My indie evolution sim: 3 years of development (The Sapling)

I'm working on evolution simulation game The Sapling, my solo indie game project. It's a game where you can basically do two types of things: on the one hand, there are a number of scenarios tasking you to design an ecosystem that meets specific requirements, on the other there is a sandbox where you can build your own plants and animals, turn on 'random mutations', and see how they evolve.
In this video I want to tell the story of why I started building The Sapling, of everything that happened after that, up until where I am today.
Website: thesaplinggame.com/
Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/99...
Itch: woseseltops.itch.io/thesapling
Twitter: / thesaplinggame
Fan initiatives:
* Discord / discord
* Reddit / thesapling
Optimization blog: thesaplinggame.com/devlogs/op...
0:00 My Spore fascination
2:31 Early development
5:48 First playtesting and iterating
7:55 Early access release
9:06 Flower update
12:07 Fight & flight update

[@mustoskiff1321]

I'd love to see something like grass being able to evolve. I think it would add a lot to the world if we could have smaller ground covering plants.

[@oogadyman5814]

Ya

[@Tsuchimursu]

Might be cool but would be hard to optimise while keeping it interesting

[@TheSapling]

Hey Musta Skiff, thanks for your suggestion! Grass won't be part of this update, but it's often suggested and I fully agree that it would make the worlds a lot prettier.

[@rosiea9719]

I currently make low growing plants by putting four low branches around a minimum height stalk - it works really well as ground cover. The only issue I have is the fruits, which can't be placed without them clipping into the ground. If we could have some small fruits that didn't hang down it would work very well.

[@praetorianplays9945]

@@TheSapling When grass is added it'd be cool if you had the option to give it the ability to glow like flowers. Maybe also making patterns based on things like temperature and stuff. Not sure how well it'd run tho with all the light it'd emit lol.

[@noam5153]

I feel like insects or just very small animals would be a cool addition. Excited to see where this project goes in the future and it looks very promising at the moment. Keep up the good work

[@Tsuchimursu]

The smaller you go the harder it is to keep optimised, though Assuming you want insects to be more numerous then animals and plants

[@Godzillagamer1577]

A good idea would be like a creature that can swim or lives in water with its own ways of life and life plants also i agree with you and he should keep it up

[@TheSapling]

Hey Noam, thanks for writing down your ideas! Fully agreed, but like Tsuchimursu said, I would have to come up with something clever to prevent your pc from exploding ;)

[@justsomenamelesssoul8097]

@@TheSapling Maybe something like hives and stuff to optimize them? Like instead of having 500 insects have 10 hives with some tricky logic attached to it that makes it look like there are tons of insects

[@terioth8373]

@@TheSapling maybe simulate a swarms instead of each single one? And combine it with liquid dynamics?

[@nitzanhahn1132]

if only my computer wasent a potato

[@howl3476]

I didnt know how much time and dedication you needed to build a game You did great and im excited for the new update

[@leagesoffen5764]

You really can be proud of what you created already and this is just going to get better and better. Also, I really love the giraffe-in-tree icon, think it's absolutely genius!

[@TheSapling]

Thanks Lea... took me quite a few design iterations before I arrived at this one :)

[@Borkiiborksquitealot]

I thought its a sauropod

[@IceLordCryo]

Man I remember watching Robin Williams showing off Spore back in the day. Spore will always hold a special place in my heart.

[@DaftCricket]

This is weird. From what I can see the concept of the game was great from the start and I can see you learnt a lot about coding to make the game actually work, but what's surprising is the most important skill you learnt was marketing. Even now, the way you have prefaced and previewed us with telling the die hard fans an update video is coming and to stay tuned for more news! That's reeled me in and i'm buzzing for me. The trailers were great and the presentation and spectacle is awesome! Well done with all your progress man, keep it up and i'm sure you can build the hype train you need ;)

[@TheSapling]

Thanks! Never thought of it this way, but marketing is indeed the only thing I'm doing radically different now compared to 2019.

[@ihistory8861]

Please continue working on this I absolutely love the idea of this game and want to get ot Asap

[@Hatmis]

I was just thinking about how cool this game was recently, eagerly waiting for an update, and here it is ! I'm really hyped about what will come next, you're awesome and I love what you do ^^

[@hasansalihaktas]

This is a great game with a lot of potential and i am reaaallyy hyped about the next update I hope you develop this game further ❤️❤️❤️

[@GhazMazMSM]

Will there ever be any aquatic creatures, or are you satisfied with it as it is now?

[@justanotheruser1342]

well, the teaser shows water

[@xephyrxero]

That would be awesome! Amphibian type creatures that can survive in both would be cool too, and serve as a transition point to evolve between land and water

[@de-zo6ex]

I've come from future to tell now we have aquatic animals

[@moof1224]

This is exactly the kind of game I’ve always wanted to play!

[@TheSapling]

Same for me :)

[@skiniver5307]

Glad to see you're back!

[@user-ei4mi8nx4m]

Same

[@gemmithedragon]

niche is one of my favorite creature survival games, so even more excited for this :eye:

[@Tom_Quixote]

"One of the playtesters even asked me if he could stop". NO. YOU MUST CONTINUE.

[@qui-gontimtherandomraptor1072]

I REALLY love this game and its concept!!! It's a really fun game and honestly something I've wanted to see in gaming for a while now :) Question: is there anything I/we can do to help spread the game? I'd _hate_ to see it stay obscure or flop, it's got a lot of potential and I really want it to go places :D

[@obiomajronyekwere4469]

If we somehow get some big youtubers to play it by recomendations we could get a wave of interest towards thus

[@TheSapling]

Hey Qui-Gon Tim, good question, thanks! I think positive Steam reviews would be helpful, and for the rest spreading it on platforms where you get your gaming news; could be anything from Reddit posts to retweets.

[@OficialDeChancelaria]

I was eager to see an update on this project. Thanks!

[@spacesaturnarts]

Your simulator is by far the best I've ever seen, and while there is a lot that I would love to see that isn't in it, the fact that you've built this whole game on your own is astounding

[@bennitori4]

I've loved following this game. I'm so glad that KZbin has treated you so well. Can't wait to see the new updates!

[@xephyrxero]

The intro really resonates with me. I too dreamed of world simulators and then was blown away with the first reveal of Spore. What it finally became was a huge disappointment though. I didn't want to control these creatures directly, I wanted to set them loose and watch how they would evolve on their own. And now you have been making the game I wished it would have been ❤️

[@thezuma391]

Nice video, I'm very much looking forward to the next update :)

[@DanielLochner]

Wow! This is absolutely fantastic! 😄 Great to see all the progress and how much you’ve learnt about marketing throughout the years! Also, congrats on the new little sapling to the family! 😌 Looking forward to the new updates! 🥳🎉

[@TheSapling]

Thanks a lot Daniel :)

[@Weedlordking]

Great job man Hope you will continue with it And the game will get the players it desrves

[@lucassousa2549]

Provavelmente você nunca vai me entender, mas o seu jogo é o jogo dos meus sonhos, obrigado por crialo 🤩 , portuguese

[@TheSapling]

De nada!

[@recklesstrucker7952]

So excited for updates

[@chrisespinoza8193]

So glad I stumbled upon this page last year. I’m glad to see updates are still coming out. This stuff fascinates me for some reason, and I love to see progress

[@doctordogelordtmg9637]

I have another gameplay idea for overhauling the fruit in game I noticed that in game the fruit can get massive but creatures can still eat it almost instantly so I suggest you make it so that bigger animals can eat bigger fruit faster than smaller animals basically forcing herbivores to adapt and get bigger unless the fruit nearby is smaller then in that case it takes small herbivores a much shorter time to eat because the more herbivores just stand around eating fruit that is several times bigger than their body mass they chance getting eaten call it the fruity update or whatever you want again it's your game I'm just suggesting here (also maybe add more types of fruit maybe vegetables? Or banana's?)

[@piglin469]

well considiring fruit evovled so animals can eat them so that the seeds can come out the other end It seems like a good idea

[@doctordogelordtmg9637]

@@piglin469 Too bad I haven't gotten a response yet but who knows maybe he just hasn't been able to take a deep dive into his comment section

[@TheSapling]

Hey Doctor Dogelord TMG, I'm taken that dive only now ;). While it won't be part of this update, I indeed agree fruit and fruit evolution needs an overhaul... thanks for writing down your ideas here, I'm taking notes!

[@piglin469]

@@TheSapling mind if you addd digestion sense that could help promote carnivory

[@doctordogelordtmg9637]

@@TheSapling Thank you!

[@YLLPal]

So glad to hear from you, I was worried you might have moved on. I really want to see where you can take this project!

[@n0b0dy15]

YEEE YOU'RE BACK

[@Paxnar]

Very excited to see the new update!

[@fraxz88]

I played this game so hard a year ago that froze my pc up. Wonderful game, thank you for all you do!

[@IllShitYourPants]

You could say this project really eveolved over the years ;)

[@TheSapling]

Totally going to steal your joke for a future video :P

[@IllShitYourPants]

@@TheSapling its an honor

[@jessicafrost8596]

It was on that second video that I second 7 day summary and since then I find this game and the growth of it very exciting and inspiring keep it up. ^^

[@wiredjarl1556]

I really like this game, but has anyone else noticed how in sandbox mode, as a “world” gets older, it starts to take a really long time to fast forward? This may be a PC issue on my part, just wondering if anyone else experienced the same thing.

[@TheSapling]

I have noticed this myself indeed, I think it depends on how much is going on in the simulation. I still regularly ship optimization for the simulation itself, so I expect this should gradually improve as the game gets faster and faster.

[@iohannroloff108]

Beautiful Job. Congratz!

[@SnowWalkerPrime]

Fantastic game, awesome job, looking forward to all of your updates. :) Thank you for creating this game.

[@literallyagalaxy7789]

Wow! Im so excited for the next devlog

[@JoeEnderman]

Played it a little, it's fun. Hard to believe it's an indie game. It's hard, but fun.

[@thefrenchselkie1401]

id love to see more biodiversity with more complex webs of interactions between species - a lot of the game right now seems to be often dominated by only one or two plant species at a time

[@GhazMazMSM]

I have a suggestion for a feature update. I love messing around in sandbox mode. But, apart from the temperature you can't really change anything else about the environment. Maybe in the future, you could allow the option to terraform parts of the map. Like lowering and rising parts of the land, carving canyons, or raising water levels to cut off the species populations.

[@TheSapling]

Hey Ghazt, thanks for your suggestion! Just for completeness, in the current version you can already edit the terrain statistics :)

[@ZewdPlays]

Very exciting, can't wait for the reveals

[@tillvolker1854]

Dude this game is awesome! It’s the game of my dreams I always wanted an evolution simulator. It is just so interesting watching how everything works and continues the evolve. Pls never stop it you have a good vision and this game will have a bright future.

[@das-too-bad-ig]

I love this game and I quickly bought it on steam after watching a few of your showcase videos on the mechanics. I had been playing it every day on and off for about two weeks when my house caught fire and I lost everything. When I finally was back on my feet, my laptop was replaced and the first game I downloaded was this one because it was my most recent memory of relaxing in my old house. I'm aware that's extremely specific and personal to me, but I just wanted to let you know in the most indirect way this project brought me a lot of comfort and entertainment in a tough time. Thank you!

[@TheSapling]

I only read this now because KZbin incorrectly classified this as spam. Thank you for this wonderful comment, it means a lot to me. Best of luck getting your life back on track

[@EricSundquistKC]

Dropping that video on KZbin got the game in front of the genetic algorithm and machine learning nerds.

[@samueltrusik3251]

You have been at the bottom, you can only go up. Also, THIS: 8:30 I have been looking for this game years ago, I loved it! Finally, I have it.

[@synthetic240]

Agreed that Spore's Creator and animation suite were awesome. It was honestly revolutionary that they'd animate themselves. It wasn't perfect, but it did a great job. Gameplay, on the other hand, was not so good.

[@bananaborn4785]

your still at it? thats nice to see

[@grassytester4182]

I just have to say please don't give up on this game it is amazing and it is going to help span a whole new genre of stuff in the future

[@MrHsktoto]

i've bought your game some day befores and i know why , the first mention of wilt wright and spore made me say yes with my head this is exactly what hapenned to me when i was young i will for ever remember the first spore videos (aquatic phases ) and for ever the day i run out from school to go buy and play spore ^^. support your great work wish you the best !

[@ebonyblack4563]

It's so wonderful to get to see all this history and the development steps that have happened. Also reminds me I need to go update.

[@ewoutbruneel4031]

keep up the amazing work! never give up on your dreams! :)

[@emiliovarela6111]

Nice can't wait to see the vlogs

[@cgstudiosthebaconbro]

Ayo new update???? Cant wait bro

[@MatheusEstevam5]

i've been waiting for an update of your work

[@davegl4217]

I'm really looking forward to how this game turns out!!!

[@nicholasoneal1521]

Really excited!

[@ProfezorSnayp]

I too remember the early Spore videos. Remember the octopus-thing Will showed as a proof of concept?

[@TheSapling]

Definitely do. I think it's still Chris Hecker's Twitter avatar

[@arturzimplayerpro2573]

your determination and perseverance fill me with determination, nice work man

[@mozarteanchaos]

i'm excited to see where this game goes from here! there's a lot of spiritual successors to spore out there, and i don't think any particular one is necessarily more promising than the others, but yours does have the advantage of already having a "creature stage" i can observe and tinker with. it may be quite simple now, but i'd love to see where it goes in the future, and how much depth it develops.

[@knownasspacebar4153]

I'm so glad you didn't give up I love watching the play through video I just wish I had a PC to play the game

[@gamerlyf9979]

Im really exited to see where this game goes because I wanted a game like this when I first played spore too, so it is really cool to see this game grow & evolve.

[@alexrog6868]

ive always been interested in stuff like this

[@nuclearbaguette6646]

Hope this game becomes amazing

[@khalidibrahimx]

Thank you!!

[@pankobro4536]

I love the concept and I was part of that big wave that bought the game after the 7 day simulation video. What I find is the game needs a better interface, easier to navigate ancestral trees, and a better way to visualize what species are doing what in the ecosystem I.E. food chain, migrations and areas of distribution. A lot of the visual filters in the game are buggy and hard to decipher.

[@TheSapling]

Hey Pankobro, thanks for your feedback, much appreciated!

[@Thenoobyone2981]

YES ITS FINNALY OUT!!!!!!!!!

[@bobross547]

If / when you finish this I would love your opinion on the game "thive" I feel like they could use your skills and you would love the game

[@TheSapling]

Hey Bob, I saw some videos a few years back, but only now discovered that's been on Steam since November last year! Thanks for the pointer :)

[@Tom-ck3io]

You’re alive!

[@houseguestbyforce4800]

Bro i live to see you upload or the game update yet i have 0 muns no computer but i still like your game and hope you got rich of this game please don't ever give up on this game but i know you aren't planning to

[@rauhau_]

Nice project

[@lady-beanie5688]

Hope its a control or aquatic update!!!

[@thefrenchselkie1401]

I love this gameee

[@quinnburgess7748]

Although I have never played the game, by looking at it I'd say it needs some ground cover. Other than that 1 little thing, you did an amazing job. I can see what you were thinking as I, too, have many thoughts of games like this. I love being able to evolve things on my own, and also build my own world. It truly is eye candy and I would love to see it EVOLVE in the future.

[@TheSapling]

Hey Quinn, thanks for your suggestion, much appreciated! Grass is often requested indeed.

[@Hushinita]

I hope someday, if not already, some kid has the same experience you had with Spore with your game.

[@TheSapling]

It's a beautiful thought :"-)

[@user-ei4mi8nx4m]

Congrats

[@benjyfour]

bro i have spent 100+ hours ins spore nice to see its the reason for the sapling :D

[@TheRandomWolf]

In my 33,000 year old ecosystem nectar eaters evolved and the flower plants have also kept thorns so any non nectar eater gets hurt when eating This caused the nectar eaters population to explode without consequence, only thing stopping them is temperature There was like a blanket of them on the ground it is pretty funny

[@JStacksE3]

Thought about making animals show attraction to different traits of animals of the same species? Might be a challenge, but it's something that would add a unique element for sure once the foundation of this game is complete, if it isn't already.

[@TheSapling]

Hey Jai, thanks for your suggestion! Without making promises, but courtship display is an idea I really like indeed.

[@leoleonid5400]

14:35 That looks like a tiny planet... Will it be an aquatic update?

[@obiomajronyekwere4469]

GODDAMN absoloutly love this game , gives me that urge to see a world evolve on its own and see fascinating creatures come to life! The most recent 7 day week simulation caught my eye due to the wierdness of the thumbnail creature filling me with such curiousity ! I believe yoh should add more niche body parts as it truly makes it alien

[@GeneralLDS]

10:09 bro i didnt know it worked like that no wonder my plants are so strange 😭😭

[@TheSapling]

Haha yeah I have not figured out yet how to explain that part of the game better

[@Thatguy-cc4pr]

Echt een doorzetter respect

[@TheSapling]

Dankjewel That1guy :)

[@Drkon6]

We're you ever going to add a cladogram/tree of life type screen to track speciation? Species ALRE had a fantastic one and it'd be great to have in this game.

[@Benjamin-gv6gq]

Have you heard of thrive. Maybe if you worked with them you could build the ultimate spore game. They haven’t really started creature stage so you could help them

[@TheSapling]

Hey Benjamin, I saw some videos a few years back, but only now discovered that's been on Steam since November last year! Thanks for the pointer :) Perhaps one day we could make a 'Spore bundle' together with a city builder and a space exploration game ;)

[@sammy-joeschneider103]

I think this game is really great :) Maybe think about stuff like natural desasters :)

[@TheSapling]

Hey Sammy-Joe, thanks for your suggestion! Without making promises, disasters is indeed an idea I really like.

[@Nathan-my4db]

Yayyyyy!

[@painnwithat602]

Food for thought: have you considered adding some simple evolving neural networks to the creatures?

[@TheSapling]

Hey PainnWithAT, definitely, that's how the Bibites project works, for example! So far, I have opted for a simple rule based approach (if you see this, do that) to make it super clear for the user what is happening.

[@horrorsofthenight8751]

I know this is probably really complicated but have you ever considered aquatic or ambush creatures such as a feature where something will evolve to have skin that replicates the area around it so that it can hide and attack prey or animals learn to enter the water to avoid predators and over time get better and better at swimming becoming amphibious until they become more aquatic

[@TheSapling]

Thanks a lot for writing down your suggestions! As the upcoming video series will show, I have indeed considered some of these things.

[@horrorsofthenight8751]

@@TheSapling great I adore this project you've been working on it is incredibly well done and I can't wait to see how it will evolve much like the creatures within it

[@chickenmoglies5891]

Let’s go

[@alacer8878]

AAAAAAAAA!! A NEW VIDEO!! WOOOOOOOOOO!!

[@jennifermatthes4030]

I would like it if you could do mass extinctions and challenge your creatures

[@TheSapling]

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

[@fryeguyvids]

I've been watching a lot of your videos, since I recently found your channel, and I realized you have a pretty thick accent. Of course, I've gotten used to it, but I noticed when you say "The Sapling" it sounds like you're saying "Dassembling." Sorry if that offended you in any way, I'm just curious what your accent is.

[@TheSapling]

This is a Dutch accent ;). Also, I have a degree in linguistics so this kind of stuff is super interesting to me; what sounds would you say are the most 'accented'? Based on your example, I'm guessing the 'a' (as in 'bat') which sounds more like an 'e' (as in 'bet') when I say it, but I'm curious what other things you notice

[@fryeguyvids]

@@TheSapling That's really cool that you have a degree in linguistics! Also I legit can't tell if that comment was a statement or if you're asking me a question

[@TheSapling]

Question! I'm genuinely curious in learning more about my accent :)

[@fryeguyvids]

@@TheSapling Well like I said, when you said "The" it sounded the "Da" and -Ap" sounded like "-Emb" creating what sounds like to my Canadian accent as "Dassembling" and since that's not a word my brain registers it as "Assembling"

[@transnewt]

Are the different movement types (walking, gliding, and flying) varying in efficiency, such as walking having moderate efficiency, gliding being almost free, and flying being super expensive as is the case irl?

[@TheSapling]

It might be in the future, but not at the moment: movement type only influences speed.

[@flybenzon6130]

Can you make rain update where it could flood

[@TheSapling]

Indeed an idea I like :)

[@tad3546]

Welcome black

[@goldengamer1379]

It has been awhile

[@yes6650]

I wonder if you could add smell to the game

[@TheSapling]

Hey, technically possible of course, but it might be harder to visualize for the players what is going on. Any ideas of cool animal behaviors that would be possible with smell?

[@yes6650]

I imagine it would act similar to sound but perhaps animals give off pheremones or something that are like small particles coming off of them

[@TheRandomWolf]

@@TheSapling with smell carnivores could track herbivores by walking, then stopping to sniff around again And herbivores could get a way to wash off their scent through like mud or flowers so the carnivores lose them, this could be a instinct they evolve Maybe animals could evolve bad scent as a mechanism against predators, causing predators to leave the prey alone. (But predators could also evolve to be resistant to the bad smell with a different nose or something)

[@watch7797]

plz help me how do I get past the mountain scenario

[@TheSapling]

The mountain scenario will be clearer in this update; until then: steamcommunity.com/app/997380/discussions/0/3419934694736231406/ :)

[@lourdthebluefoxie]

Omg

[@maxaugustssonanimation6652]

I hope the nekst uppdat is the splis and splac