Early in the development of Divining Rods the team had a strong interest in incorporating real life environmental themes into the overall message and feel of the game. Since fish and fishing were going a large aspect of the gameplay in Divining Rods, we thought this would be a great place to touch on these subjects. Brining attention to present issues today and in the past that have negatively affected our environments and the creatures that call them home.
All the fish in Divining Rods are based of real fish who are either extinct already or are greatly endangered in becoming so. One of the fish within our game is the Chinese Paddlefish, which in game we refer to as the Leafy Paddlefish. We chose the Chinese Paddlefish due it being on the endangered species list. Sadly however, we discovered during development that the Paddlefish had gone extinct. Although sad news, it reinforced in use that these issues are important and not to be taken lightly or dismissed.
A big theme Divining Rods dives into is the effects of overfishing. The main storyline of the game follows the past consequences of overfishing in a community and consists of a journey to try and right these wrongs. A fish in Divining Rods that represents this theme well is the Southern Atlantic Bluefin Tuna. In game we refer to them as the Prime Tuna due to the use of the prime colors used in its design. The Southern Atlantic Bluefin Tuna is on The International Union of Conservation of Natures “Red List”, which lists species of fish that are either endangered or critically endangered. The Bluefin Tuna has come so close to extinction due to decades of overfishing. Sadly, the Bluefin Tuna is still on the menus of some restaurants keeping them in demand, thus keeping them in danger.
The Divining Rods team hopes you enjoy our game while playing, but we also hope you can learn something from your experience. Hopefully becoming more aware of the present issues caused from overfishing.
In our game you have the chance to save many spices of fish, but you aren’t powerless in real life. If able we encourage you to help in any way you can. This like will take you to the Sea Shepherd donation page. The “Sea Shepherds sole mission is to protect and conserve the world’s oceans and marine wildlife.”
This has been Adam LeMahieu from Divining Rods, I hope you enjoy our game!