What is "hivemind"

n. 1 (context science fiction English) A collection of minds somehow linked, possibly as if by telepathy. 2 (context science fiction English) A single entity wherein a collection of minds somehow meet, possibly as if by telepathy. 3 (context sociology English) A group of people who give the false impression of being a hivemind (1), e.g. by mindlessly following orders.

HiveMind is an upcoming real life simulation being designed by Will Wright's company of the same name. Wright calls it "personal gaming", in which the player's interests affect the content of the game, saying, "Rather than craft a game like FarmVille for players to learn and play, we learn about you and your routines and incorporate that into a form of game play." The game will harvest data about the players in order to create content. It would not initiate this process, but would be permitted to do so by players. It has been described as "an immersive game that uses real-world information about a user to develop a unique in-game experience tailored to each player."

The release date of the game has not been announced, nor have the platforms on which it will be available, although it will probably be incorporated into mobile devices.

It was announced in early June 2012 that the entire project was on hold due to ongoing legal disputes between company executives. Said Wright, "Hivemind is still a company. But it has no money. No nothing. It's just sitting there because of the litigation. It is frozen. It's so complex and there's quite a bit of disappointment... We have to find out where this is going in the near term." On October 26, Wright and HiveMind co-founder Jawad Ansari stated they had settled their disagreements regarding the company. Wright said, "We are pleased to have reached a friendly and respectful resolution. Jawad’s entrepreneurial energy, passion for the expansion of the online game industry and tenacious execution brought the necessary elements together to build Hive Mind to where the operating team can take the Company forward."