Project Features

Overview:

Creating a believable alien world teeming with life requires believable behavior. Any biologist knows form = function. I analyzed scientific papers exploring ethology (the “seeking system”, the evolution of nervous systems, and community relationships) to categorize possible motives for animal behavior. I also explored creative media like Scavenger’s Reign and Subnautica to isolate what elements of simulated life feel “alive”.

Game AI Programming & Design
Part 1: Common Behavior Patterns
An overview of the seeking system (seen in mammals) [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7219919/]
    1. SEEKING--Expectancy. Stimulating the nucleus accumbens and the lateral hypothalamus, areas associated with the SEEKING System, will generate an urge to seek, expect, investigate, and be motivated. Related to Dopamine.
    2. FEAR--Anxiety. When the amygdala and periaqueductal gray (PAG) areas of the brain are stimulated, the “fight, flight, or freeze” reaction will quickly emerge.
    3. RAGE--Anger. When the medial area of the amygdala is stimulated, the animal will propel themself forward to fend off the offensive object, and snarl or bite.
    4. LUST--Sexual excitement. This primary emotion is generated in the amygdala and hypothalamus.
    5. CARE--Nurturance. When this system is aroused, an animal has strong impulses to tenderly take care of another.
    6. PANIC/GRIEF--Sadness. This primary emotion is often triggered by separation distress.
    7. PLAY--Social joy. Playful and light-hearted movements and laughter characterize this primary emotion.
Part 2: Abstracting Behavior into Gameplay

In abstracting forms of universal gameplay, I determined two categories for action-oriented behavior (accessible to the player and NPCs):

Interaction Movement
  • Take: (consuming / destroying a resource)
  • Give: (creating / sharing a resource)
  • Aggression / Attack / Dominance:
  • Submission / Mate / Care / Collaboration:
    •
  • Wait: (freeze, resting)
  • Follow: (fight, searching for food, stalking)
  • Leave: (flight, loss of interest, searching for safety)
    •

    These categories apply to all organisms and can be used in various combinations to achieve more complex behavior on an individual, community, and species level.

    Part 3: Creating Emotional Beats by Combining Behaviors

    Combing behaviors can easily balloon scope. To remain focused, I looked at the most player-centered interactions that elicit intrinsic (emotional) rewards. The natural world operates without us watching. It’s especially important to optimize for what players notice. These limits also maintain performance and reduce the potential of obscure systems that “feel unfair”.

    I believe the most exciting (and manageable) emergent behavior occurs through interaction. So I identified the focus of this gameplay in this game as the intersection of independent and social behaviors.

    Type of Behavior Effect on Donor Effect on Receiver

    Egoistic

      Neutral / Increases fitness

      Entitlement, manipulative

    Decreases fitness

    Unhappy, angry, bitter

    Cooperative

      Neutral / Increases fitness

      Gratitude, connection

    Neutral / Increases fitness

    Connection

    Altruistic

      Decreases fitness

      Connection, nurturing

    Neutral / Increases fitness

    Gratitude, manipulative

    Revengeful

      Decreases fitness.

      Unhappy, angry

      Decreases fitness.

      Unhappy, angry

    This table provides a clear action-reaction framework for player and NPC behavior while maintaining flexibility. Mutualism, parasitism, and predation also exist similarly.

    Part 4: Player Influence
    To create a similar simple behavior structure for the player I reduced the interactions to 3 forms:
  • Aggressive Shout
  • Submissive Whisper
  • Neutral Ping
    • Part 5: Refinements
    Evolution of species through children with randomized traits Community “memory” (some societal behavior is learned, some is genetic) Some species inherit automatic responses instinctually while others inherit it by learning.
    Future Improvements
    Scavengers Reign feels alive because of the spectacle and intrinsic beauty of the lives unseen.
    Speculative Biology

    While ideating lifeforms and habitats I analyzed environmental (macro) and (social) micro influences on evolution.

    Macro: solar system structure, weather patterns, and geography.
    Micro: individual, reproductive, and social behaviors.

    How to Design Speculative Biology
      1. Use Spectacle
      Nature is extravagant. A colorful bloom in a dark forest is inherently theatrical.
      2. Tell a Story:
      All life has a beginning and an end. Watching the life cycle of tiny humanoid born to die within a flower is unforgettable.
      3. Form = Function
      Behind every shape in the natural world is a history of a billion iterations and refinements.
    Narrative Design

    I wrote a linear narrative with a branching final ethical dilemma following a robot siren.

    Foliage (Update Pending)
    Stylized Shader (Update Pending)