Still playing around with possible 3D fractals. Another example attached below.
I think some behaviors ought to be possible by implementing some very simple rules, e.g.
If Detect(x) within range(y) then do (z)
where x could be a property of another organism, but would most likely be very simple things at first, like "being eaten," and the simplest form of z would probably be "move away from x". But ultimately there could be reactive rules, like "If detect(being eaten) then do (get(color, thing eating me);createRule(if detect(colorOfThingCurrentlyEatingMe) then do (move away from that thing))
And someday there might be organisms that can enrich soil, and if an organism has encountered one of these and is wandering around and sees another one, it might migrate over to sit next to it.
The most advanced stage would be for the organisms to be able to transmit and receive rules. Kind of like how trees, being munched on by Gypsy Moth caterpillars, send out chemical signals to other trees in the area to start changing their metabolism to not be so tasty to caterpillars.
The thing is to come up with a very simple system of encoding the properties and rules, so that emergent behavior can result, meaning organisms with capabilities I had never anticipated, either due to random breeding, or deliberate efforts on the part of players.
