The Power of Prometheus; Uinversim’s In-Game Engine

Crytivo Games’ recent project and Kickstarter effort, The Universim, is definitely a head turner; A god-sim that is looking to out do all other god-sims.

is definitely a head turner; A god-sim that is looking to out do all other god-sims. A ton of variables will come into play within this game that affects everything , be it weather, natural disasters, or the make of the planet itself. And, thanks to the new in-game engine, all of these variables are dynamic, making the behind the scenes workings that bring the dynamic worlds to life nearly as amazing as the game itself.

Prometheus is what the new engine has been dubbed, and it handles the simulation of environmental changes, and breathes new life into the game. Environmental changes depend upon the planets make, the season, timeline, and the different biomes. These conditions affect gameplay and determine how Epicenters – cities – will grow, as well as test out the population’s previously researched methods of dealing with each climate. Epicenters placed within hot climates such as deserts will bear different results than ones placed within a cooler biome. Extreme situations can also change population and slow growth, as well as cause it to dwindle, if not properly prepared to face the taxing season.

Climate changes are not designated by a set in-game clock or calendar, either. All of the simulations are dynamic and the time that they last may vary. A mild winter may last months and months, while a severe one will last only a month or two, others may even hit hard and fast, completely ravaging an ill prepared civilization that inhabits the planet.

Prometheus goes beyond dynamic weather simulations and also handles the simulation of other events, events with a bit more catastrophic results; including storms, tornadoes, earthquakes, meteors, diseases, and more. Dynamic events such as these can bring forth domino effects of destruction. Meteor impacts cause craters and wipe out surroundings, igniting trees that lie near the impact zone, spreading fire about. Clouds generate above oceans and travel about the worlds, their direction and speed dependent upon the wind. At any moment a cloud can become a storm cloud and provide rain, or destruction with a well placed lightning strike.

Planets themselves are also dynamically generated, with their own characteristics and model sets for flora and creatures; some planets may even require some godly intervention before your people can survive upon it. Unstable planets also pose a great risk, as deep within them lies a core that is ready to supernova. Prometheus even determines what types of creatures inhabit the planets as well, be they peaceful ones, or fierce predators that will stalk your crewman upon arrival. Some planets may even be home to blood-craving plant life.

With the power of Prometheus everything within The Universim can be dynamic. “We all understand the importance of stability in a game of this size,” says the Crytivo Games Team, “and our developers are investing a lot of time into the optimization and proper implementation of these features.” Crytivo also plans to add more detail to the varying planets, and sneak in some Easter eggs and secrets for players to discover, and hopes to eventually craft the tools to allow the gaming community to mod the game.

The Universim is just over the halfway mark of its Kickstarter goal, and still has a few weeks left before its run comes to a close. If the goal is met, the The Universim will be gracing PC, MAC, and Linux platforms in 2015. For those that want to get involved and help support the project, head on over to their Kickstarter page.