]

The animal designs in this game make me think of Spore, but this game actually seems to deliver what Spore was originally supposed to. Of course, that game was made almost 2 decades ago, and technology has advanced a lot since then. Still, to think that an indie developer can produce something on this scale today is amazing. I'd love to see what this guy could do with the resources of a major game studio to support his vision.

[@evgenijdenisov]

Yeah. The dev said it was inspired by Spore.

[@fomalhaut_the_great]

Wow, the first person to ever compare an evolution game to Spore! 👏👏👏

[@Nathan-jt8zt]

@@fomalhaut_the_greatooh you’re edgy

[@HenryIVth]

This being "Spore but actually delivers" is honestly a good selling point, like so many others I was disapointed by that game and this looks like its trying to realize that original vision.

[@nk-cn9sv]

man i miss spore

[@matterhorn731]

Between this and Biblaridion's final Alien Biospheres episode, today is a good day for fans of speculative evolution!

[@erianpeterson3431]

The video was good but chat was unbearable 😂

[@The-realness-is-baffling]

Moons would be a good addition to allow tides to shift allowing for animals from the ocean to move into the inland lakes (I did post this on a previous video but I Rlly want this to be added)

[@fanOfMinecraft-UAs_channel]

This may be able to be done with short high tide and low tide seasons? I'm not too sure though, I haven't watched the video on this game for a while

[@dinodare1605]

He probably saw it before, best not to spam.

[@vinsplayer2634]

you can do that with high and low tide seasons.

[@Leyva0scarVRL]

tides already exist

[@The-realness-is-baffling]

@@vinsplayer2634 oh I didn’t know about them seasons

[@ryanmarks9746]

Just bought the game on a non gaming pc and although I can’t do super long intense simulations I’ve still enjoyed this as an adult who was a kid who enjoyed spore

[@dinodare1605]

How well does it run? How strong is your computer? Considering buying it for my laptop.

[@evandierker2272]

Its got performance issues pretty much regardless of your rig. That said, he is working on fixing this and there have been MASSIVE improvements. The smaller map sizes definitely work on most gaming PCs but you will have much less evolutionary diversity. So if you are ok with that, id get get game. Theres also limits to the organisms now that you can utilize that gives you some options with performance and map sizes. It really should be considered as a very early access game and you need to expect that it still needs work. Its cool to see wessel improve though. Ive owned the game since long before all this planet generation and he blows my mind with each update.

[@samueltrusik3251]

Love it as always! What really lacks in this game is the organisms changing the environment. While I do not expect atmosphere changes anytime soon, I do think it would be nice making it so that trees block the sunlight, preventing grass growth under them, creating true forests, and algal blooms on the surface that block the sunlight from algae on the bottom. Other than that, some more tips for the player on the performance would be appreciated. For example, warning players about the potential lag increase if they set the mutation chance too high, and other such in-game tips.

[@TheSapling]

Thanks so much for your feedback!

[@dier7144]

My man is ABSOLUTELY SMASHING THESE OUT! Keep it up dude, love your game so much :D *FOR THE MILK BUG *🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛

[@dier7144]

I DONT UNDERSTAND!!! How does this have so many likes BUT NOT EVEN NEARLY top comment, IT HAS THE THIRD MOST

[@OrangeIsAGenuinelyCoolCo-fw9tq]

I thought the milk bug cult was over by now lol

[@ibadibadaba1819]

if sees this comment could you like it so the dev can see it, thanks. Ive moticed with the aquatic predators take over that theres no insticts for animals to guard and protect their eggs. I feel like adding an instict to protect eggs in a future update would 1. Make the game feel more alive and 2. Make it to where predators targeting eggs doesnt just wipe out all other animals like it did in tbe video.

[@TheSapling]

Hey, thanks for your input! It's a nice idea, although I'm not really sure how protecting eggs would work... food for thought

[@ibadibadaba1819]

(Sorry for getting to this so late) one way it might work is by adding an instinct to stay near one's eggs until they hatch and attacking Any animals that get too close. Another way is if the creature lays more than one egg thrn there could be an instinct that makes an animal attack anything trying to eat their eggs. (In otherwords combine the self-defense response of an animal to its eggs)

[@ibadibadaba1819]

Also If you added specific looks and colors to different creatures eggs in the future it could lead to a cuckoo bird scenario in the game. (I don't know if this would work or be possible in game but it's a cool idea)

[@armbones8519]

See you in a few months with the next update. Godspeed.

[@HmmMemes]

The sapling in 3057: The creatures I created went to a galactic civil war with it's farthest cousin

[@Nasqirelion]

This is so extremely engaging

[@coryman125]

Always love this series! Just wondering, is there a system in place to map out where certain species live? If not, that could be a really nice feature, if it's feasible to add :)

[@dinodare1605]

Do you mean like choosing, or like a map that you can label so that you can keep track?

[@coryman125]

@@dinodare1605 I'm thinking a sort of range map- you select a species, and it highlights the areas that species can be found

[@dinodare1605]

@@coryman125 That would be pretty cool! That type of system is probably something that he'll add later, I'm assuming that little things like that to track the ecology and evolution are part of the spirit of what he wants to do. I want a really comprehensive timeline so that we can highlight when certain milestones are hit. It could even be as simple as starring individuals that we like and being able to look back at them 5 million years later when they're long extinct, so we can look at the paleontology.

[@coryman125]

@@dinodare1605 That would be really good! Marking the first land plant, the first air breathing animal, etc.

[@j.w.-]

I would love to see something of funghi in this game, since they are soo intrstrumental. Or invertebrate animals, different types of movements. Maybe a bit ambitious. I think new body parts would be a good step forward now. Still, very engaging series. Love it

[@snowsoldier7779]

I've been getting a bug in game, where animals and algae can somehow teleport from pole to pole (which doesn't make sense), but they can't teleport from east to west or west to east (which would make sense on a globe).

[@mutemeimscared1632]

That might not be a bug. If he might have a teleport area on the edges of the map to simulate crossing the earth?

[@snowsoldier7779]

@@mutemeimscared1632 Yeah maybe, but the problem is that they only teleport from one pole to another. I would actually like it if animals and algae teleported to simulate them crossing the globe, like going from the western edge to the eastern edge, but them teleporting from the south to the north doesn't make sense.

[@mutemeimscared1632]

@@snowsoldier7779 yeah that makes sense

[@Leyva0scarVRL]

he is already aware of this issue

[@snowsoldier7779]

@@Leyva0scarVRL Ah, that's good

[@luckyno.9371]

Would be cool to see a branching evolutionary tree for this archipelago series, either in the community tab or every couple videos, just to see where life went as a whole, where lineages dead-ended ect. ect.

[@connorhaley3190]

Frog tongues, fungi, vomiting, “carnivorous” plants and greater variety of algae would be much appreciated.

[@VikingNewt]

i've seen meat on the menu of some of my plants i think.

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, I like all of these ideas!

[@connorhaley3190]

@@TheSapling carnivorous plants are not truly carnivorous though

[@GrandeSapo]

After watching some of the videos of this channel for the past 2 years and being really interested in the game, i finally bought it!

[@AshtonScripts]

i want to see: -animals able to "attack" plants instead of attacking animals nearby like seen in the video. harder plants with bark wouldn't be so easy to destroy as others. -pack/group behaviors (join pack, leave pack, follow pack behavior, when i'm in a pack, when i leave a pack, when i am leader of a pack, create pack with, when i see a pack, when a pack member dies, when the pack leader dies) where when an animal creates a pack with another or when the current one dies it becomes the leader of that pack and all the animals in that pack can follow the behavior of the leader and follow them around -recognize certain parts, traits, sizes, colors, or pheromones from any other animal (not just knowing immediately what kind species it is) and triggering an instinct. it shouldn't just be one part or trait, but being able to recognize multiple consecutive parts in an animal so that evolution can put the pieces together. -behavior "modes." each behavior "mode" is just a set of instincts to either add or remove. there'd be an instinct behavior that can apply the behavior mode when it observes something to trigger it. things like growing up should also be able to trigger behaviors, so that maybe there's a puberty effect in that they evolve a behavior mode that applies a mating instinct and removes the instincts benefitial to a child. -animals observing other animals' current active actions like if it's attacking or something and being able to trigger an instinct -more sizes (retains the same model but is just shrunk or sized up, with their stats such as health or attack damage multiplied or divided depending on their size difference) where you can pick between super small (like an insect), small (like a small rabbit), normal size, large (like an elephant), super large (2x an elephant?), animals that are 2 sizes higher than the other can stomp on them, smaller animals get a higher speed buff and need less energy, larger animals are slower and need more energy, depending on the size of the animal the size of the meat dropped will also be multiplied or divided to match the size, eggs and nests of the animals also are sized up or down to match, super small animals would be able to latch onto or unlatch off of bigger animals with the right hands/feet and behavior, a mosquito mouth that can suck blood of who it is attached to for food, shaking behavior that shakes off super small animals off of it, when super small animals are attached onto a bigger animal the bigger animal observes "when i am itchy". having more sizes means that the ability to just scale up the parts in the editor should be more limited so that there's less diversity of size in animals of the exact same size groups -digging/burrowing behaviors: the animal can recognize how the soil is or if it's soft enough to trigger a behavior, and a new behavior if it has the right feet or hands to burrow/dig, burrows can be used as nests under the right requirements, smaller animals could continue to move underground while bigger animals could only build a simple burrow, behaviors would be like (dig a burrow, when i am in a burrow, get out of burrow, when i see a burrow) -marking territory: having an instinct to mark territory, be it scratching a hard plant like a tiger or something more like a dog's. other animals could recognize these territorial marks in their behaviors. behaviors might be like (mark territory, when i am inside other territory, when i am inside my territory, when i see other territory, when i see my territory, when i leave my territory, when i leave other territory, etc) -assuming the more sizes thing is in the game, super small animals would have 2 new options for skin that isn't scales or fur which is called 'cytoplasm' and 'endoskeleton'. the cytoplasm option makes them transparent and gives them the ability to float around in water aimlessly but makes them much weaker, and the endoskeleton option makes them a little stronger. there could be new parts for bugs like elytras that are much better for them than other parts. the cytoplasm body allows for something almost similar to the cell stage in spore, but it's not exactly there.

[@TheSapling]

Hey, apologies for the super late response to such an elaborate comment! I really love many of these suggestions, but as always: no promises! There are many players discussing ideas like this in detail on the Steam forums if you want :)

[@Gnomable]

It's interesting it took so long to evolve a land carnivore. Good luck on the update!

[@WasatchWind]

It's crazy how different watching this series is after the Biblaridion alien biosphere series has ended. While sapience would be a cool feature in the game, I doubt it'd be easy in the slightest to implement - but after all of Biblaridion's series it's still cool to see stuff discussed there working in action.

[@josh8901]

Yess, friday couldn't come soon enough^^. Even tho it's the last one for now :( Really cool to see the final evelutions and the distribution of the animal families around the planet! The white outlines for the areas the animal inhabited were super helpful for that. Same goes for the end graphic :)

[@gamingcat6034]

i LOVE this game and its concept and i cant wait to see the next update. i would also like to see a star, moon and stars. (or display parts like feather clumps or sm)

[@Fallout3131]

Adding stars would be awesome I would add Brad Pitt

[@TheSapling]

Thanks so much for your input!

[@fabiansw8]

Im so happy your uploading more!

[@Polyhedron69]

Carnivorous plants would make an interesting and cool addition.

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, agreed

[@thecrazybuilder3568]

Got the game have 2 hours can definitely tell it’s wip but honestly worth the price even now because of supporting the dev

[@dutchmapping163]

Wessel, your game is an absolute gift. Though I've often tried visualizing evolution through drawings and world maps on my own, seeing organisms come to life in an alien environment all without my own input is truly something else! Het ga je goed en ik hoop dat dit spel alleen maar beter wordt! (ook al is het nu al fantastisch! :p)

[@andrewknudsen8913]

Love your videos. It’s going to be hard to wait a few months haha

[@rekwm4747]

this is honetly such an interesting concept for a video man im enjoying it alot

[@sammythelegendarygamer6855]

A great way to expand early and later complex ecosystems is to add insects, or an extra small animal size and add an exoskeleton, insects will allow animals to be simple but still thrive in complex ecosystems

[@Fallout3131]

I love this series so much

[@Hobbyrepubliken]

Love that new videos are coming out more often!

[@toddberkely6791]

thank you for this update, it was great, we will be here when you come back :)

[@ribleshark2242]

never had a result like that with just one comon ancestor, maybe need the biggest map but my pc can't handle it.

[@nejmizrendom]

This was turned on for a couple of days so it takes a long time

[@HenryIVth]

Going through these comments its fascinating to see all the different ideas and suggestions people wish to see. Obviously because the subject matter is such a complex one and I hope the dev achives everything he plans to do.

[@arturzimplayerpro2573]

the game looks perfect in your super good computer,you are the reason I started playing spore and the sapling

[@SobbleNo.1]

keep it up! I love your work ethic! just remember to take breaks if you need. I don't want this to become homework. I can feel the passion in every video!

[@TheSapling]

Haha no worries I take plenty of time for family and relaxation :)

[@TheSapling]

Haha no worries I take plenty of time for family and relaxation :)

[@enfieldlammergeier]

You should add limbless body plans to the game. Stuff like snakes that can be both aquatic and terrestrial.

[@randigo9992]

I love these series

[@vidwitch1508]

Oh it’d be so cool to see herd/small pack dynamics be a thing, for animals to hunt or make family’s easier✨ ( also great video- I love seeing updates on this game sm )

[@Ethan_Cubed]

i mean technically its possible. With combinations of "if see colour" or "glow"/"if see glow" or "call"/"if hear call" alongside the "go towards" instinct, you can make creatures herd together. Example: With "If see food, call" alongside "If hear call, go towards" you can make animals herd near food.

[@ChuckJames-wj8vg]

if this idea is already in the game please let me know! Idea: A tool that could terraform a landscape kind of like spore in the space stage, for me the current tools aren't working for what i want, like a tool that could create land and another that could create water.

[@adi8941]

thank you!

[@AM-xl5rc]

Loving the new soundtracks!

[@GandalfTheTsaagan]

Such a broad diversification!

[@unqualified_nobody]

I’d love it if animals could make different sounds and for there to be ways for animals to react to different sounds differently. This could make communication possible, and would allow for the social creatures to evolve

[@Leyva0scarVRL]

already, each mouth has an unique sound and instincts relating to sound also are a thing

[@xmcblxck]

Your game is amazing!

[@smartsmartie7142]

That pressure speeds up evolution is so good, I mean it happened in Chernobyl where frogs got more melanin because it protects from radiation after the radiation killed most of the green ones off. I love where this game is going

[@zarkthemuffin]

I love this game so much im so excited for it’s official release

[@nnnghhhhh]

you can add an option to remove grass that obscures the view of the creatures in the next update

[@fancyfish9162]

I would love to see microorganisms to be implemented as a maybe different tab for a different entire 2d map in the far future where they would eventually evolve to algae and herbivores and carnivores again in the far far future of this game 😋

[@mozzinileonardo6290]

can't wait to see the next update

[@adamverstegen2761]

Man, i cannot wait for the update

[@rafaelmonterobarreiro523]

I think a really good adition to the game wpuld be more interactions between plants and other organismos: tall plants give shade to short plants, some plants produce herbicides, some plants make nutritious fruit so animals eat them and disperse their foods, etc

[@Leyva0scarVRL]

fruit already exists

[@ElGranAnacleto17171]

I love this game.

[@adamjeremiah259]

There are plenty of good ideas you can see that in the other comments but what id like to see a map builder rather than just useing randomise till it fells good.

[@nils-peterwihlney8732]

Questions: Can creatures develop exoskeletons, pinchers, or stingers? And can creatures live in the sea without swimming? Like jellyfish, crabs, lobsters, insects, and other such creatures.

[@TheSapling]

Hey, good question! There are some arthropod mouths, but most of what you suggest is still on my wish list unfortunately (as always no promises)

[@YankoMusicant-kd5jc]

Weird idea:radial creatures like starfish. Instead of the animal being symmetrical on both sides like it normally is, the creature could have multiple limbs branching out, or maybe pull the limbs back to make an urchin-like thing? The possibilities with radial creatures are crazy

[@TheSapling]

Not a weird idea at all (but no promises) ;)

[@megamasman9197]

You should add tectonic plate movements so that islands gradually join/separate from one another

[@Shonyu043]

PERFECT SIMULATION!!!

[@hypercoder-gaming]

Making the animals able to evolve wings would be cool. Maybe that could lead to bird-like creatures or bugs, although you probably made a lower limit to the size the animals can be.

[@Leyva0scarVRL]

emm, i would recomend you look at the channels previous videos for that

[@TheSapling]

Yeah I'm always a bit disappointed when wings again didn't evolve in simulations like this... I should investigate why it never happens.

[@pedrovinicius3981]

Do you plan to add geological structures when you enlarge the map more? For example, springs appearing on top of high mountains and creating rivers and waterfalls, intense rains can create lakes in lower places, these things can even influence biology, perhaps fossils exposed when a part of the rock is exposed, I don't know, some plan for this kind of thing?

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, it's an idea I like!

[@hitekalchemy1105]

New update? Ooo fancy

[@I-Stole-Your-Toast700]

Idea: Every 'simulation turn' tiles near water will either become slightly shorter or slightly taller. Like a sandy tile could become slightly shorter while a pile of sand in like the ocean between 2 islands could become taller

[@TheSapling]

Thanks for sharing your idea! This make me think of simulations of erosion a bit :)

[@TheSapling]

Thanks for sharing your idea! This make me think of simulations of erosion a bit :)

[@orizonge1478]

crossing fingers that the cool new idea your gonna spend these next few months on is rudimentary tectonic plate movement 🤞🤞🤞

[@itscj7530]

Hey, I think it would be cool to add more parts and allow evolution to make the animals look stranger as it would be cool to see like a Cambrian explosion at the start and then everything settles down.

[@mutemeimscared1632]

I really think fungus and other decomposers would be a good addition. I dont know how hard it would be to code though as i have very little experience it that. Make sure you dont burn yourself out, take care lf yourself pls!!! I say this because when ever i see trees and other folkage die thye just disappear. That doesn't happen in real life, they fall and become appart of a new life cycle. Adding fungus could also give more food options, tie in the posion update, and provide a greater balance. Ive noticed from my game play that usually one species of foliage, or animal, takes over everything and wipes everything else out. Fungus, and decaying objects taking up room could help decrease this

[@invalidvulture1408]

Absolutely! Some kind of decaying system would be extremely beneficial to the game. I'm really hoping that the new update he's working on may have something to do with that!

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, I like the idea! Also, I have strict work/leisure habits, so no burnout in sight :)

[@John-wf5dm]

It would be real fun if "IF" in the future the animals might be able to learn to use tools

[@jerryunderdog5912]

Heres an idea for something in a later update, viruses. They could form in foods and traverse via various ways such as bites old meat proximity or maybe even water and could either be harmful or have completely no effect on the host. And whats more animals could also form resistances and weaknesses to it. Heck some viruses could affect instincts

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, it's an idea I like!

[@jerryunderdog5912]

@@TheSapling cool!

[@benhynes2592]

I really like this video series! I already have your game but my computer does not run it as well as yours.

[@TheSapling]

I hope in the future I can get the game to run smoothly on your machine too!

[@_Radiator_]

If ever you add a new update, a terrain editor would be nice to simulate things like this. Interesting video nonetheless!

[@smartsmartie7142]

I would love to see temperature and weather added to the game. It is extremely complicated though, but it would be awesome. I love this game it makes me happy

[@nonsensicalhumanoid]

Temperature exists and is a very major factor in where a particular plant/animal can and cannot settle, no weather though

[@smartsmartie7142]

@@nonsensicalhumanoid The way temperature, weather, geographical features and fauna interact is very complicated. The simulation generally could be so much more complicated. Some examples I know of: In real life mountains provide fertile earth in the valleys, protection against harsh weather, constant water through glaciers. Elephants convert forests into Savannah's. The Golf stream provides Europe with a lot of warmth. This could go on and on and on and I want the game to reach a level of detail where it turns from a simple indie game into a world, an ecosystem of people talking about a mini ecosystem inside a computer. That's what I wish the game to be.

[@aarondefriez3505]

It would be really cool to see a neat algorithm implemented into the game and it evolved new inputs and outputs with it features

[@TheSapling]

Fully agreed... not sure if I want to go that route, though, as neural networks are hard to 'understand'; hence the rule based instincts for now

[@nachyochez750]

yay more ES!

[@WildmanTrading]

A NEW UPLOAD!

[@mr_thingy]

I just bought your game and I love it but I had some ideas for new features - you could add gender (and differences in gender) - a flower editor ( petals, monoecious/dioecious/hermaphroditic) - scales for skin - skin breathing - burrowing animals And so much more I would really appreciate it if you’d take a look at these ideas but you don’t have to

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, I indeed like a lot of these ideas!

[@barcotics1880]

i would love more variety in the sea flora

[@OnlyNeedJuan]

I think a cool addition could be a slightly easier way to figure out what body part does what, either in the information menu or in the mutate menu. Right now it can be difficult for a beginner to figure out what body part you find on a creature or plant does exactly what.

[@TheSapling]

Belated thanks for your input!

[@EdinBasic12]

A good addition to the game i believe: Add a crocodile like mouth that allows the animal to breathe on the surface of the water without having to go to land just like in the real life. Making the animal submerged and more effective in hunting. Now this is a really good one but its quite complicated to make: Paleo Ecosystems: Allowing players to recreate and manage extinct ecosystems, such as those from the Mesozoic or Cenozoic eras, could be both educational and fascinating, giving insights into prehistoric life forms and their environments.. Making that is easier said than done, but im going to do the easier part. Essentially, lets take Mesozoic for an example. Mesozoic is most known for its iconic dinosaurus, so making dinosaur models (obviously not all the dinosaurus but only the important ones) and creating somewhat identical plants would let the player expirience a low-poly game that not only allows him to make his own ecosystem but to change the past ones. Of course it would take a lot of time so I suggest focusing on the first one if you want to take any of these two for a future update. Wish you all the best!

[@TheSapling]

You're right that this is most likely too much work for even a large team to realize, but god I would be cool ;)

[@EdinBasic12]

@@TheSapling However I believe the Crocodile like mouth isnt that hard is it? I mean respectfully no aspect is easy in making any addition to the game, I know myself as i do code in lua a bit and I know the hell of making something work. You do have a lot to do, way more than just coding. Tho I think it is possible for you to do it in a larger period of time. It is different because of it allowing breathing while the animal is on the surface of the water. It would be a Interesting addition tho!

[@danceswithpaperhands6221]

These damn videos made me by the game. Nice marketing!

[@LittleCreb]

You should add something so you can set specific zones to be like "oh, this zones filled with poisoinous water so animals cant swim here" or "oh, this zone has low sunlight and plants need better leaves to live here". and also caves! imagine how cool caves would be!

[@HenryIVth]

Caves would be cool but how would they be implemented exactly, generate separate terrain models within the existing land model? And what would the benefits&negatives of flora&fauna existing there be?

[@LittleCreb]

@@HenryIVth The plants would probably have to be moss and the animals might not have sight. but, with his science fiction twists, i bet he could make like some glowing plants.

[@seamusthestout462]

im curious whether the evolution of societal structures will ever be added to the game? not like the same as humans with developing tools and such, but like similar to ant colonys, wolf packs, ect

[@TheSapling]

Truly a FAQ, see here: thesaplinggame.com/faq :)

[@xotryce7980]

I want to see the opposite of this. I want to see an evolution sim that starts with a whole bunch of predators similar in size and numbers with different environmental factors, such as soft ground so maybe they evolve to dig and build traps in soft ground, terrains with tall long living very few seedling Trees(i.e RedWood trees) different altitudes. Just to see how a world of predators would evolve to see what they’d do in the face of a bunch of similar predators/prey’s to themselves, whether it’s bearing young, hunt, hide, shelter

[@JoeMadden-nd6zy]

it would be cool if insects were a group of organisms. I would like to see stuff like flies and creatures that catch insects for food.

[@EakDaFreak69]

I could not be anticipating anything more than this next video. Do you play on twitch? This so so rules.

[@TheSapling]

Thanks so much! I used to do these things live on Twitch, but since barely anyone was watching live, I've switched to making these videos offline

[@EakDaFreak69]

@@TheSapling well dude I LOVE what you’re doing. Your analysis of this stuff ina game you freaking made is too cool.

[@samanthabronder9861]

for a idea is where their can be a map section that shows all the planets you created with life wheare you click one and return one sproe did in the glaxey map and can see the colers if land planst evovle and f

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, definitely a nice idea

[@Nutoneout]

You should add more texture to the leafs and make the leafs sway in the wind or in storms sway more

[@TheSapling]

Belated thanks for your input!

[@Nutoneout]

@@TheSapling your welcome always happy to help

[@Doge123_player]

I want this game

[@williamknight2433]

Would to be able to enter the ecosystem in some way, like a mix of Spore and The Sapling

[@potatospaceaviator2955]

Continental drift would be cool

[@zacokazo]

@thesapling when will the next video be out waiting eagerly 😊

[@flechedesneiges5114]

See you in a few months ! ❤

[@thezuma391]

Another awesome video, I sincerely enjoy to watch this series! I have noticed the game seems to prioritise bipedal animals which, in my opinion, looks a bit silly with the long bodies. Could you perhaps implement a logic that a limb is needed for every X body length?

[@TheSapling]

A belated thanks for your input, much appreciated :)

[@JustScug]

You should add fungus to the game! i think it would be cool having a new type of life thats nocturnal (basically plants that grow at night or in dark places) and they could grow on dead trees even! And also Maybe Insects as Another Editor Type? Like The small insects not the mouths. just ideas that i thought of! :D (edit: there would be insectivore mouths.)

[@TheSapling]

Without making promises, I like many of these ideas :)

[@birbd7467]

Question, can you have potentially huge planets in the game? if so that's super hype , if not that might be a cool thing to look into at some point because to me at least even when going for a continental approach it feels a little small. (to me at least). Still for sure getting this either way though this goes hard

[@TheSapling]

Thanks for your input! The map sizes at the moment are largely dictated by the performance problem unfortunately :/

[@isimsizanimator1291]

Instead of using a hierarchical tree type structure to determine animal and plant traits in the evolution simulation, introducing variables and mutations could enhance accuracy. In different environments, only traits closest to those beneficial for survival would persist. Through mutations, animals and plants could acquire traits better suited to their environment

[@TheSapling]

If I ever get to make a sequal to this game, this indeed what I would do differently; have body parts gradually 'morph' into each other instead of discrete steps

[@Speed_Walker]

yes