History VideoGame / WolfQuest

** Thirst is not a requirement, though in ''Anniversay Edition'', you can drink water for a temporary stamina boost .

* BeautifulVoid: Aside from airplanes in 2.7 and evidence of human presence like the cabins in Slough Creek in ''Anniversary edition'', there are no humans to be seen, just wildlife. As in real life, wolves don't like to interact with humans.

** You can give your wolf a radio collar in ''2.7'' and ''Anniversary edition''. Interestingly, in ''2.7'' this may trigger a plane flying overhead.

** Den location choice has some gameplay effects, such as more open areas attracting more eagles. The temperature of the area also matters.

* InstakillMook: Not to the player, but when the pups are milling around outside, eagles will be able to swoop down and take a pup. The challenge is to detect the eagle and drive it off before it can successfully do this. The player will be able to effect the eagle spawning rate by den location choice, as eagles favor more open areas.

* {{Microtransactions}}: Future updates, such as "Tower Fall", will also be individual paid DLC for both mobile and PC versions of the game. A completely updated remake of the [[GhostTown Lost River map]] is planned to be released as DLC, although the Classic Lost River map (old map pulled directly out of ''2.7'' with only minor updates) is free.

* NoHuggingNoKissing: In multiplayer, dating and mating roleplaying is not allowed at all because the game, while intended for and enjoyable for all ages, has attracted a large amount of kids and young players. Note that you can tactfully roleplay having a mate, but it must not be or turn into anything even remotely close to sexual, or involve pretending to date the other wolf/other player, and it must be handled carefully because this rule is taken very seriously, and may get your account disabled quickly if not followed correctly.[[https://support.wolfquest.org/help/mate-and-date-game-names Read rule here.]]

*** Beavers were added based on new evidence that wolves in Voyageurs National Park preyed on beavers, and hunting tactics in game based on videos of beavers not responding to wolf cut-outs right next to their trails. While wolves have not been observed hunting beavers in Yellowstone, the two species do coexist in the park.

* StealthBasedMission: While most prey can be run down, the beavers added in 1.0.6 can easily escape into the lakes and river they hang around. The player needs to lay low and wait for a beaver to pass by in order to inflict a surprise attack for bonus damage, assuming the wind doesn't change in the meantime.

* ContextSensitiveButton: Depending on what you're locked on to, the space bar can be used to either attack another animal, eat from a carcass, or pick up/put down pups.

** The territory mechanic in ''2.7'' is frustrating because the player can spend an excessive amount of time just keeping their territory fully marked up instead of doing other things. It's being redesigned with the aim that it will be fun, more realistic, and not a chore anymore, even with the player being able to claim a much larger amount of land. For one thing, scent markings will take much longer to expire now.

* ExcrementStatement: You need to claim your territory in Slough Creek, and being a wolf you can't do that with flags.

* InstakillMook: Not to the player, but when the pups are released, eagles will be able to swoop down and take a pup. While the pup is still alive, this still acts as a one-hit kill as the pup is not retrievable afterwards. The challenge is to track the eagle and get close enough to drive it off before it can successfully do this. The player will be able to effect the eagle spawning rate by den location choice, as eagles favor more open areas.

*** The team contacted an adviser just because they did not know what kind of sound effect to use for the emote for calling the pups out of the den. They found out wolves make a distinct "squeaking-whimper" vocalization to call pups out of a den, as well as to announce they have food for them. They got permission to use a sound clip of this from a trail cam.

** Slough Creek contains an overhaul of the territory claiming mechanic in ''Anniversary Edition.'' ''2.7'' gives you a unrealistic tiny half-circle that needs to be constantly maintained. ''Anniversary Edition'' lets you choose anywhere in the map to claim territory. Protecting it from encroaching stranger wolves becomes important. If you try and ignore them, they will gradually take yours over, and can advance their territories until they take the entire map, leaving you with no safe zone.

** Real female wolves, when pregnant, spend most of their time in a den, and also for the next few weeks after giving birth. The father brings her food during this time. After that, the she-wolf has to return to nurse the pups periodically until they are weaned. There is no official WordOfGod yet on whether any of this will be acknowledged or factor in game or not, just that it's something they're aware of.

* BeautifulVoid: Aside from airplanes in 2.7 and evidence of human presence like the cabins in Slough Creek in ''Anniversary edition'', there are no humans to be seen, just wildlife.

* HarderThanHard: The optional "Ironwolf" mode, in which all saving is disabled and the game ends when your wolf dies.

* LightningBruiser: Bison can run as fast as a wolf and can kill the player in just a few hits.

The third major revamp of the game, ''[=WolfQuest=] 3'' (also called ''Anniversary Edition''), is in fact a full remake of the game rebuilt from scratch, with an entirely new codebase and AI, updated gameplay, graphics and mechanics, and bigger, re-made maps. The game released on Steam Early Access July 25 2019, and Slough Creek is to come some unspecified time after. Future purchasable DLC, such as the third episode, "Tower Fall", will be based upon this edition of the game.

** In ''Anniversary Edition'', they added the small detail of the female gradually growing a pregnancy bump during Slough Creek, although WordOfGod is that the pregnancy will not hinder hunting or cause any gameplay difference or effect, and she will not need any "[[WackyCravings pickles or ice cream.]]"

** While the Amethyst Mountain map is nice, Slough Creek's map is lush and greener, with wild flowers, beautiful den sights, a river that can flood, and it's not even done and ready to be released yet.

*** Seasonal changes are accurate. The snowshoe hare's coat changes from brown, to fading to white, to full white. Male elk, moose, and mule deer lose their antlers in the appropriate months. Elk migrate to better feeding grounds depending on season. Grizzly bears hibernate in Winter, so the player does not encounter them. When Slough Creek is released during Early Access, fawns, and other baby animals will appear in Spring. Slough Creek will also flood certain times of the year after the snow from the mountains melts into the river.

** An overhaul of the territory claiming mechanic is being worked on for the Slough Creek level ''Anniversary Edition.'' ''2.7'' gives you a unrealistic tiny half-circle that needs to be constantly maintained. ''Anniversary Edition'' lets you choose anywhere in the map to claim territory. Protecting it from encroaching stranger wolves becomes important. If you try and ignore them, they will gradually take yours over, and can advance their territories until they take the entire map, leaving you with no safe zone.

*** Wolves often hunt elk calves in spring, so likewise in Slough Creek during spring the player may hunt baby elk hidden in tall grass. The calf has no scent yet, so the player is clued in that there's a calf nearby by the presence of a lone female elk trying its best to be inconspicuous. If the player gets close to the calf's hiding spot she will charge in to defend it. In a bit of sad realism, there is a chance that after the calf is killed the mother may not accept the death and still try to defend it from the player.

*** In multiplayer, when players separate too far from each other they disappear from each other's map. When this happens, players can howl to indicate where they are, to place a marker on the map for a duration. This was added in because real wolves obviously don't know where other wolves are if they are too far away to see or smell them, so they howl to indicate where they are.

** In ''Anniversary Edition'', there is no difference because the stat system has not been added yet, but it is planned to be added back in some time in early access.

** The first version of the game required you to interact with [=NPCs=] wolves in the "social arena." This consisted of walking up to them while they were standing statically in their territory, and interacting in a turn-based fashion by selecting "dialogue" options in a menu and then the [=NPC=] reacting with violence, submission, or accepting you as their mate. Needless to say, this was considered bad and a clear sign of the old game's low budget. ''2.7'' made some small upgrades to this system, but ''Anniversary Edition'' completely threw out the "social arena" concept. Now the [=NPC=] wolves actively roam and maintain their territory guarding it and hunting, and interact with the player in real-time when fighting and with either using various emotes, like raising the tail in dominance. They may try to steal kills from the player or vice versa. The dispersal wolves [=NPCs=] (potential mates) also now actively roam and hunt, interact with each other and the player, and courtship with them also involves the real-time emotes.

** When playing as a black coated wolf, if you choose another black wolf as a mate, in Slough Creek it may make the litter smaller.

[[http://eduweb.itch.io/wolfquest WolfQuest 2.7]] was released in November 2015 - the name was chosen because it doesn't include a 3rd episode, so "[=WolfQuest=] 3'' isn't entirely accurate, but the changes make it distinct from ''2.5''. It was originally meant to just be a tablet port of the game with some bug fixes; however, with the unexpectedly large amount of interest in a tablet version, the massive number of improvements in the game, and additions such as a graphics overhaul, new map, and account/achievement system, it was decided that it would be released on PC and Mac as well. The game has since been released on Steam, iOS, Android, and the Kindle store.

The game was originally envisioned to be four "episodes" long, with each one covering a different season and a different stage in a wolf's life. Episode 1, "Amethyst Mountain" (the fall season, which focused on finding a mate) saw its first release in December 2007. Despite funding issues along the way - the game had grown far bigger than its original scope - the game got its second episode, "Slough Creek" (aka "Survival of the Pack"), two years later, on January 1, 2010. This was the summer episode, focusing on a series of missions where you and your mate establish a den site and raise pups. Its "deluxe" version added weather and time - the winning suggestion in a contest - and was released in fall 2011. This was intended to be the "final" version of the game, since everything was about as complete as it could be and there was not enough funding for a third episode; the game had already outlived expectations by several years. This version, now known as "VideoGame/WolfQuest 2.5", remains free [[http://wolfquest.org/downloads.php on the WolfQuest website]].

[[http://eduweb.itch.io/wolfquest WolfQuest 2.7]] was released in November 2015 - the name was chosen because it doesn't include a 3rd episode, so "[=WolfQuest=] 3" isn't entirely accurate, but the changes make it distinct from 2.5. It was originally meant to just be a tablet port of the game with some bug fixes; however, with the unexpectedly large amount of interest in a tablet version, the massive number of improvements in the game, and additions such as a graphics overhaul, new map, and account/achievement system, it was decided that it would be released on PC and Mac as well. The game has since been released on Steam, iOS, Android, and the Kindle store.

The third major revamp of the game, "[=WolfQuest=] 3" (also called "Anniversary Edition"), is in fact a full remake of the game rebuilt from scratch, with an entirely new codebase and AI, updated gameplay, graphics and mechanics, and bigger, re-made maps. The game released on Steam Early Access July 25 2019, and Slough Creek is to come some unspecified time after. Future purchasable DLC, such as the third episode, "Tower Fall", will be based upon this edition of the game.

[[folder: The Wolfquest series as a whole contains examples of:]]

** You design your wolf by picking from five pelt colors and moving the sliders to adjust the hue, and you also choose how to balance your wolf's strength, stamina, and speed. 2.7 adds seven new howls to choose from, ten new pelt colors, and some options such as scars, notched ears, and walking with a limp. Like everything else, ''The Anniversary Edition'' refines this system further, with the existing pelts upgraded, more new pelt options, a slider for eye color, and the upgraded graphics allowing you to make absolutely beautiful wolves.
** You can give your wolf a radio collar in 2.7 and ''Anniversary edition''. Interestingly, in 2.7 this may trigger a plane flying overhead.

* {{Microtransactions}}: Due to 2.7 and later versions being made without grant money, they're relying on money from the game's sales.

** You can choose to be male or female. In 2.7, males are given a slightly higher upper limit on strength and size. This has very little effect on gameplay because the difference is made up in the other stats, and high speed is generally considered the more desirable or useful stat to have. It does change the gender of the dispersal you need to find to be your mate, but this is only cosmetic and has no gameplay effect.
** In Anniversary Edition, there is no difference because the stat system has not been added yet, but it is planned to be added back in some time in early access.

** They did add the small detail of the female gradually growing a pregnancy bump during Slough Creek, although WordOfGod is that the pregnancy will not hinder hunting or cause any gameplay difference or effect, and she will not need any "[[WackyCravings pickles or ice cream.]]"

* SuperDrowningSkills: In 2.7, pups die very quickly when in water, which is annoying because the player is required to cross a river at one point, and you only can hold a pup for a short time. Anniversary Edition will give pups a limited ability to swim to make this much less frustrating.

** Aside from the predators you have to kill/chase off during the "Defend Your Pups" mission in 2.7, it's up to you just how many animals you harass, injure, or kill in Yellowstone. This even extends to your own offspring.
** In 2.7 multiplayer, some "pupkiller" players deliberately drown one or more pups in Slough Creek during the cross the river mission, or intentionally allow a bear or other predator to kill them. This is allowed as long as the players clearly consent to this, as some players like to do this inoffensively as part of roleplay, but it can result in a kick or ban when done without the other players' consent.

[[folder: Wolfquest Anniversary Edition contains examples of:]]

** The territory mechanic in 2.7 is frustrating because the player can spend an excessive amount of time just keeping their territory fully marked up instead of doing other things. It's being redesigned with the aim that it will be fun, more realistic, and not a chore anymore, even with the player being able to claim a much larger amount of land. For one thing, scent markings will take much longer to expire now.

** Pups are going to be able to survive in water, and swim short distances when it is calm, to make the river crossing mission less frustrating compared to 2.7

* {{Microtransactions}}: Future updates, such as "Tower Fall", will also be individual paid DLC for both mobile and PC versions of the game. A completely updated remake of the [[GhostTown Lost River map]] is planned to be released as DLC, although the Classic Lost River map (old map pulled directly out of 2.7 with only minor updates) is free.

** The game realistically portrays a wolf's life. The game areas (apart from Lost River) are based directly off real areas in Yellowstone - right down to small ponds and a dead lightning-struck tree. The packs - and pelt colors of wolves in those packs - are based on real-life Yellowstone packs (Druid Peak, Slough Creek, and Specimen Ridge in 2.5 and 2.7 which were packs that existed in 2004; Junction Butte, Lamar Canyon, and Mollie's Pack in [[UpdatedRerelease ''The Anniversary Edition'']], which were packs that lived in the same area for most of the 2010s.) The customization options added in 2.7 are also based on real-life packs (the Lamar Canyon pack and Blacktail Deer pack), while the "limpy" customization option comes from a [[http://earthjustice.org/features/campaigns/limpy-the-story-of-wolf-253 real-life Yellowstone wolf]] nicknamed Limpy. The team consults with wolf biologists such as Dr. Dan [=MacNulty=] of Utah State University and Dr. David L. Mech, Senior Scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey and one of the most famous wolf biologists in the field.

** For the ''Anniversary Edition:''

** Is this to 2.7, as it is an entire remake of the game: a new codebase (since the previous one was a decade old and had become pretty tangled over the years), new AI, remade/bigger maps for Amethyst Mountain and Slough Creek (updated to reflect real-life changes: the burned region in Amethyst Mountain is now a growing forest, and as the packs that appeared in the original game have since died out in real life, they've been replaced with more modern packs), updated graphics, new animals to hunt, and more.
** The first version of the game required you to interact with [=NPCs=] wolves in the "social arena." This consisted of walking up to them while they were standing statically in their territory, and interacting in a turn-based fashion by selecting "dialogue" options in a menu and then the [=NPC=] reacting with violence, submission, or accepting you as their mate. Needless to say, this was considered bad and a clear sign of the old game's low budget. 2.7 made some small upgrades to this system, but Anniversary Edition completely threw out the "social arena" concept. Now the [=NPC=] wolves actively roam and maintain their territory guarding it and hunting, and interact with the player in real-time when fighting and with either using various emotes, like raising the tail in dominance. They may try to steal kills from the player or vice versa. The dispersal wolves [=NPCs=] (potential mates) also now actively roam and hunt, interact with each other and the player, and courtship with them also involves the real-time emotes.
** An overhaul of the territory claiming mechanic is being worked on for the Slough Creek level in Anniversary Edition. 2.7 gives you a unrealistic tiny half-circle that needs to be constantly maintained. Anniversary Edition lets you choose anywhere in the map to claim territory. Protecting it from encroaching stranger wolves becomes important. If you try and ignore them, they will gradually take yours over, and can advance their territories until they take the entire map, leaving you with no safe zone.

[[folder: Wolfquest 2.7 and prior contains examples of:]]

** A fan-nickname for a particular dead tree in the game - the one on the far bottom-right of the Amethyst Mountain map, surrounded by a forest of live trees - was the "Moontree". The Lost River map acknowledges this by having a movie [[http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/wolfquest/images/8/88/LRCinemaPoster_MoonMoon_Tree.png poster]] on the cinema advertising a movie called "The Moon Moon Tree", combining both the [=WolfQuest=] community's meme and the more widespread Moon Moon meme, and showing a wolf near a dead tree.

* {{Autosave}}: Added in 2.7.
* BearsAreBadNews: Bears are dangerous and can kill you in about three or four hits, but at least as of 2.7 there’s a 20% chance of scaring them off each time you bite them.

* BrickJoke: In 2008, when someone asked on the forum if there'd be any other animal games in the style of [=WolfQuest=], WQ Project Coordinator Michelle joked that the team thought "[=SlothQuest=]" could have some exciting gameplay. In 2015, the Lost River map was released, and in the abandoned town you can find some defunct arcade games named [=SlothQuest=].

* CameraScrew: Can happen sometimes, but 2.7 improves it a lot.

* ExperiencePoints: Earned by killing things, interacting with enemy wolves, and marking territory. Earns you things such as a bonus den choice, one of your pups being pure white, and the ability to name your pups. As of 2.7 it is required as part of the game itself: a certain number are needed in order for dispersals to start appearing in Amethyst Mountain.

* FreewareGame: The 2.5 version of the game remains free (though the text chat of 2.5 has been killed off due to an agreement with the Minnesota Zoo, leaving only phrased-chat and no-chat options.)

* InUniverseGameClock: When your wolf sleeps, you can plan what time to wake up in. This is mostly just an aesthetic thing, though elk won't detect you as easily at dawn or dusk. This was dropped in ''Anniversary Edition.'' You still need to sleep, but you can't set the time you wake up.
* {{Microtransactions}}: While the PC version contains the full game of 2.7 (Amethyst Mountain, Slough Creek, Lost River, all customizations, and multiplayer) for one price, the mobile/tablet version gives the demo for free and offers two microtransactions ("pelt options", which includes all customizations beyond the default 5 pelts, and "full game", which includes Slough Creek, Lost River, and multiplayer.) The total of the two microtransactions comes out close to (slightly less than) the PC game's purchase price.
* MookBouncer: Enter the southern territory when trying to bring your pups to the summer rendezvous point, and one of their pack's wolves will run up to you and you'll be teleported outside their territory, usually a considerable distance toward the direction ''opposite'' the one you're trying to go. As of 2.7, stranger wolves now run up and "greet" you at their territory border should you cross it. This merely results in your wolf taking a few steps back and being warned to return to your pups before any stranger wolves get at them.
* NewGamePlus: Experience points allow you to unlock special abilities and things such as the ability to name your pups, how efficiently you mark your territory, a secret 4th den, and a "white" puppy (who, as of 2.7, is no longer pure white but instead just a noticeably lighter colour than its siblings). In 2.7, experience points are connected to individual wolves, not to save files, which means you can play through the single player campaign again and again with the same wolf, gaining more EXP for it each time you do. Rack up enough EXP for that wolf over time and you'll eventually unlock everything.

* SuperPersistentPredator: The golden eagle up to 2.5. No matter how many times you chase it away, it ''will'' come back. It's less frequent in 2.7.

* UpdatedRerelease: 2.7 was this to 2.5, with updated graphics, a new map, an achievement/account system, tons of bugfixes, and some other updated features.

** You can also give your wolf mange, a disease which causes bald spots. Though, the disease will not progress.

** They did add the small detail of the female gradually growing a pregnancy bump during South Creek, although WordOfGod is that the pregnancy will not hinder hunting or cause any gameplay difference or effect, and she will not need any "[[WackyCravings pickles or ice cream"]].

** Real female wolves spend most of their time in a den when pregnant, and also for the next few weeks after giving birth. The father brings her food during this time. After that, the she-wolf has to return to nurse the pups periodically until they are weaned. There is no official WordOfGod on whether any of this will be acknowledged or factor in game or not, just that it's something they're aware of.

* SceneryPorn: This version gives the entire game a much needed graphics upgrade. It looks like roaming in a photorealistic wilderness, with beautiful trees (actual accurate species, each even with varied models!), rivers, mountains, rocks, lush grass, and your beautiful wolf. The other animals also have updated models. Watching elk running as a herd is just awesome! The map also is larger now.

* InstakillMook: Not to the player, but when the pups are released, eagles will be able to swoop down and take a pup. While the pup is still alive, this still acts as a one-hit kill as the pup is not retrievable. The challenge is to track the eagle and get close enough to drive it off before it can successfully do this. The player will be able to effect the eagle spawning rate by den location choice, as eagles favor more open areas.