Field guide

Eleven types.
No two alike.

A type sets the range a creature's genes can reach, the habitats it suits and the food it needs. Within that, the genes decide everything. The creatures below are one founder of each type, drawn and animated by the game.

Mammal

Warm-blooded, with fur or hair. Social, adaptable and, given half a chance, clever.

Thrives: Woodland and meadow paddocks
Avoid: Reef tanks
Eats: Anything

Bird

Warm-blooded, feathered and winged. Agile, quick-witted, and fond of height.

Thrives: Woodland, meadow and alpine paddocks
Avoid: Reef tanks, burrow chambers
Eats: Meat

Reptile

Cold-blooded and scaled. Patient, with a well-known fondness for the ambush.

Thrives: Arid terrariums, wetlands, burrow chambers
Avoid: Nothing in particular
Eats: Meat

Amphibian

Moist-skinned and at home on land or in water. Few creatures adapt so readily.

Thrives: Wetlands, reef tanks, woodland paddocks
Avoid: Arid terrariums
Eats: Meat

Fish

Gills and a streamlined body. Very fast in water, and not to be kept anywhere else.

Thrives: Reef tanks
Avoid: Meadow paddocks, burrow chambers, arid terrariums
Eats: Meat

Insect

An exoskeleton, compound eyes and a talent for metamorphosis.

Thrives: Woodland paddocks, burrow chambers
Avoid: Reef tanks, arid terrariums
Eats: Plants

Arachnid

Many legs, venom and silk. A patient ambusher that would rather wait than chase.

Thrives: Burrow chambers, woodland paddocks
Avoid: Reef tanks, arid terrariums
Eats: Meat

Octopus

Solitary, eight-armed and very clever. It relies on stealth and cunning rather than strength, and changes colour to suit its mood.

Thrives: Reef tanks
Avoid: Arid terrariums, alpine paddocks
Eats: Meat

Squid

Fast and social. It hunts in company and speaks in flashes of colour.

Thrives: Reef tanks
Avoid: Arid terrariums, woodland paddocks, burrow chambers
Eats: Meat

Slime

Gelatinous, absorbing what it eats through its membrane. Curious, adaptable and harder to put down than it looks.

Thrives: Burrow chambers, woodland paddocks
Avoid: Arid terrariums
Eats: Anything

Plant

Feeds on light. It does not go anywhere, and it is very hard to discourage.

Thrives: Woodland and meadow paddocks
Avoid: Burrow chambers, reef tanks
Eats: Light

One founder each.
The rest is breeding.

How the genetics work

Eleven types.No two alike.