The initial idea was to make an html game but it quickly became obvious that this game was not going to run well in a browser so we had to resort to download only (historically this means fewer plays/votes). Given more time we could probably have made it work in a browser but such is game jams.

The game didn't take long to make so we uploaded the game early and got some feedback which was helpful but the overall response seems to be that the game is too complicated or difficult to understand.

I added a short tutorial to the game and smoothed out some of the behaviour in the AI but the game still needs more visual feedback when DNA is collected to make it more obvious what gives DNA and how much.

There's a lot of randomness in the game as well by nature so one run might net more DNA than another due to the way food and enemies are spawned. (Enemies are actually a non-renewable resource but there's more than enough to finish the game)

For me this kind of emergent behaviour is fascinating to watch but there is an obvious need to improve feedback and accessibility.

Play it here:

https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/38/$25918