This isn't what Darwin meant...

[Lord of Harmony]

I, like all the other people who will read this, have been playing Civ BE since the moment it came out. My main problem with it is this; all the Aliens are the same. Six types, scattered across a multitude of planets. Wolves, raptors, drones, manticores, Kraken, and sea dragons.That's six specific species of aliens, exactly the same, found across world after world; convergent evolution can't explain this away!. While I want more than twice that much, another thing stands out at me;their are no different colors. I want blue raptor bugs on fungal and orange-yellow drones on arid! It feels like all the colors were designed with the lush biome in mind, and I really don't appreciate it. Thoughts? (As a side note, I really do appreciate the effort put into the Civilopedia entries;it really adds that much more depth)

 

[m15a]

I think that those species are only found on one world, which is whatever world you happen to be playing at the time. Just like the leaders are only present on the world you're playing even though across games, they are found on every planet.

 

[Ryika]

Animals don't necessarily share colors with their surroundings, especially many types of poisonous herbivores are known for having evolved very easy to spot warning colors as a defense mechanism, because carnivores either instinctively or through bad experience know that they don't taste well and will leave them alone.

Haven't read the Civilopedia, but due to the fact that the aliens don't try to hunt humans without being provoked, I'd assume that they're not hunters, so there's not really a need to use camouflage, which would be a reason why they didn't evolve colors for defensive purposes, which leaves a mixture of "colored by what they eat" and "not being grilled by the sun" an an explanation, so dark green sort of fits.

But then again, all this is sort of irrelevant when the simpler explanation is that they just didn't care, because its a game with many facets, which in return forces them to not get into too much detail if they want a reasonable efficiency-ratio.

 

[KrikkitTwo]

Or for alternate head canon, those aliens/ecosystems were placed on multiple planets by the progenitors

 

[m15a]

Also, it's a game. It tries to look like a real world, but it also has to be understandable mechanically by the player. Having raptors one game and electric flogorms the next makes the game harder to play. People already have trouble deciphering the graphics as is.

 

[CaptainPatch]

I think that those species are only found on one world, which is whatever world you happen to be playing at the time. Just like the leaders are only present on the world you're playing even though across games, they are found on every planet.

This. The OP's concern would only be valid if after taming this planet, the Colonists send an expedition of their own to another planet -- and found the exact same alien species there.

 

[Ryika]

Well, no. The OPs concern would still valid if we supposed that the aliens get some benefit from "not being seen" and that that benefit outweighs the drawbacks that this evolution might have. It doesn't really make sense to have green aliens evolve on a brown planet when they were more efficient at surviving when they were brown and able to blend with their surroundings. Because in that case, natural selection would just paint them brown over time.

But again, that's if we suppose that...
- the benefits outweigh the drawbacks (there doesn't seem to be anything that wants to eat their species, so don't see a direct benefit)
- they don't use the green color to be noticeable and shoo away other species that way
- they actually have individual dna, which might not even be the case given that aliens have a global aggro level and thus probably some kind of "hive mind" that links them.

 

[Halam]

I think that those species are only found on one world, which is whatever world you happen to be playing at the time. Just like the leaders are only present on the world you're playing even though across games, they are found on every planet.

That was exacly what I was going to say. The insect-like creatures are a relative representation of life inside the planet you are setting up a colony (which it is really strange to call them aliens because humans are the aliens there). I am pretty sure that mods will appear to widen the variety of life forms, or maybe even appar as dlc's or expansion packs.

 

[Gayle]

Okay, OP. When Firaxis adds Thin Men, Chryssalids, and Seekers I want you to remember that you asked for this.

 

[Halam]

Okay, OP. When Firaxis adds Thin Men, Chryssalids, and Seekers I want you to remember that you asked for this.

Now that you mention it, I wonder if they will dare to create an alien civilization.