User:Drvela/sandbox

General Information
Reus is a god game created by Abbey Games. It was released May 16, 2013, and is currently only available on Windows. It is a simulation and strategy game. In the game you control elemental giants in order to create a balanced world capable of sustaining peaceful human life.

Systems
The giants are used to play the game and achieve certain goals. There are four: Ocean, Forest, Rock, and Swamp. Each have unique abilities.

One of the main systems are the biomes, which can be created by certain giants. There are five that you can make: ocean, forest, mountain, desert, and swamp. At the beginning of the game the world is covered in wasteland.

Giants are also capable of creating sources for villages, such as plants, animals, and minerals. These sources are turned into resources by the villagers, specifically food, wealth, and technology. Achieving certain levels of these helps finish projects and sustain growth.

Mechanics


Every time a giant uses an ability there is a recharge period before they can use another. Abilities are a sort of tile-lay mechanic in that you create something on one or more spaces in the world.

When a village starts a project, you must use the giants to help them gather resources to complete it. Resource management is key as you only have a limited amount of space in and around a village. Completing projects also upgrades giants with ambassadors from villages, which grant more abilities.

In some modes of the game there is a time limit before the era ends. The player must help humanity avoid conflict and fulfill their goals. If any giant dies the game is over.

There are also symbioses, which are made by placing certain sources next to each other. These give boosts in the villager's resources.

Graphics/Interface
The game is in 2D, with the player able to use the left and right arrow keys to move across patches of the surface of the world. The up and down arrow keys allow you to zoom in and out to see villages close up or the entire world.

There is also a HUD overlay that displays giants, their abilities, resource information, and human information.

Educational Potential
This game could be used to teach about, resource management, humanity, and environmental health. Although it is not as in-depth as games like Civilization, Reus still provides a simple way to explore the way your environment affects your growth, and that not everything is in one's control.

Reus has not yet been used in a classroom setting, but it could be. The simple graphics and controls could make it usable for middle school and higher levels. Teachers could explain real life examples of symbiosis between plants and animals as well as biomes. They could also relate the game to today's uses of resources to sustain life, and whether or not it needs to be altered.