DINODRIFTERS Dev Diary #19: Mating, Pregnancy and Birthing

Hello and welcome to another DINODRIFTERS dev diary!

In Dinosaur Mode, the primary goal is to find a mate and have children, continuing your progeny. Today, I want to talk about these fundamental mechanics.

First of all, mating is only an option when:

- You and the target are the same species
- You and the target are of opposing sexes
- You and the target are of sexual maturity
- The female partner is not already pregnant

If all of these conditions are met, then the option will appear on the drop menu when you click on your target.

As you can see, the option here does not appear. This is because the player is female, and the target is female.

Now, the process for females is more involved than males, on average. While some select males do stay and care for young, in many species this is not the case. So for males, the mating occurs and then they move on. However, females have to carry the offspring to term and either:

- Lay a clutch of eggs
- Birth live young

Children can be either left to fend for themselves or defended, depending on species in an AI's case or player choice for the player. The traits and states of both parents are mixed and passed to the young.

This whole process awards progress points which advances the growth of the player, making them bigger and more powerful. So the more children and matings you secure, the more successful your animal avatar becomes.

Of course, death comes for all. So when you die, especially if it is natural causes (a rare feat for an animal to accomplish), then certain awards will unlock.

Some species will be harder to beat - for example, completing a Tyrannosaurus run is easy because it is an apex predator; a Edmontosaurus run would be medium because the largest predators would hunt you but you're large enough to avoid most of the smaller ones; a Struthiomimus run would be hard, due to the frailty of their bodies and their lack of defences.

If you have had any children during your run and they are alive, you will be able to play as them, continuing your game.

More details on this will come another time.


Next diary, I will talk about tracking, smells and calls in DINODRIFTERS and how they work.

Until next time!