Wishlist for Marine Aquarium 3 and Future

[Surferminn]

Tiny - Cool eel article. Bunch of science fiction aliens, monsters, ships, etc., have been modeled after sea life and their movements because they seem "alien" to us and/or really cool. You have probably noticed some sci fi vessels that fly through outer space that mirror the fluidity and agility of the manta ray. Or in Star Wars, when Solo flew his ship into the mouth/body of an alien creature asleep -- kinda resembled an eel hiding in a rock when it woke up and reared it's ugly head and neck out of the asteroid they were hiding in. But very cool article providing proof that such things exist and not just someone's imagination. But imo, LOTS of things exist whether or not science has caught up to them yet, to document their existence. It's a big world out there, proof or no proof. Good thing we are able to exist without proof. (So what's the proof for love -- for which people believe exist and make commitments to marriages for the duration of their lives based upon what proof?) Anyway, again, very cool documented eel article.

[Jim Sachs]

Oh, yeah - I had forgotton about Jav's avatar. I've been looking at it so long I just assumed that's what he looks like

How big are those, again?

[Jav400]

The Zebra is one of the smaller Moray's, usually no more than 2-3 feet in captivity. In the wild they get more along the size of 4-5 feet long. They are fairly popular in aquariums as they make good tank dwellers and usually eat within a week or so of being placed in captivity. You should be able to find one in most any good local aquarium store for HD shots. Most good stores won't sell one less than 12" in length, but they grow and thrive well in home aquariums.

Some info here: Zebra Moray

[Jim Sachs]

A 12" one might be borderline-possible.

[Jav400]

I understand, and appreciate any effort you choose to apply towards one, and if you can't I understand that as well. Keep in mind that you will very rarely see any eel stretched out to its full length. They generally have poor eyesight, and feed more by smell than anything else. They do not like bright lights, and need a cave, pvc tube, overhang; something in which to curl-up and peer out at you most of the time. Of course you already have one of those in 3.0

Generally you might see one come out occasionally when the tank lights are on during the day, mostly you see him poke his head out, or would be more apt to see him swimming around when the lights are dimmed or off at night. Although when they get comfortable with the tank and their surroundings, they do come out slightly more in the light, but its usually more to move somewhere else to hide or be out for a few minutes and then go back into their cave/home.

They are not something that you would see out swimming around continually all the time like normal fish are.

The one I had got up to about 2.5 feet long, but you would never have guessed it unless you saw him out to feed. Normally the girth gives the size away more than actually seeing the full length of the specimen.

[Jav400]

Here you go Jim:

I fed mine like in this video, although it is NOT recommended to do this. But, at least zebra's don't have teeth, so if you get grabbed ( like I did once, it felt like I had slammed my finger in a car door. ) you at least won't automatically lose your fingers.
Zebra feeding 1

Zebra Feeding 2

For the most part what you will see of any eel is more like this, most of the body is wrapped around in the back and hidden while they peer out into other areas, and maybe you might see one come out fully and swim across the tank a few times and then go back to their home.

Zebra movie 3

[johnblommers]

Originally posted by Tiny Turtle:

Blommers,
Good opinions but not really proof. What's the difference between a cult and a religion again? Size?  

Perhaps an example will suffice. A humorous one as I do want to drop the topic. Macintosh is a religion and Windows is a cult

[Tiny Turtle]

No you're right. Let's just drop it.

[johnblommers]

Originally posted by Jim Sachs:

A 12" one might be borderline-possible.  

So how big is this virtual aquarium that it might hold a one foot eel with room to spare?

[Jav400]

Jim said 3.0 equals about 24" deep, but I didn't ask him about what the length would equate too. I would guess maybe 6 - 8 feet. Most of the problem with eels is peoples preconcieved notions. A 3 foot eel sounds huge in a 6 foot tank. But when you consider that they almost never stretch out the full length, that changes things. The biggest concern about them is the total water volume and some hiding space. Overall floor size is second on the list, although hex tanks and the like are not recommended. But thats not the concern in 3.0.

My concern for Jim no matter if its the Zebra I want or any other, is going to be the collision routines for it. As in the videos above they are generally curled in, around, or through existing coral. They like tight spaces to slither between, so that in my guess would be the most difficult part from Jim's perspective. Followed by mimicing the actual movement.

Or maybe vice-versa.

[drfish]

Unless you took the starfish route and never showed the transistion... Wait for the lights to dim and when they fade up the eel has moved... Or without lighting involved you could just have him disappear inside the coral and reappear somewhere else.

[johnblommers]

Originally posted by drfish:

Unless you took the starfish route and never showed the transistion... Wait for the lights to dim and when they fade up the eel has moved... Or without lighting involved you could just have him disappear inside the coral and reappear somewhere else.  

Dammit Doc you're going to give me nightmares here, cut it out!

[Enigma]

I had a pair of snowflake eels (in separate tanks). They would hide all day long, and just poke their nose out looking for food. At night (under the blue LED night lighting) they would get out and swim all over the place. They were fun to watch, but VERY creepy looking. As someone who has an extreme adversion to snakes, the eels just weren't for me.

[Jav400]

Doc I though about that as well. But the problem with that is when it first goes down and he comes out, then you have to wait until it goes down again for him to go back in somewhere.

What do you do with him in the meantime?

Otherwise I don't know how hard it is for Jim to destroy objects on the fly. Thats one reason why fish were allowed to go off the edge of the screen in the old version, I think; other than the edge of the tank thing. Killing a 3D object in the middle of the screen as it disappears into the cave may or may not be doable. Thats out of my league and in Jim's ballpark of whats possible.


Ah I got faith. If Jim can get a fully 3D octopus then this should be done easy.

[debavocet]

I have some comments on the moray eel topic, since I began it. Actually, what I had in mind was a juvenile eel, labelled as such. A few species, like the mentioned zebra, are quite striking.
In my experience, morays spend the day in their home niches, just looking out and peeking around. They aren't tangs and don't need to swim around the tank. Would it be practical - or a lot simpler - if Jim just made the head and fore-part of a moray emerging from its niche? It seems easier than some of the complicated plans I've seen so far if we don't need to see the whole eel.

[Jim Sachs]

That's the plan.

[Stew2000]

Just for fun you should try a Finding Nemo addon pack

[Jim Sachs]

That might be a project for Prolific, but not me. First, you'd need permission from Disney. Prolific has done a lot of work with them (Roger Rabbit, Disney Animation Studio, etc.). I couldn't even get Disney to sign off on my "20,000 Leagues" project, a game which would probably have become the most popular of all time.

Secondly, you'd have to be willing to do something silly, which I am not. I strive for absolute realism and authenticity. More "National Geographic" than "Sesame Street". This philosophy has served me well in the past, and sales dropped dramatically when I let Encore design a box with a hand-drawn fish on the cover. Though I might take some minor liberties regarding which fish can be safely mixed with other fish or invertabrates, the public will always be able to count on SereneScreen for an accurate representation of real species.

[Stew2000]

Another thought then...
What about selling it on High Definition Blu-Ray or HD-DVD?
Even though the PS3 has an aquarium (http://uk.playstation.com/games-medi...Vita%E2%84%A2/).
I think yours would look alot better.

[Jim Sachs]

We've had a DVD version of the Aquarium on the market for several years, but it has not sold well. People enjoy the "live" feeling of the computer version instead of a canned loop, and the randomness will be greatly increased as MA3 progresses.