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The Cell Stage is the first stage in Spore followed by the Creature Stage. The primary component is playing as the cell and tasked with guiding a cell of their new species through a primordial ooze.

Overview[]

In this stage, the player guides a cell of their new species through a top-down primordial ooze consisting of other cells, plants, bubbles, debris, various food particles, leftover bits of killed cells, and crystalline structures. The primary objective in this stage is to gradually grow their cell's size through consuming food sources surrounding it (that includes meat, plants, or even prey) and meeting a requirement to develop a brain and evolve to move onto land and begin the following stage, Creature Stage. Being the shortest stage in the game (averaging ~5-15 minutes depending on difficulty). It introduces central mechanics like evolution, eating, and interacting with other lifeforms.

Before starting into this stage, players have to decide if their cell's diet will be carnivorous or herbivorous, although the choice is not permanent and is mainly comes down to preference. Herbivorous cells (naturally possessing the Filter Mouth) eat little pieces of plant matter and then seaweed in later stages, while carnivorous cells have Jaws and will feast on meat particles and other cells. Being an omnivore is also possible when possessing both types of mouth or Proboscis mouth halfway through the stage. How many plants the player cell eats compared to how much meat it consumes determines the trait card at the end of the stage and in turn, what additional mouths are unlocked in the Creature Stage. Any consumption of food will affect the meter that vertically moves towards to that trait.

The player can encounter and interact with various types of cells with unique attributes and varying sizes in specific levels and appearances to react to anything enclose to them; some appear passive, skittish, and docile and some appear hostile and willing to assault those cells when in contact, influenced on the difficulty settings and cell's traits. As a carnivore, killing a cell by either biting it or using spikes will make that cell dissolve their body into 3 meat chunks to chomp on for DNA points that gives opportunity to spend on parts to give new abilities. Depending on what cell is killed, it may drop a unique part card that unlocks that new part. As the player's cell eats more, it will grow throughout the stage, making cells that were previously way larger than the player's the same size, before eventually shrinking to below the player's size and disappearing.

Plot[]

The game begins with a cinematic of a comet falling into a solar system, then towards a planet, shattering in the atmosphere, and falling into the ocean as fragments. The camera follows one fragment as it falls through the ocean. This fragment shatters and the player's cell swims out. As the player progress, they get both bigger and less transparent. After growing and zoom out, peer-size cells are now prey size. At the same time, larger cells from the background will enter the playing field.

Upon filling the progress bar, a cut scene will play detailing the player's cell developing a small brain; at this point, the player will be allowed to progress to the creature stage, where they are rewarded a Trait card for their efforts, which will then determine the creature's diet for the rest of the game, the player can then progress onto the Early Creature Creator. The Creature stage then begins with a short cut scene of a flock of the player's creatures emerging from the sea onto the land and scattering. The player's creature's starting appearance is based on what the player created in the Early Creature Creator, although it may be changed during the Creature Stage.

Progression[]

There are roughly 10 levels of development in the Cell Stage, but only five of these are actually denoted (by a vertical divider on the progress bar at the bottom of the screen) at which the player's cell experiences a growth spurt.

Cell stage
  • Level 1 begins with the player's cell swimming out of the comet fragment. The first objective is to eat 5 meat or plant food particles, depending on whether starting out as a carnivore or herbivore. The level introduces 2 cells such as a herbivorous cell called Minno, as well as a carnivorous cell called Goldy in hard difficulty that may attempt to attack. Soon after entering level 1.5, a Pokey cell will be killed by a Chomper, making the first collectible part appear: the spike that can be collected--this does not happen on hard difficulty though. This also won't happen when killing the Pokey and collecting the spike.
Cell stage2
Cell stage3
Cell stage4
Cell stage5
  • Level 5 brings the player close to the Creature Stage, where it introduces peer-sized Paa and Maa cells that is the only cell to have ability laying eggs, providing as an alternative food source, but quickly hatch into Juniors. Couple of meteor bits appear than with other levels. There will no longer be any bigger cells in the background, with largest being predator-sized. In the first half of the level, Maas can eat plant rings whole, and Jetsters can zoom in and eat all the small chunks of plants before you can get to them.

Juniors in level 5/2 come in two sizes. The eggs that Juniors hatch from also come in two sizes. The smaller size only comes from inside dead Maas, explaining their rarity. In level 5/1, all Juniors are the same size, and dead predator-sized cells do not ever explode.

Missions[]

Missions are optional and appear throughout the Cell Stage. They can be found in the instructions in the top-left corner of the screen.

Mission Objective Available Difficulty Reward
Eat Eat 5 Pieces of Food Start 1/5 DNA points
Collect Unlock Cell Parts Level 1.5 3/5 Up to 6 Additional Parts

The first mission is simple; the player has to consume five pieces of food as soon as the cell emerges from the meteor. The second mission requires to collect all of the unlockable parts and doing those specified will award with the Completist achievement.

Damage and Health[]

All cells normally have 6 health points. Various cells inflict different amounts of damage, however. The following charts show the damage that the different cells and parts can inflict. An epic cell is nearly impossible to defeat without Electric part, predator cells are also bigger than the player, but don't take up the whole screen by themselves. Peer cells are those that are close to the same size as them, and prey cells are much smaller. These are written on a Carnivorous Cell's Perspective, or bite size.

The 4 different sizes of cells are:

  • Prey cells are the tiniest type of cells in the stage and are extremely fragile. They can be killed in one hit, so Junior swarms go from dangerous to nearly harmless when possessing the Poison part. They generally pose no threat.
  • Peer cells are roughly the same size as the player's cell and can be attacked for 3 pieces of meat. They may pose a slight threat, but can be easily defended against, so long as it has sufficient defenses.
  • Predator cells are larger than to some other cells around them. They are only invulnerable to harmful mouths, but they can be harmed and killed through spikes, electricity, and very little with the proboscis. They can instantly devour any cells smaller than them except for the player cell. Most of these seem to drift while other cells accidentally swim into their mouths. Squiggly and Maa are the only herbivores that can be found in this group.
  • Epic cells are the largest, hardiest, and rarest cells through the stage. They are nearly impossible to kill with one exceptional weakness that is electricity from Electric part, and, similarly to predator cells, are able to trap and chomp with mouths on any cell, including the player's cell. Some epic cells have their own quirks like Ducky's eyes can be poked and injured with Spike part in contact; blinding it if it's done to both eyes as a result and can be found in the background floating. All of the Epic cells, smallest to biggest are: Stabber, Ducky, Jawhead, Puffish, Megamouth and Snorf.
Cell Size Damage Inflicted on Cell
Epic 100% (Instantly Kills the Cell)
Predator 50%
Peer 20%

The player's inflicts different amounts of damage, which act in proportion to their damage ability and their target's size. Note that Poison and Electric parts do nothing to other cells with the same part.

Body Part Damage Inflicted on Predator-Sized Cell Damage Inflicted on Peer-Sized Cell Damage Inflicted on Prey-Sized Cell
Spike 8 3 0
Jaw 5 3 6
Poison 0 3 6
Electric 1 3 6
Proboscis 1 3 6
Epic Cell Weakness Difficulty Notes
Stabber Strike its tail with a Spike part. Easy Simple yet ironic.
Ducky Poke out its eyes with a Spike. Easy Does not kill the cell, flees when both eyes are gouged out
Jawhead Push a shell into its mouth. Impossible? Mentioned within the game's code
Puffish Shock it to death with Electric. Hard Required for Megamouth Weakness
Megamouth Lure a Puffish into getting eaten by it. Extremely Hard Only Puffish that were formerly Epic-sized can trigger this weakness.
Snorf Impale with Proboscis. Very Hard Will jet away once attacked, but turns very slowly.

Objects[]

Spore 2009-01-26 17-38-19

A user's cell comes across a meteor fragment which contains a useful cell part.

  • Small Green Plant Matter is encountered in every stage. The Filter Mouth or Proboscis can eat it to obtain DNA points and restore small amounts of health.
  • Large Green Plant Flakes are first found in level 2.5, and disappear at 4. These plant flakes contain multiple small green plant matter attached to a larger centerpiece, allowing for fast amounts of food. They're ideal feeding areas for cells of all mouth types because packs of herbivores take advantage of it, so carnivores can then ambush their prey. It's a good idea for herbivores and omnivores to stay nearby if they're about to grow in size, since after growth the large green plants are edible as small green plant matter. It's a good source of quick food.
  • Seaweed is first found in level 4, but shrinks considerably by level 5. They're similar to Plant Flakes, but they have obstacles, so carnivores will have trouble attacking other cells. It's also a great source of food, but they become smaller at level 5. However, they're still ideal for food.
  • Meat Chunks are only edible with jaws, since the proboscis can't eat dead meat. They can be found from the first level and onwards. When a cell is defeated by another cell, it explodes into 1 to 4 meat chunks. The size of the meat chunks increases as the player increases in level. However, sometimes you'll come across meat that's too big and needs to be cut down to size using your spikes or jaws. Meat chunks become progressively less common over the levels. Note: Cells killed by poison, electricity, or the proboscis do not explode. Instead, they skid to a halt and flip over. They need to be spiked or bitten to make them explode.
  • Eggs are first encountered at level 5 and hatch into Junior cells. Any mouth part can eat small eggs. Large eggs can't be eaten, but eggshells can be eaten by the proboscis. Maa cells leave eggs behind if defeated.
  • Crystals, Debris, and Shells are unbreakable floating barriers. You can swim around or knock them out of the way. They can also be used to block predators from hurting or eating your cell.
  • Bubbles float around in various sizes and can be popped. Larger bubbles need help from a spike.
  • Currents are marked by ripples in the water current. They're hard to see and randomly scattered. Going with the flow speeds you up, while going against them slows you down. Mastering them increases your swimming ability by far, and can help in outrunning enemy cells.
  • Poison Clouds are seen near cells with the Poison part. They will keep making your cell take damage until you steer out the the poisonous water. If you have the part, however, you become immune.
  • Sparks are seen surrounding cells with the Electric part, shaped as a wide curve. They will daze your cell, which results in you taking damage. If you have the part, however, you become immune.
  • Meteor Shards contain new cell parts. You can break them open by swimming over them, which results in claiming the part. It doesn't require any spikes or weapons to do so. Even a blind and very weak herbivore can break them open.

The cells in order from smallest to largest are: Minno, Goldy, Pokey, Chomper, Shyster, Spiked Shyster, Booster, Grubby, Squirty, Pinky, Punky, Nosey, Stabber, Stabbella, Ducky, Buzzy, Small Junior, Jawhead, Squiggly, Needle Buzzy, Puffish, Large Junior, Jetster, Maa, Paa, Megamouth, Snorf, and Bloato. Your cell gradually increases in size as you progress through Cell Stage.

Parts/Abilities[]

Cells sometimes find meteor fragments which contain more cell parts, and consequently more abilities when you swim over them. These can be added and adjusted in the Cell Editor. Parts cost DNA. Your cell gets about one DNA point for every unit of food it consumes, to a maximum of 65. The Jaw, Filter Mouth, Flagella, and all eyes are available immediately after you start, and some herbivores have two sets of eyes, making for an extra 5 DNA. Other abilities are unlocked through finding rare meteor shards, or killing enemies with the desired parts (a golden shield appears next to its name if they have a part you don't). The Cell stage is the only stage in which parts are stackable. This means that adding more of a certain part increases its effectiveness. This does not work for eyes or the turning ability from Cilia, and it does not exactly work for mouths and spikes, since their effect does not directly upgrade the more of them you have, but having more mouths helps you eat more food since you eat in a larger area, and having more spikes allows you to stab objects in more locations.

Mouths[]

  • Jaw gives the cell the ability to eat meat. Does damage when used against living cells.
  • Filter Mouth gives the cell the ability to be herbivorous (eats green plants). Strangely, herbivores can also eat Junior eggs.
  • Proboscis gives the cell the ability to be omnivorous (eats green plants, eggs and other cells). Can be used to impale enemies and eat them alive, but can't be used to eat meat chunks or dead cells even if you break it with a spike. It will still break into meat chunks, but they will not be edible.
Mouths
Name Diet Cost Availability
Jaw Carnivore 15 Start
Filter Mouth Herbivore 15 Start
Proboscis Omnivore 25 Harvest from Nosey or Bloato

Sight[]

Eyes expand your cell's field of vision. Without eyes, your vision is reduced to a small area around you (which makes it difficult to notice predators), so eyes are recommended. However, it is easier to notice meteors without eyes, since they are fully visible in the blackness. Each eye part costs 5 DNA points. Available at the beginning of the game.

The types of eyes are Beady Eye, Stalk Eye and Button Eye.

It can be noted that certain starting herbivorous cells have an extra eye, which you can keep from this stage and earn 5 DNA points in the Creature Stage.

Movement[]

  • Flagella Flagellas cost 15 DNA points. These are cheap options compared to Jets. Jets are twice as fast as Flagella, but the Flagella part offers smooth movement. Available at the beginning of the game.
  • Jet Jets cost 25 DNA points. These are twice as fast as Flagella or Cilia. It propels the cell forward in short bursts, as opposed to steady movement. Unlockable at level 2. Harvest from Booster, Nosey, Jetster, Paa, or Snorf. It is a more cost-efficient way to build up your speed stat than stacking Flagella, since it provides 2 speed points for 25 DNA instead of 30, but Flagellas may still be preferable due to the smoother movement.
  • Cilia Cilia cost 15 DNA points. They move at the same speed as Flagella, but with these, you can turn quickly. Unlocked at level 3. You can collect them from Punky, Pinky, Stabbella and Bloato. Cilia also work in short bursts. Since the turning ability does not stack, only one is necessary to get the maximum benefit.
Movement
Name Speed Cost Availability
Flagella 1 15 Start
Cilia 1 (Gives Fast Turns) 15 Level 3 and up
Jet 2 25 Level 2 and up

Weapons[]

  • Spike gives the cell the ability to directly attack by ramming. They are also useful for repelling attacks. When opposing spikes collide, neither inflicts damage. When spikes collide with jaws, the spike deals damage, and the jaw deals none. A good idea is to attach 2 in the front for ramming, and others on the sides and rear to prevent attack. Costs 10 DNA and is first located in the middle of level 1. Collect from Pokey, Spiked Shyster, Stabber, Stabbella, Jawhead, Needle Buzzy, Squiggly, Puffish, and Megamouth.
  • Poison allows cells to leave poisonous trails as they move, damaging others caught inside it. The more poison sacs you have, the longer the trail becomes. Cells equipped with Poison can't be harmed by other cells also equipped with it. If you spin your cell and you have poison, you will make a poison cloud around you. It costs 15 DNA and is first located in the middle of level 2. Harvest from Squirty and Puffish.
  • Electric periodically electrocutes all nearby enemies. There is a 5-10 second recharge rate, depending on how many Electric parts you have on your cell. Grants immunity to other electrical attacks. Costs 25 DNA and isn't encountered until the fourth level. Harvest from Buzzy or Needle Buzzy. This is the only Cell Stage weapon to be repurposed for socialization in Creature Stage, giving level 1 Charm.
Weapons
Name Ability Cost Availability
Spike Ram into cells and break things 10 Level 1 and up
Poison Poison cloud 15 Level 2 and up
Electric Shock other cells 25 Level 4 and up

Hidden Parts[]

Quapodil

Example cell with secret parts

As the cell stage unfolds, players may notice that some creatures have parts that cannot be collected; these are parts that were originally designed to be upgrades to the parts available, similar to parts in the Creature stage, but were cut from the final game for unknown reasons.

These parts cannot be obtained in game without modifying the game through third party software, however, one way to access them out of game is to edit Spore's properties to make it launch an "Advanced Cell Editor" as soon as the game starts. [1]

Consequence Abilities[]

After completing the cell stage you are awarded one of three sets of consequence abilities for the future stages. Which set you are awarded depends on how you played the stage. The three are herbivore, carnivore, and omnivore. As their names suggest, they depend mostly on what you eat. For example, even if you kill many cells, you may still be a herbivore as long as you do not eat them.

Behaviour in Cell stage Creature stage consequence ability Tribal stage consequence ability Civilization stage consequence ability Space stage consequence ability
Herbivore Siren Song: Makes socializing with creatures easier (including hostile species, no effect on Epics) Refreshing Storm: Summons a storm that causes fruit to be replenished and fall from trees Healing Aura: Repairs all your vehicles and buildings Social Suave: Gives you an immediate 20% negotiation discount on all social tools (Only applies to your empire)
Omnivore Summon Flock: Summon a flock of minions to help you socialize or fight Flying Fish: Summon a serpent to scare fish from the sea Static Bomb: Temporarily immobilize vehicles, turrets and buildings Gentle Generalist: Gives you a 20% discount on all standard equipment (Only applies to your empire)
Carnivore Raging Roar: Make all surrounding creatures run in fear Traps: Lay a trap to ensnare wild animals Invulnerability: Make your vehicles impervious to damage for a limited time Power Monger: Increases the effectiveness of all weapons (In-game description is misleading, the effect actually increases energy bar capacity by 50%).

Strategies[]

Click to show

These tactics are suitable for the lower difficulties. Tactics for Hard difficulty can be found in the dedicated subsection.

Carnivore[]

To get the carnivore card you must kill and eat other cells. To this end, your first cell part should in fact be the spike. Placing the spikes on either side of the mouth like a pokey has two benefits: firstly, the spikes can be used to ram prey cells for consumption; and second, the spikes funnel meat chunks into your mouth so that you do not have to try as hard to grab every last bite. Purchasing a poison gland and an electric part for immunity as well as attack methods is recommended. Poison glands are most effective when placed at the sides, since they cover a larger area. Where mobility is concerned, one Jet and one Cilia will usually suffice, though additional Flagellas can always be useful. This setup will allow you to make ramming attacks (using the Jet's propulsion), while also having the turning ability provided by the Cilia. Alternatively, you could use the proboscis strategy below, just be careful to avoid plants while attacking herbivores. It may be a good idea to add a proboscis or filter mouth before entering creature stage, and keep it. That way, you do not need to kill to eat, which is useful even for predators, as fights may leave you with low HP, and eating fruit will quickly replenish you and allow you to keep fighting.

Herbivore[]

As explained above, to gain the herbivore card you need to consume a significant amount of plant matter. Because plant matter does not fight back, nor does it move on its own (it only moves with the current), you do not require any weapons. A useful tactic is to add flagella until you reach a movement speed of 5. At this point you are as fast as you can go and thus can evade most predators and catch up with any moving plant matter. Extra points can be spent on a single poison gland and/or electric part to provide immunity to these weapons - alternatively you can simply avoid creatures that use these parts. Spikes for close defense are recommended but not necessary. It is much easier to gain the Pacifist achievement (awarded for not killing any cells) as a herbivore. It is possible to do so as a carnivore, but it is very difficult and makes the cell stage much slower.

Omnivore[]

The easiest way to attain the Omnivore trait is probably to follow the Herbivore method above until the DNA bar reaches halfway. Then you can switch to the Carnivore method for the second half. This will earn you the Omnivore card without too much consideration. As for using the proboscis, it would be best to add 2 jets and one cilia. That way, you can charge and outrace prey and get to plants faster, since you have maximum movement speed as well as fast turning. However, some cells will still outrun you, such as Jetster or Nosey, since NPC jets seem to work better than the player's jets, providing much longer bursts of speed at the cost of extremely slow turns.

  • Another way is to have both mouths on at the same time, but eating can be difficult, unless you split one mouth in two. If you enlarge the head spinal bone to the largest size you can fit both mouthparts more easily.
  • Note that if you eat a lot of meat, but a small amount of plant matter, or vice versa, you may still get the Carnivore or Herbivore card.

Strategies for Hard Difficulty[]

  • Always start out as dolb, sporoo or loobo. You can sell the extra eye for 5 DNA, saving you several pieces of food you have to hunt for DNA points. You can always change to a carnivore mouth if you wish to play as a carnivore.
  • When using a proboscis, you cannot eat the meat chunk pieces, but you can suck the life out of most creatures, and swallow seaweed chunks. Also, the proboscis bypasses spike and jaw pieces because of its animation. If you have trouble, just make the proboscis bigger, and to counter a proboscis just buy a really long spike and the omnivore might cower.
  • When eating moving plants, try swimming to where the plant is going to go (especially when in a current).
  • Once you have the Proboscis (omnivore mouth), place it in the front and use some jets in the rear as the Nosey does. Once you choose a direction there will be no stopping you.
  • Attach Spikes on the front of your cell for ramming, and others on the side or rear to prevent attack.
  • A Spike going straight forward with mouths to either side of the Spikes can make it easier to stab other cells without making it much harder to eat. You can also have two spikes on each side of the mouth like a Pokey does to funnel food into it.
  • The size of your Spikes matters. Use the mouse scroll wheel to make them smaller so you can place them as close to where you want them as you can, then scroll them to the largest size possible. If a Spike is made the largest size, it can be on your tail, which will make it almost impossible for anything chasing you to get a bite in.
  • When being followed by a larger cell, try swimming between objects or around other peaceful cells. They may provide distractions.
  • If you're followed by a larger cell that won't leave you alone, allow yourself to get bitten. It'll propel you forward so you can get away. However, an epic cell will kill you in one bite.
  • If you're desperate for escape, try using the mating call, as predatory cells will stop chasing you as soon as the cutscene plays. Once you arrive in the editor, you're safe and will arrive in a different location.
  • Getting the Poison feature from the cell can be made easier if your cell has large Spikes. Of course, you could just search for a meteor bit, but it may be hard to find.
  • Poison and Electric abilities are more of a nuisance than anything - just use a lot of Spikes. Put only one set of poison to give you immunity (and shrink it if necessary to save space). When you're ready to evolve, put the Poison and Electric parts on so you'll be able to unlock more parts in that category later.
  • You can stack parts on top of each other. If you want to be an omnivore you can simply place the carnivore and herbivore mouth on the front of the cell. Being an omnivore will increase the rate at which you evolve because you eat twice as much food as you would as a carnivore or herbivore.
  • Carnivores begin with a mouth that does damage. This gives them a weapon at the beginning of the stage. If you wish to be a herbivore, keep it and trade it in as soon as possible.
  • Electricity and Poison are good at killing Juniors at the end of the stage (which provides good food sources for carnivores, and can clear away hordes), while Spikes are useful for killing and/or repelling equal or larger sized cells.
  • Two mouths, each on opposite sides while still facing front can widen the eating range of food, requiring less precision to grab food chunks.
  • Mild specialization is recommended at the end of the stage (speed cell, defensive cell, offensive cell, etc.). Keep in mind that the complete absence of offensive or defensive parts will likely result in many deaths.
  • By the end of cell stage, you should be well defended enough that when small predators run into you, they will be killed by your array of weapons. After a while these predators will flee at the sight of your cell. This is good news if you are a herbivore, as you now have one less threat to your existence. If you are a carnivore, however, one of your food sources will be harder to catch.
  • Be aware that Goldy will appear earlier as a predator sized cell if playing in Hard Mode. You may find one as early as emerging from the meteor.

Preparing for the Creature stage[]

  • If you're aiming for a specific card, don't forget to check your timeline frequently (T is the hot key).
  • Remember: When you are about to evolve to the Creature Stage, it does not matter what mouth you choose in the Early Creature Editor, because you will not be that creature forever. Instead it depends on what card you will get.
  • It is recommended to obtain all of the parts, as they can provide useful abilities at lower prices than creature stage parts. However, the Electric part is not very useful, since it costs as much as a part that would give level 2 charm, and very few creatures at the start of the Creature Stage even have charm, with level 1 Sing often being sufficient to ally the first few nests.

Fighting Epic cells[]

Some epics have certain weaknesses that can be used to your advantage. Be wary, though. Epics can still eat you whole if you approach their mouth.

  • For example, if you have the Electric part on your cell, then you can take down an epic Puffish with the same amount of zaps as it would take to zap a predator cell.
  • Amusingly, an epic Ducky can have its eyes poked out by Spike power-up. It will then slowly swim away as if it was a regular sized Ducky you had just bitten.
  • An epic Stabber is weak to its own main defense: Spikes. Like Puffish, it will take the same amount of damage as a predator from these powerups.
  • An epic Snorf can be defeated by a proboscis. Even when dead, the proboscis can still drain fluid from the corpse. This can let you quickly finish off the Cell Stage, but it would also easily change your diet to Carnivore.
  • An epic Megamouth can be defeated by eating an epic Puffish that becomes a predator cell.
  • This method is risky, but -- ironically -- most Epic cells can be defeated by swimming directly into their mouth to hit it with a Spike. This doesn't do much damage, but it can work in a pinch if you can't swim away from it or don't want to leave the area.

Cell Behavior[]

Easy[]

In easy difficulty:

  • Omnivores are peaceful.
  • Carnivore attacks happen rarely.
  • Predator cells are rare.
  • Cells swim slower than usual.
  • Pokey is automatically killed by a Chomper, unlocking the Spike part.
  • Eggs in level 5 hatch slowly.
  • Maa does not lay eggs.
  • Food heals 33% of health
  • Your cell deals 3 damage per hit
  • Epics are not present

Medium[]

In medium difficulty:

  • Omnivores are neutral (attack only when attacked)
  • Carnivore attacks happen at a normal pace.
  • Predator cells are slightly more common.
  • Cells swim normally.
  • Pokey is automatically killed by a Chomper, unlocking the Spike part.
  • Eggs in level 5 hatch normally
  • Maa lays eggs.
  • Food heals 1 HP
  • Your cell deals 3 damage per hit
  • Epics make their debut in this stage instead of Creature Stage

Hard[]

In hard difficulty:

  • Omnivores are aggressive.
  • Carnivore attacks happen constantly.
  • Predator cells are more aggressive and more common than in normal difficulty.
  • Cells swim normally.
  • Pokey is not killed automatically.
  • Goldies are found at the beginning of level 1 as predator size, which makes death at the very start of the stage possible.
  • Eggs in level 5 hatch more quickly.
  • Maa lays eggs more frequently.
  • Food heals 1 HP
  • Your cell deals 2 damage per hit
  • Epics are present, more common, and more aggressive.

Trivia[]

  • If you manage to kill a predator cell that has a new part, the part card will appear larger than normal.
  • If you aim your mouse at another cell, you will see its name and health bar, like many other creations. If you check a pre-made cell of your species before naming it, its name will be displayed as the original pre-made cell's name. For example, if your cell was Ildeeni, its name will be displayed as "Ildeeni".
  • The cell comes from a meteor references the popular theory of panspermia, or the belief that life on Earth originated from microorganisms that were deposited on Earth via meteor/comet impacts.
  • It is possible to place the spike part in the mouth, though is very hard to do. It can be an advantage if put on an herbivore mouth, as it will give them a feel of using a carnivore cell.
    • It is possible to surround a mouth with two Spikes that face directly forward. This can be done by placing the Spike over the mouth as if you are going to replace it with the spike, then slowly dragging it out. There will be a sweet spot where the Spikes will face straight forward instead of out from body. This can make it more difficult to eat, but it makes for a very efficient weapon.
  • The Cell stage is similar to one of Will Wright's favourite games, Pac-Man (In an analogue, fluid sort of way.)
  • This stage is also similar to flow and Tasty Planet.
  • This stage can be compared to the Precambrian to early Paleozoic era on the real Earth.
  • There are two cells called Maa and Paa. The Maa cell releases eggs, which hatch into Junior cells. These cells resemble a mixture between Maa and Paa. This happens because Paa is the father and Maa is the mother.
  • If both carnivore and omnivore mouth parts are equipped, the cell has the widest choice of food. (Omnivores with a proboscis, but no jaw, cannot actually eat a cell. They just feed in a parasitic way off them. Omnivores with a jaw, but no proboscis, cannot feed parasitically off other cells. Omnivores with both can feed in a parasitic way off other cells, then eat the cells themselves for maximum food.)
  • Ironically, despite being the shortest stage of the game in real time, this stage takes up to billions of years to complete in game time, as it would in reality. (2~3 Billion years if completed in 15-20 minutes or roughly 2.5 Millions in-game years a second)
    • This theme carries over to every stage afterward, with time flying by more slowly with each Stage (Creature Stage spanning tens to hundreds of millions of years, Tribal Stage spanning tens to hundreds of thousands of years with evolution being locked out on this stage and onward, Civilization Stage spanning centuries-millennia, and finally, Space Stage spanning hundreds of years).
  • Strangely, herbivores can eat the eggs of other cells.
  • If you bump into a fellow herbivore, it will mumble and glare at you.
  • When predatory cells decide to attack you, they will emit the growling visual effect (orange lightning bolts), and music will play indicating their aggression, similarly to drums playing when your creature is being targeted in the Creature Stage.
  • There are some pre-made Herbivore cells that have an extra eye that you can sell for 5 extra DNA Points.
  • The color of the water is always blue, which does not make sense if the Homeworld has water that is not blue (As chosen when you pick a planet at the start of the game). In some versions of the game the water color may vary around the end of the cell stage depending on your graphics settings.
  • This stage is clearly not on a cellular level, as the meat and plant chunks eaten by the cell would have to be formed of tissues made up by multiple cells, and the cells have various body parts such as eyes, fins, and spikes. What the game calls "cells" may actually be small animals, such as zooplankton.
    • At some point, cells are no longer translucent, which implies that they are fish rather than zooplankton at that level.
  • If you start from this stage it is possible to have an omnivore with carnivore or herbivore mouthparts in the creature stage and beyond. When you get to the final creature design window before going onto the land, just keep the proboscis (or the opposite type of mouth) on your creature and never delete it again. You can hide it away inside the main mouth or make unique structures with it. For example, the proboscis can be used as horns if you get the herbivore or carnivore card but still want to eat the other type of food.
  • At the final level of the cell stage the water color turns a murky orange, resembling a beach which is where you go when you finish the stage.

Developmental Commentaries[]

  • According to a 15 minute developer demo, "It basically trains you that the game is about creativity, about making your own stuff and getting used to the controls."
  • According to a GamingSteve thread, the cellular world is connected to the macroscopic world "in terms of changing your starting point when you enter the macroscopic evolution game".

See also[]

External links[]

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