Safari Explorers

The project

Safari Explorers is a huge African-themed Minecraft world. It contains 24 species (newly created for the game) living in their natural habits. You can study all of these species with a unique DNA system. By unlocking the animals with their DNA, you can learn a lot about them in a big library. You may even collect animal statues.

You can also create your own electricity to use machines and craft any kind of vehicle.

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The Map

The map is divided into four parts: the savanna, the mesa, the desert, and the swamp. All of these biomes contain unique species that you can study, tame, and play with.

There is a big base located in the middle of the map where you find everything you may need to prepare for your future expeditions. It contains a laboratory, a garage, an airport, a library, a solar panel area, a cloning area, and much more. All of these parts have specific usage. For example, the solar panel area can be used to create energy for the base in order to use the machines and create vehicles.

The animals

As previously said, the map contains a lot of species, all specially created for the game. All of these species have different looks, behavior, and specifics. For example, some animals may be much harder to find than others because they are endangered. Just like in real life.

A big part of the map is the DNA system. You can craft cotton buds from cotton that is growing everywhere on the map. Every time you interact with an animal using a cotton bud, you have a chance of around 20% to get its DNA.

You can then use this DNA in the laboratory to unlock the corresponding species and have access to its statue and its description in the library. You are also able to clone the animals in the cloning area to get their spawn eggs and create your own zoo.

Your goal as a perfect safari explorer is to unlock all the species on the map.

The energy system

The energy system is another important part of the game and a big improvement for the gameplay. We wanted the map to be more realistic than a usual Vanilla Minecraft world. So we invented this energy system to provide a new way to create items. Energy is the resource that allows you to use the different machines that are available on the map.

You can create energy by placing solar panels in the energy area which is located at the base. Once you reach the maximum amount of energy, you can upgrade an energy tank to get a bigger storage capacity.

Creative Process

The map took more than one year to be completely finished. During this long period, we added tons of new features and implements that were not scheduled in the original project plan. For example, at the start of the project, the resource pack was designed in 16x16 pixels. In the middle of the project, we decided to change this to 32x32 to make the overall look of the map more realistic and beautiful.

After planning the project, we started building the map. While doing the level design, we focused on creating everything as easy as possible to understand for the player.

The base was placed in the middle of the map so that every biome can be reached in nearly the same amount of time. Also, the round shape of the base makes it easy for the player to find their way. Every biome is differently designed. Because of that, the player can enjoy a totally unique experience wherever he or she goes.

When the map was finished, we continued with doing detailed research on the different animals. We put this information into the books of the library at the base. We kept an eye on creating the animals’ looks, behavior, and sounds as realistic as possible.

We needed to invent new tools to be able to implement camera paths into the world. Thanks to this, you can be excited about special cinematic recordings!

Release
7 September 2021