By Jack O’Dwyer
Staff Writer
Lions: one of the most well-known big cats on planet Earth. We know so much about these fearsome predators, and yet so little about the inner machinations of their instinct-driven minds. How do lions govern the land underneath their paws? Do they treat the others of their kind with an unspoken chivalrous code or vicious brutality? What manners do they instill in their children—if any?
The answer to these questions rest in your paws—er… hands—with this browser-based game. Released in its first alpha stages on Aug 17, 2012, “Lioden” is the first of its kind to put an innovative twist on the classic simulation style game. Now you can leap right into the savannah and have a shot at piloting your very own lion! Grow your pride, raise your cubs, and rule your kingdom the way you see fit.
“Lioden” is as simple to play as you want it to be with a variety of activities and recurring monthly events to take part in. You can choose to stroll along on an exploration of the world around you, interacting with the numerous random encounters that have a chance to spawn at any given click of your mouse until your paws give out. Those with a competitive edge will find their claws battling for supremacy against other players’ kings or fighting their way to the top of the leaderboards. Collectors have the opportunity to find, claim, and breed numerous, uniquely patterned lionesses in search of the rarest and most beautiful markings. Meanwhile, storytellers, like me, will be typing away in each lion’s individual biography, detailing the adventures of every individual that enters our prides. Not to mention the custom CSS and HTML compatibility each player’s den page can make use of.
I joined “Lioden” in April of 2013 and have been playing on and off ever since—that’s essentially four years. Hopefully, that gives an appropriate indication of how addicting this game can be.
It’s a refreshing departure from previous virtual pet sites like Flight Rising and Neopets, giving the genre a much more mature, fulfilling, and entertaining vibe. This game has managed to recapture my attention continually, no matter how long of a break I take from it. I find myself longing to check on my pride far more strongly then to feed the technicolor tigers I left back in 2004—the latter of which hasn’t happened since the year I quit.
Creating an account on “Lioden” is free through Lioden.com. No subscription is needed, though the game does have its own currency that can be bought with real money—and with that, items that must be bought exclusively with that currency. Each player is allowed a maximum of two accounts; anything more than this is considered cheating.
If you happen to give it a try, send me a message at ID#8877 and/or ID#12360. Don’t be afraid to walk on the wild side with “Lioden”!
