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Spore Hands-On Preview
cardjoe writes "The release date for Spore has just been announced and what better way to celebrate than to check out the latest build of the game? That's just what bit-tech.net did, spending hours with the full version of the game. The article covers all the different editors and stages in the game as well as providing a brief on the pollinated content and how it may well introduce an entire new genre to PC gaming — that of the Massively Online Singleplayer. The article is in-depth and has a whole load of brand new screenshots too, showing the various stages that the player will go through as they play the game and move their creature from single cells to galaxy-hopping space freaks."
This will make VG Cats happy.
The simple truth is that interstellar distances will not fit into the human imagination
- Douglas Adams
...until I have created a race of suicidal paper clips, and have them wage war on all the fruit-producing fauna in the universe.
maybe its Massively Singleplayer Online
Only a game that gives you that much control over life can satisfy my ego.
... if third parties are getting to try it, it's not vapour anymore, right?
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
Can I make my spore avoid the whole Microsoft debacle during their evolution?
Seven Days with Ubuntu Unity
Everything I read about this game makes it seem like this is either going to be the greatest game ever released or the most disappointing.
The thing that fascinates me the most is that the progression through the game's stages seems in some ways to mirror the evolution of video games themselves, from simple Atari games to the modern day. Or to look at it another way, the idea of having an arc throughout the game in both the objectives and the style of gameplay itself sounds amazing.
http://nerdcartoons.com/
I think that actually means it's *your* loss.
Spore: Hands-on Preview
Author: Joe Martin
Platforms: PC, Nintendo DS, Mobile, Mac
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Spore. Games don't come any more ambitious than Spore and although the premise of the now in-famously delayed game and magnum opus of Will Wright is fairly simple, the actual realisation of that concept has proven incredibly difficult.
The idea behind Spore is this; you are God, the Alpha, Omega and Almighty. You are omniscient, omnipresent and capable of creating a rock so big you can't possibly lift it. Then you can lift it. You're God and that type of feat is your bread and butter.
Specifically, you are the God of a particular species that you will design, craft, sculpt and guide through from primordial ooze to inevitable extinction.
You start off small, designing a single cell and guiding it through the cesspool in which all life must begin. As time passes you use evolution as the tool by which you will shape the destiny of your creature for better or worse. A mouth here, a leg there, and a twist to the torso - you slowly create the creature you want. You can do that. You are God.
From there, the game expands ever outwards and you will move from guiding a single cell or creature to encouraging a small tribe, then a city. In the climax to this universe in a box you'll be aiding your civilisation in spreading to other stars and planets.
Such game concepts are truly the things of dreams - open, sandbox worlds with almost limitless possibilities and completely open setting. The game says to you; "Here are the tools, now do as you wish."
Unfortunately, with such an impossibly complex design even getting the basics of the gameplay right can be a daunting task in and of itself and, even with the full might of Electronic Arts behind him, Will Wright has struggled to get Spore working. The game, which he has reportedly been planning for the last decade at least, has suffered numerous delays. At the start of this year we gave it an honourable mention as a game which we thought would definitely turn out to be vapourware.
Now though, it looks like we may have to admit that we were wrong. Not only has EA confirmed that Spore will be out in time for the holidays, but the game is now in a fully playable state. All that is left to do is polish up a few glitches, test it and load it with content before release.
How do we know that, I hear you ask. Simple; we've played it--nearly all of it.
There are five stages or levels to Spore and we've played them all on the PC, as well as playing on the DS and Mobile versions of the game - though the latter failed to make as much of an impression, to be frank.
The first level is a basic arcade type game where players guide their single cell about its existence, helping it eat other creatures and grow. When it has grown enough it jumps into the Creature Stage, where players zoom their view out and manage the more complex needs of their creation. Survival skills must be complemented by socialisation skills as players enable their creature to build a tribe.
In Tribe stage the game zooms out once more and players are no longer controlling a single alien. In this stage it's more like The Sims as you monitor the needs of a small tribe as they carve out a niche in the alien landscape. The penultimate stage of the game is the Civilisation Stage where it transitions from The Sims into Sim City and you'll be controlling whole cities in cultures.
The last stage is the Space Stage where you hop off your polluted little rock and find new playgrounds to party in.
Share and share alike
Before we delve deeply into the well of never-ending gameplay that Spore claims to offer, we should talk about the Pollination System that Spore uses to keep the game full of brand new content at all times. Pollinated content is something that Electronic Arts and
I just wish they would have made it cross-platform or Linux compatible.
As a die-hard Linux user, I wouldn't mind paying retail for a copy of this game, based on what I've seen of it. I give money to developers for their work on other apps I use, why wouldn't I do the same for a game? I understand that it took years for them to develop, and they need to make money for what they've done. I don't need the source to play it.
Game Devs don't have/need to give us their work for free, IMO, but if they'd make it to where *anyone* could use the games they write, they'd sell more, and I for one would sure appreciate it.
"...there are some things that can beat smartness and foresight. Awkwardness and stupidity can." ~ Mark Twain
Spore wasn't designed?
~ Whence do you come, slayer of men, or where are you going, conqueror of space?
Screw spending more and more money on newer graphics cards, CPUs, mobos, etc.
I'm getting this game for Wii.
"Luck is my middle name," said Rincewind, indistinctly. "Mind you, my first name is Bad." -- Terry Pratchett
Wasn't this game around more than twenty-five years ago? I mean, I remember clearly that you'd--
Oh, wait... I guess there were some minor differences.
Whoops.
W
-------------------
This is my SIG. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
There is absolutely no way to justify the millions of dollars EA would have lost if they delayed the release of Spore for another year, just to port it to Linux, so that they could sell a few hundred more copies of it.
If you really want to play Spore, then you probably can find a Windows or Mac to play it on. If you really can't find a Windows or Mac or game console to play Spore on, then you have much bigger problems, and probably should not be wasting your time playing games, because you should be working on solving your bigger problems instead.
If you've decided never to touch a Windows or Mac box, then that's your decision you made with your eyes wide open, and one of the consequences is that there are many pieces of software you will never be able to use, like Spore. If you made that decision yourself without being forced into it, then you made your own bed and now you must sleep in it, so shut up and stop complaining. If you're disappointed or surprised about the consequences of your own decision to boycot Windows and Mac, then you obviously made the wrong decision, so don't blame EA for not supporting you. You have no right to complain about the consequences of your own decision not to use Windows or Mac.
-Don
Take a look and feel free: http://www.PieMenu.com
How long after the release date do you think it will take for people to make an exact duplicate of the Mos Eisley Cantina? 3 hrs?
The social networking elements in Spore do look truly stunning and already there's a wealth of content available from the testers and developers - everything from flying toilets to animals that look like letters
Stop right there pal, you had me sold on "flying toilet"!
I look forward to exploring new worlds and encountering other players' utterly ridiculous creatures. Of course, I'll be disappointed if someone doesn't create creatures/civilizations based on every internet meme ever (oh how I'll enjoy destroying the LOLcats with my spaceship's death ray).
Oh yeah, Spore's Wikipedia article mentions how the galaxy will feature active planetary nebulas, black holes, rotating spiral arms, etc. After acquiring a spaceship, I fully plan on plotting a course to the black hole's event horizon. I wonder how the game will model that experience...
Spore: Hands-on Preview
Platforms: PC, Nintendo DS, Mobile, Mac
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Spore. Games don't come any more ambitious than Spore and although the premise of the now in-famously delayed game and magnum opus of Will Wright is fairly simple, the actual realisation of that concept has proven incredibly difficult.
The idea behind Spore is this; you are God, the Alpha, Omega and Almighty. You are omniscient, omnipresent and capable of creating a rock so big you can't possibly lift it. Then you can lift it. You're God and that type of feat is your bread and butter.
Specifically, you are the God of a particular species that you will design, craft, sculpt and guide through from primordial ooze to inevitable extinction.
You start off small, designing a single cell and guiding it through the cesspool in which all life must begin. As time passes you use evolution as the tool by which you will shape the destiny of your creature for better or worse. A mouth here, a leg there, and a twist to the torso - you slowly create the creature you want. You can do that. You are God.
Image: Spore is perhaps the most ambitious game ever
From there, the game expands ever outwards and you will move from guiding a single cell or creature to encouraging a small tribe, then a city. In the climax to this universe in a box you'll be aiding your civilisation in spreading to other stars and planets.
Such game concepts are truly the things of dreams - open, sandbox worlds with almost limitless possibilities and completely open setting. The game says to you; "Here are the tools, now do as you wish."
Unfortunately, with such an impossibly complex design even getting the basics of the gameplay right can be a daunting task in and of itself and, even with the full might of Electronic Arts behind him, Will Wright has struggled to get Spore working. The game, which he has reportedly been planning for the last decade at least, has suffered numerous delays. At the start of this year we gave it an honourable mention as a game which we thought would definitely turn out to be vapourware.
Now though, it looks like we may have to admit that we were wrong. Not only has EA confirmed that Spore will be out in time for the holidays, but the game is now in a fully playable state. All that is left to do is polish up a few glitches, test it and load it with content before release.
Image: The Cell Stage is where the full game begins
How do we know that, I hear you ask. Simple; we've played it--nearly all of it.
There are five stages or levels to Spore and we've played them all on the PC, as well as playing on the DS and Mobile versions of the game - though the latter failed to make as much of an impression, to be frank.
The first level is a basic arcade type game where players guide their single cell about its existence, helping it eat other creatures and grow. When it has grown enough it jumps into the Creature Stage, where players zoom their view out and manage the more complex needs of their creation. Survival skills must be complemented by socialisation skills as players enable their creature to build a tribe.
In Tribe stage the game zooms out once more and players are no longer controlling a single alien. In this stage it's more like The Sims as you monitor the needs of a small tribe as they carve out a niche in the alien landscape. The penultimate stage of the game is the Civilisation Stage where it transitions from The Sims into Sim City and you'll be controlling whole cities in cultures.
The last stage is the Space Stage where you hop off your polluted little rock and find new playgrounds to party in.
Share and share alike
Before we delve deeply into the well of never-ending gameplay that Spore claims to offer, we should talk about the Pollination System th
It seems like a large part of the design process for the game consisted of of trying a lot of ideas, and selecting the one that worked as a base of future experiments. And that description could be extended to previous generations of games, each generation consisting of thousands of games, most fails in the marketplace, and those that survives form the basis for the next generation of games.
That is may main irritation as a professional designer of the whole "intelligent design" pseudo debate. Any intelligent designer is aware that evolution is the most important design tool, especially for complex systems.
After your race has risen from the primordial slime, competed with other critters, evolved to sapience, built cities, and achieved spaceflight and reached the center of the galaxy, you can submit proof of age and $45 to receive a key to open up a new level . . .
SimGalaxy Interspecies Brothel
Just remember . . . one race's intimate lubricant could be another's caustic death sauce.
Take a chill pill, bro. I wonder if you work for them, based on the handle. I'm surprised at the anger that came out of your misconstruing what it was that I wrote... You might need a re-read.
Though apparently you took it that way, my post was not criticism, it was observation. I'm just saying it would be nice if game companies would make their products cross-platform, including *nix users in the mix.
If they started out doing that from the beginning of development, they would have games at the end which they could sell to everyone, *without* needing to port them to different architectures.
There's lots more than a few hundred Linux users out there now, too. And more every day. Emerging market, and all that.
"...there are some things that can beat smartness and foresight. Awkwardness and stupidity can." ~ Mark Twain
When I used Linux I used to wish more games were released for LInux but then I realized that it isn't that big of a deal to boot into Windows to pay the types of games that I tend to enjoy. Really, what's a 3 minute reboot (or whatever it is) to play a fullscreen game for a few hours? Once you're in, the OS it happens to be running on is pretty much irrelevant.
That said, I sure am glad EVE Online came out with a client for Linux and Mac because it means I don't have to reboot just to login and update my skill training. Though I suppose just providing that functionality through the web site would be enough.
-matthew
"THERE IS NO JUSTICE, THERE IS ONLY ME." -Death
Ummmmm, Slachcode?
My user number is prime. Is yours?
And I'm sure the folks at EA will just LOVE supporting every permutation of every Linux distribution out there or listening to the loud BAWWWWWW noise when they only support 3 major distros.
Yes, I worked for Maxis and EA, with Will Wright on The Sims, and also on porting SimCity to various platforms.
I developed a commercial game (SimCity) for Unix, and promoted and distributed it over the internet 16 years ago, and there is still no viable market for games on Linux. Look what happened to Loki. And look at the sad shape of the modern Linux desktop: Lots of easy eye candy and useless transparency, but absolutely no crucial usability nor simple consistency.
I have done a lot of cross platform development and porting (I also ported The Sims Online server to Linux, and I'm currently developing TomTom Home on Mac and Windows using xulrunner and XPCOM), so I'm painfully aware of how much harder it is and longer it takes than developing for one or a few platforms. It's not easy, it's not fast, and it doesn't come for free.
I've also put a lot of time and effort into writing code, proposals, and working with people at EA and other companies, to convince them to make some of their existing products open source, many years after their release, like Micropolis (SimCity). But I never made the argument that it was worth their development effort for an initial release of a game to support the Linux desktop.
Developing cross platform code and porting games to Linux is not nearly as easy as you make it out to be. It took me many years of work to port SimCity to all the different flavors of Unix, Linux, OLPC, and other X-Windows platforms like Quarterdeck DESQview/X, NCD X terminals, Windows, Mac, etc.
Don't act like nobody at EA ever heard of Linux, and it's up to you to evangelize to them about it and make them see the light, and support it as if it were a mainstream desktop platform. They run it on their servers, and many people at EA use Linux all the time, are experts at it, and understand its problems and limitations.
Trying to argue that EA should release mainstream games on Linux will get you absolutely nowhere. It wastes their time, makes you look like an idiot, and they will never take you seriously again. And representing the Linux community as a bunch of greedy crybabies who just want everything right now and for free, reduces the chances that they will eventually release other games as open source or port them to Linux later.
-Don
Take a look and feel free: http://www.PieMenu.com
Thanks for all your hard work, Don, nice resume you've got there.
:)
But you obviously still don't understand what I wrote.
Plain as day, I wrote that I WILL PAY RETAIL, and DON'T NEED THE SOURCE, and that I think that you and your fellow EA devs *deserve* to earn whatever money your product of work can produce.
From my OP: "I wouldn't mind paying retail for a copy of this game, based on what I've seen of it. I give money to developers for their work on other apps I use, why wouldn't I do the same for a game? I understand that it took years for them to develop, and they need to make money for what they've done. I don't need the source to play it."
I'm all good with that! Not a problem at all. I hope you are getting rich, actually - because I understand that good coding isn't something that just anyone can do.
That makes me neither a "crybaby" nor "greedy". Quite the opposite, I'd think.
Despite your insinuation, neither did I attempt to "evangelize" anyone to use Linux. I just stated that that is what I use (yep, my own choice, made in the full knowledge of what that entails), and have, for 9 years, closing in on 10, on a daily basis as my own source of income. And that I personally would like it (WILL like it, the day is coming) when companies such as yours begin releasing games for the Linux platform.
That, my friend, is just an expressed personal desire, nothing more, and certainly nothing to ream me out over, or to get so upset about. IMO, of course.
Best of luck to you.
"...there are some things that can beat smartness and foresight. Awkwardness and stupidity can." ~ Mark Twain
I disagree. The "massively online single-player" aspect is pretty new (AFAIK), but the "parameterized models" and "procedural animations" are subtly revolutionary. I mean they've DRASTICALLY streamlined the process of creating a 3d model for a game. Do you think the game studios run something as simple as the spore interface to create a 3d model and all of it's animations?
Imagine how other games could benefit from this approach: Imagine, say, a zombie game where instead of randomly spawning zombies from a set of 10 or 20 (or even 100) models, you have a nearly infinite variety of zombies generated from randomly chosen inputs for height, weight, hair, wounds, clothing, state of decay, etc. Now suppose the animations are not all the same, but are randomly determined by the zombie's height, weight, and number of functional limbs. Or imagine characters whose walk or climb animations are based on the actual geometry of the world, so they don't "jump" with every step up an incline or "moonwalk" trying to go through a wall. The game studios have done a very good job of making fixed animations and fixed characters look good, but there is a lot of room for improvement (especially since a high-end CPU is usually twiddling it's thumbs in even newer games while the GPU does all the work).
Prov 9:8 Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.
Seems it was confirmed for Wii a while ago.
"Luck is my middle name," said Rincewind, indistinctly. "Mind you, my first name is Bad." -- Terry Pratchett
I'm sorry, I didn't mean that you yourself were a greedy crybaby. I appreciate your attitude, and that you're willing to pay for products that take time and money to produce. It's the grandparent article that you were indirectly replying to that I was insinuating about:
Now that's a whiny crybaby, who bitches about how hard it is for poor old him, because of the decision he chose to made of his own free will, then he throws out a bunch of ridiculous claims about how superior Spore would be if only it had been developed on Linux. More secure, elegant, and efficient, ehe? It's people who bull shit like that out of their ass who give Linux and Open Source Software a bad name.
-Don
Take a look and feel free: http://www.PieMenu.com
Yes, but they haven't released a date for the consoles yet (besides the DS.)
Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
It wasn't a much fun as good old SimCity 2000 was, but that wasn't the fault of the port.
What was annoying, though, is that being a commercial binary compiled for one specific kernel/glibc version, it now no longer runs on a decently modern Linux. That's a problem that Windows doesn't have so much, with its pretty good binary back-compatibility. It's also a problem that open-source games on Linux don't have either, because they get recompiled. In fact, I have DOS games that run better under Dosbox and Windows games that run better under Wine/Cedega than late-90s ported-specially-for-Linux games now do.
So commercial ports on Linux are in a bit of a technical bind, really - more than an economic one, I think. Linux is fundamentally a closed-binary-hostile environment because it makes no promises of enduring binary compatibility, except under specific retro emulation environments.
You are not a brain: http://books.google.com/books?id=2oV61CeDx-YC
Does anyone remember the fuss around Black & White? That was a huge, open god sim that promised so much... Is Spore the next B&W? Don't get me wrong, I'll torrent it along with everyone else when it comes out, but I'm not getting my hopes up.
It gripped her hand gently. 'Regret is for humans,' it said.
Ahh, so it was powered by Steam?
... and then they built the supercollider.
Now that's a whiny crybaby,
No, I'm sorry to inform you, but that was a troll.
The enemies of Democracy are