Cambrian Dawn – Official Basic Guide

The official, developer written documentation for the game.

Guide to Basics

All credit goes to Daye Star Productions!

Introduction

Welcome to the Cambrian Period.

This game takes you to between 538.8 – 485.4 million years ago, during the earliest rock layer of earth’s history.

The Cambrian is marked by hundreds of species, from small creatures no bigger than a fingernail to colossal, five foot long predators.

In Cambrian Dawn, you will get to explore this world as one of the many species that call it home…

How to Play

Controls

• W,A,S,D keys to move around.
• Hold SHIFT key to sprint.
• Press SPACE on certain creatures to dash forward.
• Press Left Click or Right Click on the Mouse to use abilities (for some creatures).
• Press V to change camera perspectives.
• Press H to hide the User Interface.
• Press and hold I to display basic creature information.
• Press E to interact or eat.
• Press Escape to access the exit menu/invite friends to a multiplayer server.

Gameplay

• Explore the world by selecting a species from the species selection screen. Once chosen you will be put in control of the animal selected. You must manage hunger, health, stamina, and blood supply.
• Hunger can be refilled by eating your animal’s desired food sources.
• Health can be restored over time, but goes down upon taking damage from enemies.
• Stamina goes down when sprinting and goes back up on its own over time.
• Blood goes down when you are given bleed damage, and heals over time.

To keep yourself alive and to reach adulthood, find food and avoid predators. If you die, you must start over with a new character. Some animals take longer to grow than others, so choose a species based on your personal preferences.

Species: Tiny Playables

Parvibellus

Parvibellus is a small arthropod probably related in some ways to Dinocaridida. In the game, it takes the role of a nimble scavenger/parasite. You lack a bite attack, but you can latch onto huge animals (Omnidens amplus and rex) and leech their health for food.

You are very fast but lack any and all forms of weaponry, meaning you’ll need to stay hidden and escape quickly when danger arises.