--- key: mechanic/social-cooperation--t200 type: mechanic id: social-cooperation--t200 lang: en title: Caring for pets and dependent characters summary: >- Care tracks a dependent character's needs and turns observing its signals into choosing suitable actions. updatedAt: '2026-10-22' status: active url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/social-cooperation--t200/' jsonUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/social-cooperation--t200.json markdownUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/social-cooperation--t200.md aliases: - Caring for pets and characters tags: - Social relationships and shared play - Mechanics and variants sourceIds: - source-3817d420df0baa92 - source-d320a7f0575d36f7 sources: - id: source-3817d420df0baa92 title: 'Robert Nystrom: State' url: >- https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown verifiedAt: null - id: source-d320a7f0575d36f7 title: Final Fantasy XIV url: >- https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/playguide/contentsguide/island_sanctuary/ verifiedAt: null relations: - type: uses direction: outgoing label: Sources in the selection key: resource/state-pattern title: 'State: Game Programming Patterns' url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern' jsonUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.json' markdownUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.md' placements: - catalogId: social-cooperation id: t200 title: Social relationships and shared play url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/social-cooperation/#t200' categoryIds: - mechanics supersededBy: [] attributes: preview: updatedAt: '2026-10-22' title: Caring for pets and characters description: >- Care tracks a dependent character's needs and turns observing its signals into choosing suitable actions. image: src: images/mechanics/rpg-ffxiv-island-11.webp width: 960 height: 540 game: Final Fantasy XIV sourceUrl: >- https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/playguide/contentsguide/island_sanctuary/ originalUrl: 'https://lds-img.finalfantasyxiv.com/h/U/W6N7f-C18mVwg5pEXRgBd3--zc.jpg' credit: Square Enix; official guide screenshot rights: >- Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Official game guide or publisher-distributed screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0. caption: Tending an animal on the island alt: Tending an animal on the island markers: - x: 59 'y': 49 label: The animal remains part of the farm and needs care tips: - Connect a pet’s condition to a specific care action. examples: - title: Final Fantasy XIV url: >- https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/playguide/contentsguide/island_sanctuary/ endsAt: null provenance: >- Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant. license: CC-BY-4.0 codeLicense: MIT attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors catalogKey: catalog/social-cooperation --- # Caring for pets and dependent characters id: social-cooperation--t200 type: mechanic key: mechanic/social-cooperation--t200 lang: en status: active url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/social-cooperation--t200/ Care tracks a dependent character's needs and turns observing its signals into choosing suitable actions. ## At a glance ![Tending an animal on the island](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/rpg-ffxiv-island-11.webp) [Final Fantasy XIV](https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/playguide/contentsguide/island_sanctuary/) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Official game guide or publisher-distributed screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0. 1. The animal remains part of the farm and needs care - Connect a pet’s condition to a specific care action. - [Final Fantasy XIV](https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/playguide/contentsguide/island_sanctuary/) ## How it works Care tracks a dependent character's needs and turns observing its signals into choosing suitable actions. ## Variants ### Mechanic variants - Signals distinguish hunger, fatigue and boredom. - Routines connect care to a stable schedule. - Preferences change the appropriate form of care. - Growing independence reduces mandatory supervision. ## Design example A tired pet refuses to play, so a new toy cannot substitute for rest. Prototype check: Test understandable refusal reasons and ending a session without unexpectedly penalizing the dependent character. ## Context and limits Social mechanics connect participants’ different capabilities through care, trust, coordination and conflicting commitments. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map. ## Connected materials - Sources in the selection: [State: Game Programming Patterns](https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern) (key: resource/state-pattern) ## Sources and provenance Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant. - [Robert Nystrom: State](https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown) (id: source-3817d420df0baa92) - [Final Fantasy XIV](https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodestone/playguide/contentsguide/island_sanctuary/) (id: source-d320a7f0575d36f7) CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors