a video game by Jason Rohrer

Cultivation is a game about a community of gardeners growing food for themselves in a shared space.

Cultivation is quite different from most other games. It is a social simulation, and the primary form of conflict is over land and plant resources---there is no shooting, but there are plenty of angry looks. It is also an evolution simulation. Within the world of Cultivation, you can explore a virtually infinite spectrum of different plant and gardener varieties.

All of the graphics, sounds, melodies, and other content in Cultivation are 100% procedurally generated at playtime. In other words, there are no hand-painted texture maps---instead, each object has a uniquely "grown" appearance. Every time you play, Cultivation generates fresh visuals, music, and behaviors. You can read more about what I was trying to do with Cultivation in this essay

Read my open letter to the other Slamdance Finalists about the controversy surrounding SCMRPG.

I need your help

Cultivation has been selected for exhibition at the Toronto Future Play conference in mid-November. From my home in Potsdam, New York the cheapest way for me to get there is an 11-hour bus ride, which costs $174 round trip. I plan to stay in the cheapest hostel in Toronto, which will cost $57 for the three nights that I need to be there (sleeping in a dorm room with 5 strangers).

As suprising as it may sound, my family simply cannot afford the $231 that it will cost for me to go to Future Play. So, I'm turning to you folks for help to raise money for the trip. If you think Cultivation is cool, please donate whatever you can.
$ [ 11 donations totalling $365.91 ]
[ Goal: $231 ]

Requirements

Required:
  • OpenGL
  • Mouse
Recommended:
  • 3D card that can render OpenGL
  • 400 MHz or faster processor
  • Stereo headphones
Notes:
Development and testing took place on a 250 MHz PPC computer without a 3D accelerator card (in other words, using software OpenGL rendering). Cultivation is actually playable on a meager system like this, though it runs a lot smoother on a faster computer with a 3D card.

If you have an older computer, you may be able to improve Cultivation's performance by disabling some of the more complicated graphical features. Open the included file features.txt with a text editor (changing a "1" to a "0" will turn a given feature off).

Downloads

Play instructions are included with your download. Cultivation also includes an in-game tutorial.

Version 8 released on August 9, 2007. [change log]

Clicking a download link below will lead you a list of download mirrors---pick the server that is closest to your geographical location.

MacOS X -- (tested on 10.2).

Windows 95/98/2000/XP -- Includes the GLUT library.

Unix Source Code -- Compile yourself. Requires the GLUT development library [GLUT source] [GLUT RPMs].

Cultivation is free software (released into the public domain).

Reviews

Sam Ashwell has posted an in-depth review.

Trailer Video

Download:
Format: MPEG 1 with mp2 audio (playable on almost any computer)
Two sizes available:
360 x 242 (5.95 MB)
720 x 486 (19.44 MB)
720 x 486 DVD Quality (28.32 MB)
Hosted by the Internet Archive
YouTube Stream:

Screenshot


A high-resolution screenshot, suitable for printing, is available in the press section

Development

You can browse the source code in CVS.
hosted by:
SourceForge Logo
For those who do not fear sacrifice:
your souls will burn bright trails in the night sky.