Seed (2006 video game)

Seed was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) created by the Danish developer Runestone Game Development. Unlike most games in the genre, it deliberately excluded combat, instead centering on political maneuvering and player interaction. Beta testing began on February 1, 2006, with an open beta starting April 25, 2006. The game launched publicly on May 2, 2006.

In the story, humanity colonized the Moon and Mars before building five 1-kilometer-long seed ships equipped with ram scoop propulsion to travel the universe. These ships carried DNA, sperm, and eggs in cryocoolers, which TAU computers would hatch upon arrival. The TAU computers also stored human knowledge, but references to war and violence were omitted to create idealist colonies. After years of searching, the first suitable planet was found near the star Beta Hydri, 24.4 light years away. However, the colony ended up on a planet that had not been terraformed, with no contact from Earth.

Players took on the role of colonists, engaging in politics and manual labor rather than combat. They competed for control of station sectors, which could be outfitted to offer services to others. Using tools, players could manufacture new technology and repair the station’s slowly degrading systems; if too many systems failed, machinery became unusable until fixed.

The seed ships used ram scoop propulsion and were 1 kilometer long, carrying all necessary terraforming equipment. The TAU was the colony’s central AI. The Ring served as the game’s guild or clan system.

On September 28, 2006, Runestone filed for bankruptcy in the court of Aarhus, Denmark. A public statement attributed the closure to a lack of funds after failing to secure partnership deals with publishers and MMO companies. The game was officially shut down.