Spore - Who is getting it? [Archive]

TB666

09-04-2008, 11:10

Got it yesterday.
I think it's a good game so far.
You basically create everything related to your creature in this game which for people that like to customize things like me, is awesome.

some gifs of what I have created so far.

My tank, Panzer Awesome

https://img388.imageshack.us/img388/3427/sporegif20080903221259nd8.gif

My city hall

https://img98.imageshack.us/img98/9646/sporegif20080903220613me6.gif

My actual creature

https://img362.imageshack.us/img362/180/sporegif20080903153911bn3.gif

A house being designed

https://img443.imageshack.us/img443/6571/sporegif20080903224749rn5.gif
^Now this house is actually oversized. You just need one of those blocks and put a door on it and you will have a house. No need to build a huge monster like that.

And my battleship, the TBmarck

https://img382.imageshack.us/img382/6809/sporegif20080903230447iq9.gif

Kekvit Irae

09-04-2008, 11:33

I've got it on preorder.

CountArach

09-04-2008, 11:55

I didn't even realise it was out today :no:

But now that I know, I will be getting it :yes:

naut

09-04-2008, 12:06

It's out? It is too. Buying asap.

Ja'chyra

09-04-2008, 12:12

It's out tomorrow here.

naut

09-04-2008, 12:22

Just checked, supposedly been out since monday here. :laugh4:

Crandaeolon

09-04-2008, 15:00

Downloading now, even though I have some reservations - Spore is probably a polished product and a fine technological achievement, but I'm guessing it's a little shallow gameplay-wise. We'll see.

It will be very interesting to observe the ripple effects of Spore, however. It sounds like a great entry-level game with interesting social networking features, likely to pull lots of new people into the gaming hobby. I'm also taking bets on just how soon the radical religious groups and figures will declare Spore the epitome of unholy for spreading the theory of evolution. And penis monsters. ~;)

Ja'chyra

09-04-2008, 15:09

Don't mention penis monsters or my other half will want to play:whip::oops: :laugh4:

So any high or low points from the lucky ones who have it already?

lars573

09-04-2008, 16:19

Doesn't look very interesting. Plus you need a net connection to play. Easy deal breaker.

JR-

09-04-2008, 16:59

its on order, tho i loath and despise the copy protection used.

Martok

09-04-2008, 17:35

its on order, tho i loath and despise the copy protection used.
I'll never get it precisely because of SecuROM.

Mailman653

09-04-2008, 18:27

Seems like a fun little game that appeals to young and older gamers alike, from the two reviews I read the game hovers around an 8 out of 10 or 4 and a half out of five. The game is not quite my cup of tea but admittedly it does look pretty well thought out and original.

In regards to the penis monsters, there is a picture of one on here in another thread.:laugh4:

Motep

09-05-2008, 01:56

Well, I always wanted to control the entire existance of a pathetic species...:sweatdrop:

Ill buy sooner or later

woad&fangs

09-05-2008, 03:46

I'll probably pick it up in the next month or two. I don't have the time right now to give it the love and attention it deserves.

Xiahou

09-05-2008, 07:11

I have to confess a distinct lack of interest in Spore. The online/DRM issue definitely plays a role, but it's more than that. The game just looks shallow from what I've seen... :shrug:

naut

09-05-2008, 10:05

Any opinions by those who've bought it?

CountArach

09-05-2008, 10:51

Any opinions by those who've bought it?
I bought it and I will sum it up with:

Wow...

The cellular stage is well done, if a little strange and cartoony. I haven't played much beyond that but from the moment I became an early land carnivore and slaughtered my first enemy, I knew this would be fun.

naut

09-05-2008, 11:14

I bought it and I will sum it up with:

Wow...

The cellular stage is well done, if a little strange and cartoony. I haven't played much beyond that but from the moment I became an early land carnivore and slaughtered my first enemy, I knew this would be fun.
How much did it cost? I saw it for $74 at Big W, might go there on Sunday.

CountArach

09-05-2008, 11:27

How much did it cost? I saw it for $74 at Big W, might go there on Sunday.
That's a great price. I could only find it for $99.95

The_Doctor

09-05-2008, 15:15

I am installing right now.

Husar

09-05-2008, 15:51

That's a great price. I could only find it for $99.95

My sincere condolences. :shame:

ELITEofWARMANGINGERYBREADMEN88

09-05-2008, 16:59

I will..... When I get some money :laugh4::yes:

Martok

09-05-2008, 18:15

My impression so far is that it's certainly a good game, but not a true classic. IGN rated Spore at 8.8, Gamespy rated it 4 1/2 stars along with their Editor's Choice award, but then Gamespot only rates it an 8.0.

Xiahou: I concur it does appear to be a bit shallow as well. Still, I admit I would probably buy it were it not for the game's copy protection.

KarlXII

09-05-2008, 23:14

Any like...gameplay demo?

CountArach

09-06-2008, 02:59

Any like...gameplay demo?
Nope.

My first frustration with the game - some concepts aren't explained very well. Maybe I'm just an idiot.

Lemur

09-06-2008, 03:18

Spore's out? Man, that happened without any warning. I didn't see any ads or anything. Well, it's got the same phone-home SecuROM as BioShock, so no Spore for the Lemur. Sorry. Product activation on single-player games is where I draw the line.

KarlXII

09-06-2008, 03:34

I don't get it. What's wrong with SecuROM?

naut

09-06-2008, 04:21

I don't get it. What's wrong with SecuROM?
It's basically an over glorified virus.

SecuROM can cause some CD burners to fail to work.
It shuts off your firewall without notification.
It can wipe the previous saved system restores.
It can interfere with your registry and/or updates, specifically for drivers.
Updating video cards can become an issue.
Buying games online (from STEAM or GamersGate, etc) can be an issue.
SecuROM can make your PC run harder, and overheat.

I LOVE SECUROM! :2thumbsup:

pevergreen

09-06-2008, 05:27

Played about 20 hours so far.

Its not easy to pick it all up. The earlier stages are definately more fun, but space...man that is just crazy.

Feel pity for me, i payed $120. Special Edition though.

Depending on how you feel, you should probably wait for the price to drop down a bit.

The only online stuff I've noticed is that if you choose to link your account with that game, the stuff you make transfers between computers. Im on 64 kb/ps and its playing fine.

Each of the 5 stages is like an entirely new game, its quite good.

Mikeus Caesar

09-06-2008, 05:42

I'll probably get it when i have the money to buy it...after i buy a new PSU and fix my computer...after i raise the money to buy aforementioned PSU...which will happen sometime in between next year and before the Sun dies...

:help:

rajpoot

09-06-2008, 06:44

What's extra in the Special Edition?

Navaros

09-06-2008, 08:44

I've been reading a lot of end-user impressions of Spore and the consensus seems to be that it's an incredibly simplistic, repetitive, bare-boned game that can be blown through in a few hours easily. And also one that is marginally entertaining for a few hours, and that's about it. Many end users seem to have said it is suitable for ages 10 and under only.

IMO the 3 install limit is a total scam and should be - and possibly already is (needs to be court challenged) - illegal. That alone is a deal-breaker IMO.

The professional reviews giving it ridiculously high acclaim are IMO bought and paid for just like all other alleged AAA titles which always receive ridiculously high scores no matter how crap of a game they actually are. :idea2: It infuriates me to see the 'professionals' in the game industry continue to perpetuate this shady trend and thus mislead innocent consumers.

The_Doctor

09-06-2008, 13:20

CountArach

09-06-2008, 13:23

The_Doctor

09-06-2008, 13:51

What is urging me on is wanting to see space...

Same here.

naut

09-06-2008, 14:23

What's extra in the Special Edition?
The Special Edition contains a Making of Spore DVD, How to Make a Better Being DVD, The Art of Spore mini-book, a poster and a 100-page "Galactic" handbook.

Wow, the views here make me think I won't get it then. Three install limit!? Holy crap that's a deal breaker, plus SecuROM, and phone-home system. Nu-uh, not my money they'll be getting.

Veho Nex

09-06-2008, 17:04

I agree with your assessment of those three. What is urging me on is wanting to see space...

It seems like they put more time into the space stage as it is like its own unique space RPG. I've been playing the space age for a couple hours and I still can't get around at how unique everything is...

But in one of the gameplay videos i saw, you could be a fish and your guy was capable of biting an animal and then dragging it.

Mailman653

09-06-2008, 19:03

Too bad you can't rent PC games:idea2:

Motep

09-06-2008, 23:40

Too bad you can't rent PC games:idea2:
right!

Zenicetus

09-06-2008, 23:42

I have just started the Civ stage, and I agree with everything Navaros' post. The Cell stage is fun, but very short, The Creature stage is very repetitive, The Tribal Stage is the most shallow RTS every created. Right now I don't have the will to continue playing the game.:no:

That's the takeaway I got from the review in the New York Times (which is interesting because it's not your typical game review site... seems a bit more independent to me):

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/05/arts/television/05spor.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=technology&pagewanted=all

The writer basically said that a ton of effort was put into the creature stage, which is fun. But past that stage it's not very well-developed. And of course we can't help but compare those later stages with the best strategy games, where it's bound to fall short. I'll play GalCivII if I want a space conquest game, unless something else is actually better at it. So far, other than the "cute" factor, and the unique aliens, I'm not hearing big enthusiasm for the later game stages. A sandbox game can't be very successful if the beginning is fun, and the end-game isn't.

Something else I've wondered about... given the HUGE scope of the game, they haven't exactly left themselves much room for an expansion pack, or a Spore II. Would people buy this again as a Spore II product, if they just improved the end-game?

Anyway, I'm waiting for more user reviews before thinking about buying it (especially with the DRM issues).

Kekvit Irae

09-07-2008, 01:03

Too bad you can't rent PC games:idea2:

At one point in time, you could. This was during the age of MSDOS games. You could copy the entire game from the CD to your harddrive and then take it back to the video store and play it without ever needing to rent the CD again (I'm looking at you, Cannon Fodder and Lost Eden). Game companies wised up to this and stopped allowing people to rent out PC games.

Caius

09-07-2008, 03:40

What's extra in the Special Edition?
More price I'd say.

Not getting it, because I won't be able to get it thanks to the money... and it doesn't interests me.

The_Doctor

09-07-2008, 10:07

Something else I've wondered about... given the HUGE scope of the game, they haven't exactly left themselves much room for an expansion pack

The Sims 2 has 18 expansion packs/add-ons, imagine what they could do with Spore.:dizzy2:

A sandbox game can't be very successful if the beginning is fun, and the end-game isn't.

Its not a sand box game, its a very thin line of sand game.:no:

rajpoot

09-07-2008, 14:49

I had no idea about copy protection used in Spore, read about it here first, and then checked around.......now I'm too turned off to buy it, which is a pity as I really wanted to try this game.

Edit : My thanks to Rythmic and Caius for the info.

Mailman653

09-07-2008, 19:40

At one point in time, you could. This was during the age of MSDOS games. You could copy the entire game from the CD to your harddrive and then take it back to the video store and play it without ever needing to rent the CD again (I'm looking at you, Cannon Fodder and Lost Eden). Game companies wised up to this and stopped allowing people to rent out PC games.

I loved Canon Fodder!:smg:

TevashSzat

09-07-2008, 20:57

Well, I got it when it came out and heres my impressions:

I really like the cell and creature stages mainly because the creature creator toll was awesome and the game just had alot of charm.

Tribal, civ, and space stage, though, are horribly horribly dissapointing given how high expectations were. I just got through tribal and civ as fast as possible since they're essentially oversimplified RTS games. The space stage is better, but IMO just a simplified space empire building game that does not compare to some other space games like Sins of a Solar Empire

I feel that the game's replayability is entirely in the various creators, which unfortunately mean that it probably won't have a terrible amount of replayability for me as compared to some other games from Will Wright like the Sims/Sims 2

Mikeus Caesar

09-08-2008, 23:35

My friend (who is actually a reviewer for a few sites) says that Spore aint half bad. He says that the cellular and space stages are excellent, the rest is disappointing. And since we have pretty much the same tastes in games, i'll most definitely get it.

I've also been doing some reading, seems idiot monsters from the planet 4chan are making quite a dint. There was a thread yesterday on /v/, with someone screaming 'god damnit 4chan, this is your doing'. I clicked on the picture and some guy's village was being attacked by a giant creature, shaped into the word 'lolcats'. My friend also told me that he ended up being attacked by a fleet of Emperor Penguins, once again courtesy of 4chan...

KarlXII

09-08-2008, 23:40

I've also been doing some reading, seems idiot monsters from the planet 4chan are making quite a dint. There was a thread yesterday on /v/, with someone screaming 'god damnit 4chan, this is your doing'. I clicked on the picture and some guy's village was being attacked by a giant creature, shaped into the word 'lolcats'. My friend also told me that he ended up being attacked by a fleet of Emperor Penguins, once again courtesy of 4chan...

Anon delivers.

drone

09-08-2008, 23:51

Let me know when the Dodo starts pwning civilizations.

pevergreen

09-09-2008, 11:56

I'd like to see exactley what 4chan could make in the Creature Creater.

Thermal

09-09-2008, 17:14

what is this about, is it based on anything, ive seen it advertised, seems like a 4 years olds dream, but not for me thanks...

Mouzafphaerre

09-10-2008, 00:15

.
No securomed defecation for me. :rtwno:
.

Crandaeolon

09-10-2008, 17:16

antispore.com Ding! Round one.

This entire game is propaganda aimed directly at our children to teach them evolution instead of creationism, or “intelligent design” if you go for stupid PC terms.

The object of the game is to evolve from a “spore” into demon-like intelligent space creatures that violently take over the galaxy.

Well, ok. This kind of phenomenon would be way more interesting if the game was good, or at least decent. Unfortunately, Spore isn't even a coherent game - just a collection of minigames that share similar content. I don't feel that the game merits writing a real review, but here's a quick rundown:

Cell Stage (2D "shoot-em-up")

+ "Charming"
+ Entertaining
+ Easy to play
+ Suitably short for its simplicity
- Too Simple

Creature Stage (3D action game)

+ Some Charm still left
+ Occasionally entertaining
- Repetitive
- Shallow

Tribal stage (RTS)

- Repetitive
- Shallow
- Charm is gone (zoomed-out view, outfit customization is laughable)
- Insufficient controls (no control groups?!)

Civilization stage (RTS)

- Repetitive
- Shallow
- Charm is gone (zoomed-out view)
- Insufficient controls (no control groups)
- Some balance problems

Space stage (Action 4X)

+ Some charm is back (you get to deal with funky aliens and play around with lesser lifeforms)
+ More depth than other stages
- Somewhat repetitive
- Insufficient information (it's a race against other Civs, but your situation is difficult to ascertain)
- AI uses different rules! (compounds with the insufficient information problem)
- Badly paced (it's slow, and you might spend a lot of time in a bad position without knowing it)
- Lack of automation
- Control scheme uses different conventions than Creature Stage

Also, one thing that somewhat bothered me is that there's no evolutionary connection between creature generations. A tiny slug can become a four-armed flying dinosaur in one generation, which feels a bit silly. There's also no real connection with form and function; for example, I made a little pink blob-thing with full scores in all combat abilities and no visible protuberances.

That said, yes, the editors are quite powerful and easy to use. The editors and systems for sharing content are the main draws of this software toy (not game IMO), but even those suffer from the detached perspective of the latter stages.

TevashSzat

09-10-2008, 20:00

This entire game is propaganda aimed directly at our children to teach them evolution instead of creationism, or “intelligent design” if you go for stupid PC terms.

The object of the game is to evolve from a “spore” into demon-like intelligent space creatures that violently take over the galaxy.

Wow.....that is just ridiculous. I mean who really actually thinks like that? (Even the fundamentalists) With that logic, the whole government is controlled by the evil left wing because schools teach evolution and that George Bush/ Dick Cheney is actually secretly controlled by Democrats because no responsible Republican can let evolution be taught

Mikeus Caesar

09-11-2008, 02:48

I think antispore.com is just a troll. And even if it isn't, they're dumb. As far as i can see, Spore is more of an endorsement for intelligent design.

EDIT: Or in the case of some creatures, un-intelligent design...

JR-

09-11-2008, 09:46

Game is good fun, thoroughly enjoying it, but i panned it with a one-star review on amazon.

There is a price to be paid for using Securom.

rajpoot

09-11-2008, 12:16

I could not resist it, so I went over to a freinds house, who had the game, and tried it out.
To me, it seemed like a flashy and colourful toy for a kid, that is very expensive, but remians, still, a kid's toy.
Anyway, it's something you can play on a rainy day when all your other games have dissapeared under mysterious circumstances.

Crandaeolon

09-11-2008, 16:09

I wonder if people saw these yet:

http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2008/09/07/will-wright-reacts-to-crtical-spore-reviews/#more-8789

When I talked to Wright, I had played deep into the Space Stage, which I was enjoying. But I had seen complaints from hardcore game reviewers and message board posters that all of the stages have less complex gameplay than many gamers had hoped. As wonderful as the content creation and sharing options are, the one consistent complaint I’ve seen is that the gameplay seems to have been “dumbed down” for the sake of appealing to a more casual audience. Was it?

“I’d say that’s quite accurate,” Wright told me. “We were very focused, if anything, on making a game for more casual players. “Spore” has more depth than, let’s say, “The Sims” did. But we looked at the Metacritic scores for “Sims 2″, which was around 90, and something like “Half-Life“, which was 97, and we decided — quite a while back — that we would rather have the Metacritic and sales of “Sims 2″ than the Metacritic and sales of “Half-Life.”

And one way of getting there is to present a narrower range of options than a hardcore player might be expecting?

“Yes,” he said. “Part of this, in some sense was: can we teach a “Sims” player to play an RTS [or Real Time Strategy game]? … I think the complexity we ended up with was toward that group.”

So, basically, Wright is admitting that the game is "dumbed down" to attain better sales.

And here's EA CEO on future plans for Spore:

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/53925

"We've got a clear, obvious and very compelling post-launch monetization opportunity," Ricitello explained during a conference call. "This is a game where basically, the parts are what make the sum of the product work."

"Monetization opportunity." Nice, eh? :laugh4:

doc_bean

09-11-2008, 16:48

So, basically, Wright is admitting that the game is "dumbed down" to attain better sales.

Honestly, that's just good marketing strategy (look at the Sims !). Wright can't be blamed for that. not every game has to go for the critical acclaim or the hearts of the so-called hardcore gamers :logic:

Crandaeolon

09-11-2008, 19:20

I'm not arguing that Wright doesn't know how to sell games, or even that games should appeal to the "hardcore" or critics. Hardcore players are, after all, a minority in a hobby that has only recently become mainstream and critics, well... let's just say they aren't worth much anymore.

The relevant bit here is that Spore is neither a good game nor a good "storytelling device" (which Wright envisioned it to be) in its current state. The charm and depth are superficial. Gamers are noticing it too, I'd wager that even the draconian DRM notwithstanding, public opinion of the game will steadily decline for a while. (Metacritic user score 5.5 out of 10 at the time of writing this.)

Abokasee

09-11-2008, 19:58

I've already got it, (many of you may of seen my creations, since it seemed to DL the creature alphabetically based on the creator, you can tell which ones are mine, mine are the Proper ones with names like: Cursed one and Ranixian Sand Traveler etc, and not: bob 2)

I have to say, its very good, but im slightly disappointed, for example theres no plant editor, I would of like to have a Carnivore and Ommivore mouth at the same time, and be able unlock parts for both, I'd perfer it, if I could assemble my own fleets from my own world using cash or the allies section for freebies.

Strangely though, I seemed more pissed off with the fact that my vehicles didnt fire the 2 auto-cannons I gave them, they just lopped some random chunk of earth 251 feet into the air.

More has come to mind, its too easy to win Tribal and Civ stage, and Space is just agtonizingly annoying, seriously don't declare war till you have at least most of the higher mid-range equipment and 4 allies.

Kekvit Irae

09-12-2008, 05:28

I am extremely disappointed in the game. Yes, I am having fun, and yes I am loving the game, but it just didn't live up to the hype for me. fl0w has more depth than the cell stage, tribal and civilization stages are just tacked-on RTS minigames, and the only enjoyment I get is from doing what I want, when I want, and to whom I want in the space stage.

Sadly, I wish I named my creatures Sisyphus, because that's what it feels like when I'm fighting the Grox. When I conquer one planet from their empire, two more pop up on the fringe. I popped my head in to a black hole and warped myself to the other side of the galaxy, and yep, the Grox are there too, thus making eliminating them an impossibility. I just don't have the time nor dedication to conquer the entire galaxy. Apparently the only enjoyment I have left with this game is trying to cut a swath through to the center of the galaxy to find out what is there, as well as searching for the Sol system (which is actually in the game).

doc_bean

09-12-2008, 15:30

The relevant bit here is that Spore is neither a good game nor a good "storytelling device" (which Wright envisioned it to be) in its current state. The charm and depth are superficial.

The same applies to The Sims. I don't think it was meant as a 'storytelling device', Soren (the guy who developped CivIV and then transferred to the Spore team) has said as much.

I figured out a long time ago that Spore just wasn't for me, and the comments I've read here and elsewhere confirm my views on what the game would turn out to be.

shlin28

09-14-2008, 12:27

I got it, and here's my opinions on the 5 stages:

Cell - great fun despite its simplicity.

Creature - I had imagined that it would feature wandering animals... instead of aninmals staying in their nests!

Tribe - Tried to act like an RTS but it is not, why can't they just stick to a RTS interface???

Civilisation - Short and simple, spam vehicles and bomb the others to oblivion. Still, it has a certain charm to it, unlike the Tribal phase.

Space - VERY VERY VERY fun! and I just started it :yes: (Hunting Pikachus right now :clown:)

Kekvit Irae

09-14-2008, 14:57

Well, I finally found Earth. It was only T-1 when I found it, so I used my Galactic Core reward, the Staff of Life, to instantly terraform it into a T-3 planet.
Then, being the sadistic, evil little bish that I am, I used a Planet Buster to destroy Earth and gain the Oh The Humanity! achievement. Oddly enough, it destroyed Luna as well.

Martok

09-14-2008, 22:30

Then, being the sadistic, evil little bish that I am, I used a Planet Buster to destroy Earth and gain the Oh The Humanity! achievement. Oddly enough, it destroyed Luna as well.
Out of curiosity, what exactly does this achieve?

In other words, what does the "Oh The Humanity" achievement actually mean/do?

Kekvit Irae

09-15-2008, 04:05

Out of curiosity, what exactly does this achieve?

In other words, what does the "Oh The Humanity" achievement actually mean/do?

Like all Spore achievements, it does nothing but give you a warm-fuzzy feeling inside.
The achievement description couldn't be simpler on how to get it:
Oh The Humanity!
Destroy Earth

It's one of the hidden achievements, so you wont be able to know about it until you do it, or until someone tells you about it.

EDIT:

http://www.robotparty.us/sporeachievements.jpg

Martok

09-15-2008, 04:25

Ah, okay. Looks like there's quite a few different achievements available.

I love the "42" achievement! A very cool shout-out to the late Douglas Adams. :2thumbsup:

Mikeus Caesar

09-27-2008, 14:40

So, i got it about 4 or 5 days ago. Not quite sure, as i lost track of time...

Contrary to what most of you are saying, i'm finding it great fun. I'd been playing it all day today, and had just spent the last 4 hours on my space campaign. I'd been working hard and was finally starting to beat the crap out of everyone after having saved up enough money for decent weapons and more health. I had even managed to buy the planet blowing-up weapon. I have a special solar system that i've set aside for testing out planet sculpting tools, and obviously, the big weapon. I was on my way there when suddenly! Oh snap! The sound is looping. Nothing is moving. Oh great, it crashed. As it always seems to do if you play it for too long. No worries, just load up from the last autosav-wait, what.

GOD DAMNIT WHY DOES THIS GAME NOT HAVE AN AUTOSAVE BUILT IN WHAT THE HELL WERE THEY THINKING?

http://xs431.xs.to/xs431/08396/1206285770290524.jpg

This is the third time this has happened to me. The game is so engrossing that you forget to save, and subsequently end up paying the price. Seriously, what kind of large-scale RTS game these days doesn't have an autosave function that goes off every 5 minutes?

Baah, just thinking about all that progress i've lost, it makes me feel a slight twinge of rage...i never got to blow up a planet...and i don't think i have the patience to go through all that again...

KarlXII

09-29-2008, 05:40

http://xs431.xs.to/xs431/08396/1206285770290524.jpg

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGE.

Won't get it.

Ja'chyra

10-07-2008, 09:04

Got it and played it on the day that it arrived and since then I haven't touched it.

I only played it up to the city stage but really can't work up the will power to play any more, it really is a disappointment for me.

Just goes to show what I've known for years, play a demo first or don't buy it.

TinCow

10-07-2008, 13:41

My wife got it a while ago and I picked it up and started playing recently. It is entertaining in its own way, but bizarrely my main complaint is that it doesn't seem to have much replayability. The gameplay at each level is very much cut down and, while enjoyable in its own way, doesn't seem to hold much prospect of being different on a subsequent playthrough. I think the main problem is simply that despite all the 'customization' of every aspect of the game, nothing changes. About the only place it makes a difference is in the cell and creature phases, but those are too short and shallow to sustain the game by themselves. Beyond the creature phase, the actual makeup of your creature doesn't have any impact on the game at all. The tribe phase simply decorates your creature with some clothing, and the civ phase just generates some buildings and vehicles whose appearance has zero impact on anything. Once you get to the space phase, none of your customizations have any meaning to the game whatsoever. Terraforming a planet is a repetitive chore which quickly becomes mind-numbingly dull when you start to engage in it on a large scale. Warfare is just a grind of clicking rather than any real strategy, trading is just slow and boring without much skill or tactics, and diplomacy is absurd because the other AI civilizations don't do anything unless you are at war with them.

The whole Sim series has always been known for its essentially unlimited replayability. I don't quite understand how this has happened, but somehow Spore seems to have lost this entirely. It seems like a glorified character creation simulator with only a tiny veneer of gameplay placed on top of it. How could this game have spent this long in development and ended up in this state?

Kekvit Irae

10-07-2008, 14:44

Beyond the creature phase, the actual makeup of your creature doesn't have any impact on the game at all.

Not true, actually. A tribe of creatures with maxed stats in combat skills in the prior stage will fight much better than one without any combat stats. A good way of testing this is to make a creature with Spit and then advance to the Tribal stage. You will then find that your creatures can attack at range without needing throwing spears.

TinCow

10-07-2008, 16:27

Not true, actually. A tribe of creatures with maxed stats in combat skills in the prior stage will fight much better than one without any combat stats. A good way of testing this is to make a creature with Spit and then advance to the Tribal stage. You will then find that your creatures can attack at range without needing throwing spears.

That's good to know.

However, I'm very disappointed with the 'customization' of buildings, vehicles, spacecraft, and planets. Buildings are 100% visual and it doesn't matter what you do with them. None of the parts mean anything, and this is silly to me. There should be advantages and disadvantages for using various parts and building structures in various ways, just like with the cell and creature builders. Since it is purely visual, construction largely becomes a chore after it's been done a couple times, especially given how much time it takes to create a nice looking building.

The same is only slightly less true of vehicles. While vehicle parts do have an impact on their performance, it is merely via the 'balance' formula. A tiny vehicle with one gun can have the exact same stats as a massive vehicle with 6 guns if the other parts are built properly. It doesn't make any difference if you choose a gun, cannon, or missile. This applies equally to land, sea, and air vehicles, as well as to their economic and religious counterparts.

Spacecraft are identical to the buildings and are not impacted in any way by anything you do in their construction process. Why couldn't the purchased upgrade process have been linked into the spacecraft construction process? For example, make upgrades take up a certain amount of room. You can add on that mega laser, but you'll have to ditch the freeze ray, making it more difficult for your military craft to do terraforming.

The same is true of terraforming itself. There are tons and tons of ways to change the visual appearance of the planets, from the flora and fauna you place on them to the style of buildings and even the custom colors and land features you can 'paint' them with. Yet none of this has any impact on the game at all. An empire with 10 100% identical planets performs exactly the same way as an empire with 10 completely different planets, as long as the T level, number of cities and number of buildings is the same. Why bother spending hours making a single planet perfect when it has no impact at all and the galaxy is so vast that you'll never spend more than a few seconds per hour looking at a particular planet? Why don't large number of factories increase the risk of ecological disasters? Why does an entire planet instantly convert into your species?

So many possibilities for greater gameplay and decision making, but they've all been ignored in favor of an (admittedly very good) version of interstellar Barbie.