Shee (Creatures)
| Creatures | |
|---|---|
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| Genres | Life simulation |
| Developer(s) | Creature Labs |
| Publisher(s) | Mindscape |
| Creator(s) | Steve Grand |
| Platforms | Windows, Classic Mac OS, Linux, PlayStation, Game Boy Advance |
| Platform of origin | Windows, Classic Mac OS |
| Year of inception | 1996 |
Creatures is an artificial life (alife) computer program series, created in the mid-1990s by English computer scientist Steve Grand whilst working for the Cambridge video games developer Millennium Interactive. Gameplay focuses on raising alien creatures known as Norns, teaching them to survive, helping them explore their world, defending them against other species, and breeding them. Words can be taught to creatures by a learning computer (for verbs) or by repeating the name of the object while the creature is looking at it. After a creature understands language, the player can instruct their creature by typing in instructions, which the creature may choose to obey. A complete life cycle is modelled for the creatures - childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and senescence, each with their own particular needs. The gameplay is designed to foster an emotional bond between the player and their creatures. Rather than taking a scripted approach, Creatures series games were driven by detailed biological and neurological simulation and their unexpected results. There were six major Creatures releases from Creature Labs. Between 1996 and 2001, there were three principal games released, the Docking Station add-on (generally referenced as a separate game) and two children's games, and there were three games created for console systems. A sequel named Creatures Online was in development, with the artificial life technology from Creatures 3 and Docking Station updated to a 3D environment.
The program was one of the first commercial titles to code alife organisms from the genetic level upwards using a sophisticated biochemistry and neural network brains, including simulated senses of sight, hearing and touch. This meant that the Norns and their DNA could develop and "evolve" in increasingly diverse ways, unpredicted by the makers. By breeding certain Norns with others, some traits could be passed on to following generations. The Norns turned out to behave similarly to living creatures. Sight is simulated by having a group of neurons representing each type of object in the world. When an object belonging to this type is in front of the creature ('within eyesight'), the neuron becomes active and the creature can 'see' the object. The Norns possess simulated biological drives which give punishment when they are raised, and reward when they are lowered. The model for Norns' decision-making process is Behaviorist and based on Norns learning how to reduce their drives. Dickinson and Balleine state that while this stimulus-response/reinforcement process makes the creatures seem like they are goal-directed, they are instead 'habit machines' responding in a learned fashion to particular stimuli.
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