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Spore Creature Creator: Can I have my computer back now please.

Spore is going to be huge. How do I know? Well for one thing I know because my computer game phobic wife actually went into a game shop and bought the creature creator. For another I know that I haven't been let near my gaming computer since she installed it.

I would like to give you my own first impressions of the creator but I can't. I haven't got near the game while my wife and two daughters create an endless succession of cute creatures. What I can say is that the user interface is a stunning triumph. My wife is someone who normally refuses to play any computer game without me at her side to tell her what buttons to press buut within 1 minute of sitting in front of spore she was already creating her first creature.

I really think this game may hit that niche that made the Sims such a phenomenon. I have one fear though. From what I understand the full game will throw your beloved creations into a survival of the fittest fight for existence. Judging from the specifations on many of the body parts combat seems to feature strongly. I suspect that there are a lot of folk out there who just want to make cute cuddly creatures and these folks may be severely dissapointed if they have to go out and fight with them.

Comments

Anonymous said…
oh oh oh...spore creature google, go...go...lol

sorry, I do have to check this out though...also, how have you been, I haven't been around much at all due to that nasty thing they call RL...but I hope all is well with you and yours! take care!
Anonymous said…
Am getting that sinking feeling that SPORE will be far too casual than it had started out to be when first planned.

I hope I'm wrong but it's taken so long in development...
mbp said…
Hi Sean Hi DM,

I won't blame them for making it casual DM, that does seem to be where the money is in gaming nowadays. In fact I think a new SIMs like game - casual on the surface but with huge depth underneath could be just what PC gaming needs right now to save it from extinction. I know that SPORE will inevitably be released on consoles but there are many many folks out there who would never dream of buying a gaming console but who just might be wooed into gaming by Spore's cute creatures.
Loredena said…
It's intended to have depth for those who want that, while permitting more surface (or specialized) play for those who prefer that, based on what I'm reading. You can take a single game from amoeba to space (god game, city builder, strategy, 4x etc) or you can sandbox in your preferred area. Apparently while combat is likely to be the easiest method, you can also use culture or religion in your city builder/civ stages.
mbp said…
Hi Loredana. Thanks for pointing that out. Even though I never really got into God Games I find myself hoping that Spore does turn out to be a smash hit both for the boldness of the concept and the excellence of execution.

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