mellow pewter
So many people love pets, want pets, maybe cannot have pets.
Illuvials have so much character, they should feel more like a real being and players should be able to bond with that one specific instance of an Illuvial, not just the concept/character of that Illuvial line (and by that I mean players - not rangers - become emotionally attached to, not a mechanism that provides an ingame bonus).
There are millions of Atlas(es?), but this one is MINE. It's name is Goofy and it's a bit clumsy.
What does it eat?
Plants?
Morphopods?
Minerals?
Other Illuvials (maybe a Jotun eats a Slappin per day?)
Can I breed Illuvials?
I want to train it.
I want it to be happy.
Does it need a stable?
Can I ride on my Titanor?
Land holders could farm food. Or provide stables. Maybe research cooking recipes to provide special food?
Animal care could burn a lot of resources, but you could be rewarded with XP, better stats, other enhancements, baby Illuvials, evolution stages, mutations...
Maybe the wild forms with random good stats are MUCH rarer than the ones that have been taken care of.
I think the micropayment issues could blend in more seamlessly with the pet theme.
They eat tons of stuff. And if they get ill or beaten up in the arena, you need a veterinary.
There was a hype like 20 or 25 years ago around Tamagotchis. Digital pets that you would have to take care of and if you did not, they would die. You could feed them, play with them, watch them grow and evolve. They were little devices back then, but maybe nowadays they are an Illuviual living on your Smartphone?
void bone
honest spire