SPORE Released 5 Days Early In Australia

knypha writes "Several sites are reporting that the much anticipated SPORE has been released 5 days ahead of the scheduled release date in Australia. I can confirm that SPORE is sitting on shelves in retailers and for the tidy sum of A$95.95 it can be yours. Why the early release exactly seems to be a matter of contention. No news if the game can actually be played yet or if the lucky early punters will still have to wait till the official release when EA allows for any validation process to occur. I guess EA could possibly be using the relatively small population to test the servers...or someone somewhere stuffed up!"

Comments

Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

Paying A$95.95 for the privilege of hosing your system down with SecuROM. I can't say I envy you.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

If it uses SecuROM I'm just going to torrent it.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

Too bad it works on 99% of home users without causing problems. SecuROM is just how you're justifying to yourself receiving the software they paid money to produce, without paying for it.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Yvan256]

Just because someone mentions SecuROM doesn't mean he's going to pirate it.

I, for one, won't be buying it because of SecuROM and because EA are using Cider instead of making a real Mac port.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

wow. troll. really? it didnt seem like he was actually trying to troll. read his post again.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Paradigm_Complex]

Not buying it because of SecuROM is certainly justified, but not buying it because EA is using Cider rather than making a real Mac port is just silly. The only thing EA is going to actually understand from this is that they're not getting Mac sales and they wasted time and money getting this thing cross-platform on PC's.

Unless you *don't* want them making it on the Mac at all - or if it just plain doesn't work well under Cider - than don't let the fact it's not native stop you from getting it. While making games for the Mac is still so uncommon this kind of thing should be encouraged, not discouraged. Later when it's considered SOP to make games of the Mac you can go ahead and complain about such things.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

Modded troll? I didn't think there'd be anyone on Slashdot (or anywhere else) who actually likes SecuROM.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[NemosomeN]

99% is terrible, not that you're not just pulling that number out of your ass. Sell 1,000,000 copies? 10,000 of them are defective and screw up consumers' computers. Good luck with that second million.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[tuffy]

Just because no one likes SecuROM doesn't mean one is entitled to download the game for free.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Kagura]

You want Spore for free, regardless of the time and money it took to produce it, simply because it uses a security program that has gotten negative press lately?

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Paradigm_Complex]

Too bad it works on 99% of home users without causing problems.

From what I've seen it does not work for 99% of home users without causing problems. It's just they don't realize it's causing problems or don't care when they can just phone up the techy kid across the street or when Geek Squad tells them they just need more RAM. Don't confuse a lack of understanding or care with a lack of problems.

SecuROM is just how you're justifying to yourself receiving the software they paid money to produce, without paying for it.

Perhaps that would be true if people who were boycotting this because of the DRM pirated DRM-free games like (non-GOTY edition) Oblivion, which was a highly successful game. In some cases that may have happened, but it's certainly not what happened across the board. I am not the only one who actually purchased Oblivion but won't get this because of the DRM.

Your argument reminds me of those who say that anyone who supports gay marriage must be themselves gay. It has the same level of even-though-you-make-perfect-sense-you're-still-the-bad-guy-here-for-no-good-reason.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Starayo]

Oh, crap, I forgot about bloody SecuROM. That's what I get for buying a game legally for once.

No issues yet, but now my PC feels tainted...

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[dintech]

He should buy it if he wants to play it. But following that he could install it in a sandbox (maybe sandboxie or something?), copy out the files and then NOCD patch it. A bit of a hassle but zero guilt.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[alvinrod]

I don't know if his statement necessarily means that he won't buy a copy. It could mean that he'll buy a copy of the game and if it uses some shitty DRM that really should be drug out behind the barn and murdered with an axe he'll get a cracked version and not have to worry about it getting in his way. I circumvent DRM all the time by storing my ripping my DVDs and backing them up on a hard drive. Then I can watch them on my modded Xbox without having to switch discs around or worry about the disc being damaged. Some people download a movie because the disc was damaged and they don't want to pay $20 for the movie again.

There are plenty of good reasons to circumvent DRM or make a digital copy of something that clearly fall under fair use. Not everyone who's doing these things is doing so to 'pirate' software or movies. Not everyone who owns a gun is going to commit murder with it either. Not everyone woman is a prostitute just because she's equip for it. I understand where you're coming from, but don't be so quick to judge.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

You want Spore for free ... simply because it uses a security program that has gotten negative press lately?

Um, that security program has always had bad press, not just lately!

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[anomnomnomymous]

So why not refrain from buying -AND- downloading, as to show your disgust over Securom?

Ohwait, you don't have any principles: You just want a free game.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Mascot]

He should buy it if he wants to play it

Unfortunately, he has to pirate it to ensure he can play it.

I just hope Fallout 3 won't follow this sad trend. If all games start going the "online activation, max 3 installs" route, I might have to find a new hobby. I sure as hell won't buy games in this state.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Yvan256]

So, a company doing a half-assed job of "porting" a game to the Mac should make me want to buy it?

Cider is so demanding on the hardware that it can't even support the GMA950 GPU for the Mac. Strangely enough, all Mac minis have GMA950 and so do all the previous generations of Macbooks.

That's a bit of a brain-dead decision on EA's part to drop maybe a third of Mac users, given that we're supposed to be about 8% of gamers at most (if we believe the usual numbers).

The worst part is, GMA950 is enough if you run the Windows version. And on top of that there's SecuROM.

Windows games on Cider doesn't equal a Mac port, EA. Sorry but my money will go to Blizzard. They make real Mac versions of their games. Starcraft II isn't even finished and yet they are already assured of one sale on my part.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[NeutronCowboy]

Yes. If at all possible, I'd like to write a check to Will Wright saying "Thanks for Spore, but don't ever put that kind of DRM on your games again." . I will not support the use of something that essentially hijacks my machine. In case I do torrent it, I'd like to be able to send Will Wright a check, but that's unlikely to be possible. Either which way, EA won't get my money for the PC version.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[SoCalChris]

What about buying the game, then installing a downloaded version to keep their crap off of your system? I've done that before, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Ralish]

Not buying it because of SecuROM is certainly NOT justified, for many reasons.

Firstly, while I'm opposed to copy protection of this flavour in general, SecuROM is one of the tamer options out there. Yes, it causes problems for some users, but really, there's far worse out there. For instance, the horror that is StarForce. That's an example of a copy protection that crosses the line so blatantly, that it would be justified to all-out refuse to buy the game. SecuROM has if anything improved recently, notably, the v.7.x series can install and run in a non-administrator account, which has obvious security and stability benefits.

But more compelling than such technical arguments, is the ethical one from the developers point of view. Maxis is owned by EA (which is genuinely evil, or at least, has some pretty miserable standards), and I doubt the option of choosing whether to implement copy protection in the game is ultimately their choice. I'd imagine if a Maxis rep. went to EA and said "Spore is done, and by the way, we're releasing it free of any copy protection, except for a basic CD-Key check with server-side validation only in the case of multiplayer", they'd be laughed out of the office and/or fired. I don't believe it's fair or at all reasonable to let Maxis suffer because of the inclusion of SecuROM. They worked hard on this game, invested a lot of time to develop it; refusing to buy it purely because of copy protection is more a snub to them than it is to EA.

Should we protest against the inclusion of such copy protection mechanisms? Absolutely. But do so through means that don't whack the developers pocket except in extreme cases. Complain on the game forums, let both Maxis and EA know your opposition to the inclusion of SecuROM. If you are vocal enough, they may even remove the SecuROM checks from the binary. This has been done by developers numerous times in the past through future patches when faced with enough opposition.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Paradigm_Complex]

If there is some technical reason - if it doesn't work properly on your hardware - then, of course, you should not get it. My point was not to avoid it on principle. A functioning but lazy port to such a small market should still be encouraged.

Sorry but my money will go to Blizzard

What is this comment for? I love Blizzard and, to quote teh_pwnerer, "EA can suck my balls." I'd much prefer $random_person do business with companies like Blizzard rather than EA.

That's a bit of a brain-dead decision on EA's part to drop maybe a third of Mac users, given that we're supposed to be about 8% of gamers at most (if we believe the usual numbers).

From the comments I've seen here, it seems a bit of a brain-dead decision on EA's part to actually take the time and money to get a mac port at all.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Jack9]

You want Spore for free, regardless of the time and money it took to produce it, simply because it uses a security program that has gotten negative press lately?

I don't want Spore for free, but I do want Spore. I will forego paying for it (which is easier for me) in philosophical protest of a third party program that is harmful to my machine. I don't even let Steam (PunkBuster) run anymore because of its behavior after closing Steam. Anything that continues to run outside of its purpose is probably leaky, is practially the same as any other malware or worm, and is not going to be allowed on my machine.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

Oh wait, you're full of shit. I pirate games very, very rarely, and in most cases they're old games.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Paradigm_Complex]

Firstly, while I'm opposed to copy protection of this flavour in general, SecuROM is one of the tamer options out there. Yes, it causes problems for some users, but really, there's far worse out there.

Just because it's not as bad as others doesn't make it somehow acceptable. "Theft is okay, at least they didn't also rape and murder"

I don't believe it's fair or at all reasonable to let Maxis suffer because of the inclusion of SecuROM

So, what, EA is holding some innocent people hostage? We have to pay the bad people at EA so they don't make the poor developers who have to stick with them starve? The individuals can quit and join other companies or start up their own. I'm not going to demonize them for it (just the people who actually made the choice to put in the DRM) but I'm not going to fund them, either, if I know a substantial chunk of the money is going to people who are actively doing things that piss me off.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

I only steal canned ham and evaporated milk from the grocery store, and in most cases they're past their Best By date.

Thieves suck.

--

Don't steal the dream - don't steal music.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

And I'm sure you have never broken a single law in your life. Never downloaded an MP3, for instance.

Give me a fucking break and crawl back under your rock.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Bloodrage]

Circumventing security features is only a crime in the Land of the Free...

I will buy and modify the product as I see fit.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

And now this gets modded troll? What the fuck.

Anonymous Cowards get a lot of flak but they're about a billion times better than moderators. ACs at least have to post something. Moderators just push a fucking button because they're too fucking stupid and lazy to come up with counter-arguments.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Gaian-Orlanthii]

I intend on buying Spore when it gets to my local shop but I'm going to download it as well so I can install and play it without crappy DRM on my PC. I'm also going to wait a month or so before paying cash for it so there'll be plenty of time for the patches to come out, and for the price to drop. I may like this game but not enough pay 60 just so I can be first on my street to yell "FIRST!". On that last point: EA are currently advertising Spore:Galactic Edition. Which is Spore packaged in an actual card box with two self-loving documentaries (available on torrent soon anyway, right?) an artbook (ditto),a 100 page manual... and a poster worthy of any 12 year old's bedroom wall. How special is that? Not a bit. PC games ALWAYS used to come in individually designed card boxes with printed manuals. Everything else is in this package is promotional kipple typical of EA and their corporate stooge, Will Wright.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm a moderator, biatch :P
(The one that modded you Troll)

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

-1 Troll.

Yet another pussy moderator who doesn't have the fucking balls to post a counter-argument.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

Yet you didn't bother to offer an explanation. Because you don't have one. Because you're a fucking moron.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[NoobixCube]

But why DOWNLOAD it at all? If you've bought a physical copy, you could just make an image and use it in Daemon Tools with SecuROM emulation enabled. Seems like a huge waste of bandwidth to me.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

Just because it's not as bad as others doesn't make it somehow acceptable. "Theft is okay, at least they didn't also rape and murder"

Ah, but when raping and murdering is the norm, it's nice to see people show a little restraint, isn't it?

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Mascot]

By buying it, you are endorsing the protection.

I'm so much against the notion that I should need to break a protection scheme on something I bought (it's legal where I live), that I refuse to buy it to begin with. They know what they need to do to get my money. Their move.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

No issues yet, but now my PC feels tainted...

Kind of like hooking up with that drunk sorority sister you heard has chlamydia. No issues yet...

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

-1 Troll.

In your wet dreams, fuckstick.

Yet another pussy moderator who doesn't have the fucking balls to post a counter-argument.

What counter-argument were you expecting? That you AREN'T a chickenshit little thief? You've already admitted that you are - and like the joke about the prostitute, we're now merely establishing how much you charge to have somebody's dick shoved into your mouth.

--

Don't steal the dream - don't steal music.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Michael Hunt]

Cider _is_ native code. All the way down. The only real difference (user interface issues aside, and most games don't use the native UI in any event) is that each DirectX call obviously goes through one more stack frame before it hits the hardware (game->cider directX->OpenGL->driver rather than game->directX->driver).

It's been my experience that the speed difference in Cedega (or lack thereof) from a 'native' DirectX implementation is marginal. With Cider, one would assume any differences would be more marginalized again given the fact that the code is in a native binary format and the vast bulk of the application isn't making calls through translated APIs.

It'll be interesting to see if anybody takes the freely available (albeit not open source) Cedega DirectX 9 code (or, for that matter, the open source but somewhat slower Wine DirectX 9 code) and adds the DirectX 10 APIs to it. A system like this would, in theory, allow DirectX 10 apps to run on Windows XP as well as other GL platforms.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[renegadesx]

$95.95 is a pretty average price for games in Australia, some 360 and PS3 games go for $110 and $120. Hence why I either bargin hunt or import.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[masterzora]

Not buying it because of SecuROM is certainly NOT justified, for many reasons. Firstly, while I'm opposed to copy protection of this flavour in general, SecuROM is one of the tamer options out there. Yes, it causes problems for some users, but really, there's far worse out there. For instance, the horror that is StarForce. That's an example of a copy protection that crosses the line so blatantly, that it would be justified to all-out refuse to buy the game. SecuROM has if anything improved recently, notably, the v.7.x series can install and run in a non-administrator account, which has obvious security and stability benefits.

I will admit to not being 100% sure about the technical details in this regard, but is the 3-activation limit part of SecuROM? If so, you are so very wrong. If not, you may be correct (I disagree, having experienced SecuROM problems in the past, but I do not know the numbers at large), but there is a related, *very* justified reason in this ridiculous restriction.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[LingNoi]

Then run it with wine in a chroot environment if you're worried about the control of your machine.

Spore will work in wine if you look on wine-patches mailing list for the setScissorRect patch and getStencilDepth. It hasn't been included in the main git tree yet because the code doesn't mimic windows behaviour exactly, but it'll make Spore work.

There, now you can play Spore without any worry of the DRM effecting your machine. You can also now play Steam games too so go knock yourself out and have some safe fun.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[calmofthestorm]

Exactly, it sends the wrong message. My compromise is to find another interesting game that uses no onerous DRM and buy it, then torrent the offending title. Don't support a broken business model.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[renegadesx]

This is slashdot, you wouldn't know what thats like.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

In your wet dreams, fuckstick.

What the fuck are you smoking? I got modded troll. Which is why I said I got modded troll. Logic 101.

What counter-argument were you expecting? That you AREN'T a chickenshit little thief? You've already admitted that you are - and like the joke about the prostitute, we're now merely establishing how much you charge to have somebody's dick shoved into your mouth.

I haven't admitted anything. You're making shit up.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

What about buying the game, then installing a downloaded version to keep their crap off of your system? I've done that before, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

That way, you're not informing the company of your dislike for SecuROM. Since you're paying for the game with SecuROM in it, that's the equivalent of you saying that SecuROM is ok.

The only way to inform the company of your dislike in any way that stands a chance of being heard, is by not buying the game, preferably also sending a mail to the company informing them of your choice and your reason(s) for it.

The above assumes that you care, of course. I do. Most don't.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

SecuROM emulation

That would be the SecuROM of yesterday.

The SecuROM used in Spore (as well as in Mass Effect for the PC) is the SecuROM of today. It doesn't have media-based protection. It relies on online activation in order to allow you to play the game. There's no need for Daemon Tools. There's no need to keep the DVD in the drive. You can copy it as many times as you wish.

You must be online for it to activate after installation and allow you to play, however.

Personally, this requirement is utterly unacceptable to me, which is why I didn't buy Mass Effect for the PC and I won't buy Spore either. Single-player games with online activation requirements? Ridiculous.

I regularly re-install old games from 5-7 years back for a replay. Imagine trying to do that with either of the above two games in 7 years. Are you certain that EA(/BioWare) will a) ensure the activation servers are still online by then and/or b) care enough to patch out the online activation from the game(s) before then?

How about those wanting to play but are not (and cannot be, for various reasons) online in order to activate? (Military personnel, e.g.)

For me, the limit regarding single-player games has been crossed. I ain't passing it.

If these companies don't want to offer a product to me that I'm prepared to buy, then so be it. I won't buy it.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

Sorry, that wasn't offtopic either. Better luck next time, assholes!

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Jack9]

I will be getting a Mac powerbook then I'll go for Wine, but that is the best solution. Ty.

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[xhrit]

what i want to know is will teh cider version be wineable? can i run the mac version ov spore on linux?

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Das Modell]

Nope, wasn't a troll. Try harder.

Shit, moderating sure is difficult (for some people).

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Anonymous Coward]

Not buying it because of SecuROM is certainly NOT justified, for many reasons.

I can really only afford to buy one game this semester; I'm a grad student, and it's not like I'm made of money.

I'm not going to buy Spore. I am going to buy the expansions to Galactic Civilizations II. Which have no copy protection except requiring a CD key to download patches.

Because of SecuROM. I very much want both games, SecuROM is unpleasant enough to act as a tie breaker.

Who the fuck are you to tell me that that's 'unjustified'?

Re:Good luck to australian gamers

[Devir]

Not buying the game and then sending a letter doesnt tell a company anything. The letters get lost or never reach the right person.

The way to do protest the DRM properly is to legitamately buy then game, then find a way to circumvent the DRM so that it NEVER registers with the DRM server.

In doing this EA will see they sold say, 10 million copies of Spore. But when the execs run a report to see all those juicy DRM registered copies, they'll only see 1 million or less having registered. This will raise huge red flags within the company. "People are buying our software but the DRM server is sitting pretty and idle".

Not buying an item does NOTHING when millions of items are sold. Massive distribution of DRM bypass is much more realistic and skirts legal boundries. Since we bought the game, and have the package in our house, and never redistributed the game, we have a better case for our defense.

I hate DRM you ha te DRM, protest intelligently by simply not using the portion that talks the loudest.

Oh...

[neokushan]

Oh the PURE and UNADULTERATED HORROR of it all!

Re:Oh...

[Anonymous Coward]

You obviously jest, but if this was intentional on EA's part (and not just some fuck-up from EA Australia) I'm very curious as to the reasoning behind it. Really, the only reason for copy protection schemes these days is to delay the game's piracy (to deter casual pirates), since avoiding it entirely is essentially impossible.

This early release in one continent effectively takes away 5 days' worth of that gain. For no obvious reason.

There's no way this was intentional, heads will probably roll.

It's clear why they are doing it

[Henry V .009]

They are trying to get a good Zero Punctuation review from Yahtzee.

Re:It's clear why they are doing it

[ccguy]

They are trying to get a good Zero Punctuation review from Yahtzee.

Nah, Bill Wright visits slashdot from time to time and he read many Australians whining about their lousy Internet conditions... so he thought he'd give them a 5-day head start.

It also gives us the rest of the world a chance to whine about our lousing gaming conditions.

Re:It's clear why they are doing it

[auld_wyrm]

They are trying to get a good Zero Punctuation review from Yahtzee.

That was the first thing that crossed my mind. That and him cackling about finally getting it over on the rest of us bar-stards.

Re:It's clear why they are doing it

[maglor_83]

It's not 5 days early anyway. It was always going to be released here on the 4th, so only 2 days early.

Re:It's clear why they are doing it

[Anonymous Coward]

I think we win in the 'lousy gaming conditions' arena as well. One early release doesn't make up for years of censorship and hyper inflated prices.

Soon we will have a monopoly on lousy conditions which we will then export to the rest of the world at huge markups. Everything is falling into place.

makes sense

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, the seas around Australia have perfect conditions for the formation of early life...

Too expensive.

[Mystery00]

Like for most games, our stores once again double the price for no reason other than that they can. If I buy this at all it'll be an import from somewhere like play-asia.

Re:Too expensive.

[maglor_83]

Not the stores, but the distributors.

Re:Too expensive.

[BloodAngel_Au]

DVDBoxOffice.com from Canada have decent prices and on pre-orders, free shipping also. SO the wife will get Spore for $59.60 delivered to our door. Just have to wait a few weeks for delivery however.

Re:Too expensive.

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh indeed.

And I don't understand why the online price is 40 pounds in the UK but 50 dollars for the US.

WTF?

It's Simple

[Bieeanda]

Australia has more horrifying, poisonous creatures per square meter, than any other place on Earth. If anyone is going to understand Spore, it's them.

Re:It's Simple

[Joe the Lesser]

And they would happily swap cane toads with penis creatures.

Re:It's Simple

[ZeroFactorial]

Ah yes, the dreaded Australopeniscus.

Re:It's Simple

[somersault]

Who wouldn't?!

Re:It's Simple

[Anonymous Coward]

Congratulations, you're a googlewack!

Re:It's Simple

[Anonymous Coward]

The dreaded Australopeniscus?
Sounds like a cock and bull story to me.

Re:It's Simple

[Bieeanda]

Afarensis, or Robustus?

Yes, it is confirmed that you can play early

[Anonymous Coward]

I do not have a slashdot account, so I doubt that I will be seen.

But the whole reason this story broke is do to this person here.

http://forums.facepunchstudios.com/showthread.php?t=603042

The bastard is gloating in his 15 mins of Internet fame. :p

Re:Yes, it is confirmed that you can play early

[electricbern]

"I just got Spore but I should've got a working camera."

yay australia

[mike_sucks]

Didn't we stuff this up once before? With the release of halo 3 or something similarly boring?

In Soviet Australia... oh. nevermind.

/Mike

Ambivalent

[Chris Pimlott]

I'm not sure if Aussies should be boosting that they get first crack at this game or shamed at revealing how much computer games cost down there...

Re:Ambivalent

[fostware]

I'm not sure if Aussies should be boosting that they get first crack at this game or shamed at revealing how much computer games cost down there...

haha... "first crack"... Is that a challenge? lol

Seriously though, I'm getting angrier and angrier at how much games cost here. I almost never buy retail anymore, and no doubt the games companies will blame it on piracy.

Re:Ambivalent

[Starayo]

It is incredibly cheaper to import games than it is to buy locally. My country is a little fucked up.

Re:Ambivalent

[Barny]

Until they make it so you CAN'T import the game, fallout 3 for instance, imported copies found in customs will be confiscated and the receiver fined for attempting to import a prescribed item :/

Now, even if the price is the same to import, I usually will, just to drain these local over-charging bastards.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

I anticipate that Spore is going to get pretty boring pretty quickly. It doesn't look like it'll have much replay value.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[drachenstern]

Okay, so it's got elements of SimLife (which took a great amount of Skill) and it's got elements of SimCity (which took a deft amount of SittingAroundWaiting) and it's got elements of The Sims (which took, ok - you're right, no Skill at all, rather maybe Charisma) and then it's got elements of SimCity (not really).

But c'mon, it's made by the same guy who made those other titles (or at least signed off on them) Will Wright. Generally every game he says is good for RTM is a platinum deal. If he doesn't sign the X then you won't like it (maybe). WoW? Diablo? SC? Ah, who cares about those, this is SimXYZ... Oh? Civ? Yeah, that's Sid Meiers, best check down the hall on that one...

Importing

[khing]

It is extortionate prices like these that compels me to buy from overseas. I know I (and many others before me) have stated this before numerous times, but I will keep saying it (and encouraging friends to buy overseas) until game publishers take notice.

Re:Importing

[CogDissident]

Notably, the price is in Australian dollars. In American its 81.36$. Still a huge markup for apparently no reason.

Re:Importing

[UberHoser]

Holy crap on wheat toast ! $82 for a game ?????

pass.

Re:Importing

[Fweeky]

Direct download from EA is £39.95, or £42.94 if you want to be able to redownload for 2 years instead of 6 months. 95.95 AUD is £45, so not that much of a markup.

Of course, if I buy a physical copy, I can get it for £28, or £30 if I want it (almost) guaranteed on release day, so you do have to wonder what EA are thinking with that download price..

Re:Importing

[raijinsetsu]

Ooooh... It must have a Gold-leaf manual, created by our very own Martha S. (she loves the gold-leaf). And, a limited edition soundtrack and collectible modal, right? OR! The game material is printed on indestructible holographic media, right? Good for thousands of years, even if the game isn't.

Re:Importing

[d3ac0n]

Alternately, you could pirate it for free!

Oops, did I say that out loud?

Re:Importing

[ranulf]

That's considered normal for games in most PAL territories...

Re:Importing

[ccguy]

Of course, if I buy a physical copy, I can get it for £28, or £30 if I want it (almost) guaranteed on release day, so you do have to wonder what EA are thinking with that download price..

That's easy: "Let's make an extra profit from the people who can't wait an extra day, and make sure we don't piss off retailers by setting a price that could actually be seen as competition."

Re:Importing

[andrewd18]

The huge markup is because they have to pay crazy tariffs and transport costs to get all those bits over the border. It's cheaper now that they're using a series of tubes instead of a bunch of trucks, but it still costs a lot.

Re:Importing

[Starayo]

And unfortunately here in Australia there's so much more incentive to.

Demos are hardly ever a good representation of the final product, and with the filesize of most of them nowadays, they take an enormous chunk out of the average Australian download quota unless the ISP mirrors it quota-free. When a demo interests me it's usually just a sample of the best work in the entire game, much like a movie trailer.

Then there's the games I do buy. Generally they turn out to be a disappointment, and I'm left to contemplate the amount of entertainment I could have received by, say, watching 40-50 movies using my friend's employee discount, going out for a couple of drinks with mates, or anything else in comparison with the ridiculous price I've paid for a shiny, polished piece of crap.

One of the latest games I have felt comfortable paying so much for is the collector's edition of warhammer online at ~AUD$130 and that's mainly for the art book. I'll still be paying a monthly fee on top of that, but I get a great deal more fun out of playing an MMO with fun and interesting guildies than I do from throwing my money at the glut of horrifyingly bad games being released nowaday, so the cost doesn't seem so horrible to me. When I bought, say, Assassin's Creed for my PC, I definitely enjoyed it, but it was under no circumstances worth the price I paid.

DRM on my machine aside, I am enjoying spore, and so is my younger sister, and that is good enough for me.

Re:Importing

[krakelohm]

Bunch of trucks eh...

Re:Importing

[SupremoMan]

So what after 6 months you can't download the game you bought anymore? What a piece a shit! I can't believe there is a digital download service that's worse than the IGN one!(Direct2Drive)

Re:Importing

[Spatial]

I wonder if you can just torrent it and use your legitimate CD-key again. That seems like the more sensible option, assuming it actually has a key.

Re:Importing

[Fozzyuw]

Notably, the price is in Australian dollars. In American its 81.36$. Still a huge markup for apparently no reason.

Er... to confirm the game prices... $49.99 and $79.99 for the regular or "collectors" edition, respectively.

It would be helpful to identify which version people are talking about. Because that $81.36 would be on par with the "collectors" edition version.

Re:Importing

[Fozzyuw]

Well, I guess I should follow up to myself. The Games Wherehouse Australia is listing it as $89.99 and $139.99. Which is, indeed, a lot more at an American $ exchange rate being ~$76.36 and $118.80

I'm going to have to speculate and ask, does Australia have a VAT tax? Are they adding on some 50% "games tax" or something but since it's VAT the consumers don't actually see this tax?

Re:Importing

[nedlohs]

Direct download is also US$49.95 for a huge markup for both of you...

What EA is thinking on the download price is not adjusting it for exchange rate movements since they announced the game (which was, what 3 years ago...)

Re:Importing

[tolomea]

In Australia it's called GST and it's 10%, which still doesn't account for the ridiculous prices.

Re:Importing

[duckInferno]

Welcome to Aus and NZ game prices.

Re:Importing

[Barny]

That same copy (warCE) from Amazon (US) was about $110AU, or if you want to get a few from gamestop about $105ea.

Re:Importing

[Anonymous Coward]

Notably, the price is in Australian dollars. In American its 81.36$. Still a huge markup for apparently no reason.

There's not that much of a mark-up. The Australian dollar fell and hit its head recently, and is now only worth 83 cents US. I have no idea how this happened, seeing as we were closer than ever to catching up, but somehow it all went to hell. Anyway, $95AUD is now just under $80USD. That's still more than they'll be paying for it in the US, but I suppose shipping has to factor in somewhere.

Re:Importing

[khing]

Realistically, the games are probably shipped from China or some other cheap manufacturing country to both the US and to Australia, which makes the shipping costs very nearly similar.

Re:Importing

[Anonymous Coward]

Direct download from EA is £39.95, or £42.94 if you want to be able to redownload for 2 years instead of 6 months. 95.95 AUD is £45, so not that much of a markup.

Of course, if I buy a physical copy, I can get it for £28, or £30 if I want it (almost) guaranteed on release day, so you do have to wonder what EA are thinking with that download price..

Its 49.99 in all stores!!!!! with tax comes out to almost 54 dollars!!!!!! Its cheaper to get it from ea online!!!!!!

Re:Importing

[Fweeky]

39.95 GBP = 70.9170 USD

£29.99, "Despatched in time for delivery on release day".

Re:Importing

[Anonymous Coward]

Prices have been that way since the exchange rate was awful (read: when the US economy wasn't in the toilet). Now that Aussie consumers are willing to pay $100 for a game, how many game companies do you think are going to lower their prices? Would YOU, if you were running one?

Didn't think so. It sucks, but that's how we roll down here.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[jayhawk88]

I imagine someone saying something very similar right before the release of SimCity and TheSims. "It's just creating a city, how many times through do you really need to play it?"

"no news if it is playable"

[nremorse]

Some kid was streaming the game on ustream.tv the other day. The recorded videos should still be up. I think he played through the game up to the space part of the game. Edit: Looks like he is still streaming. http://www.ustream.tv/channel/*live*-spore

let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, you know it's great and all that we Aussies are getting it early. Too bad we have to take out a mortgage just to pay for the bloody thing.

The gouging the video game industry does against Australians is absolutely deplorable. The local EB games is still trying to flog off the Warcraft 3 Battlechest - part of which is almost 8 years old - for $110!! At current exchange rates that's about $95 US.

I order my games from the UK and even with shipping it's practically half price. The best part is you get around the stupid censorship imposed by Senator Atkinson.

With all of the BS we're forced to tolerate, plus the whole descendants from convicts thing, it shouldn't be too surprising that many Australians turn to "alternate channels" of distribution for their video gaming needs.

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[unity100]

doh. its around $14 even in turkey. w3 bchest i mean.

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[ramirez]

It's too bad there is no mechanism by which you could purchase these computer games from other countries. It would be great if someone were to build a "network" or something whereby you could communicate your desire to purchase a product to someone else in another country. Maybe, once this advanced technology is further developed there might be a way of paying for such goods over this same "network".

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[Anonymous Coward]

It's too bad there is no mechanism by which you could purchase these computer games from other countries.

Christ, I know we don't RTFA on /., and some of us don't even read the summary. But could you read the bloody post to which you're ostensibly replying?

I order my games from the UK and even with shipping it's practically half price.

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[j_edge]

And at the current rate of exchange $95US is what, 5 Euros?

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[ramirez]

Heh, yeah I missed that paragraph :-)

I blame lack of sleep.

Anywho, this should hopefully get better with things like steam. Being able to download games should help equalize the price for you down the road.

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, you know it's great and all that we Aussies are getting it early. Too bad we have to take out a mortgage just to pay for the bloody thing.

The gouging the video game industry does against Australians is absolutely deplorable. The local EB games is still trying to flog off the Warcraft 3 Battlechest - part of which is almost 8 years old - for $110!! At current exchange rates that's about $95 US.

I order my games from the UK and even with shipping it's practically half price. The best part is you get around the stupid censorship imposed by Senator Atkinson.

With all of the BS we're forced to tolerate, plus the whole descendants from convicts thing, it shouldn't be too surprising that many Australians turn to "alternate channels" of distribution for their video gaming needs.

Pray tell: where do you order them from?

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[PaganRitual]

Finally a thread in which I can bitch about these fucking stupid game prices in Australia. It's off topic from the main article but I don't care anymore.

I keep making the mistake of going to local game stores like EB or JB HiFi and am constantly reminded of why I might as well just so all my game shopping online.

Problem is that sometimes I want games quicker than a weeks shipping. But seriously, we really do get asked to tolerate some utter fucking bullshit. When a game is cheaper even after you include shipping you know that something is very wrong with this setup.

The War3 BC ripoff isn't just limited to your local store, or EB. At JB it was $30 in a sale for a couple of weeks at JB, now it's gone back up to $70 at some stores. Burnout Paradise was $60 for a while, and I went down to finally pick it up over the weekend and it has gone back up to $100. The Art of Fighting Anthology on PS2 was released at $50 locally. I picked it up for $20 online, shipping was $10.

People always assume that when I mention I got my PS2 and Xbox consoles modded it's because I want to pirate endlessly, and I have to explain that I have, at last count, 120 original PS2 games in my collection, and I would suggest that at least 80 of these are NTSC, and that the $250 I spent on the modding process paid itself years ago with the money I saved being able to purchase games from online stores. Same goes for the Xbox.

And this is also why it eternally shits me that the 360 isn't region free. Not just because I can't play Culdcept Saga or Raiden Fighters Aces, but because I have to pick and choose the region free 360 titles and pay a stupid fucking "prettiest beaches tax" or whatever Yahtzee called it just to play them. I DON'T EVEN GO TO FUCKING BEACHES. And then when I do pay a premium, the game is Too Human and it fucking blows.

Okay, that was cathartic, although ultimately pointless. At least I feel better. Now I'm just going to go quickly call ramirez a stupid dickhead and then get back to work.

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[PaganRitual]

I blame lack of sleep.

All the rest of us were blaming the fact that you're obviously a stupid dickhead.

Re:let us rejoice, for we are young and poor...

[Anonymous Coward]

I think you mean the South Australia's Attorney General, he's not a senator by any means which makes his ability to block R18+ ratings for games all the more ridiculous.

I'll be running for senate in 2010 as an independent, so when you see a gamer-senator, you'll know it's me!

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

I guess I should have elaborated, because I wasn't making a joke. Spore just looks like it will quickly become very repetitive and dull.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[raynet]

It also seems to have elements from a game I once played on Amiga. You started out as a bug and evolved to a human. Graphics were amazing wire vectors and all.

If it uses ShittyRom, im going to buy it, crack it

[unity100]

retaining the control of my computer is far more important than any shitty control schemes any game employs, even if i respect the title or developer.

"Huge markup for apparently no reason" = ask gov't

[patio11]

I often wonder at how people in countries with a VAT (and, relatedly, Americans living in localities with high sales taxes) are shocked, shocked that when they compare notes with friends abroad prices are lower.

Australia has a Goods & Services tax. 10% on the top. Considering I paid US$60 for my copy with no sales taxes, I'm guessing about a third of your "no reasons" are in Melbourne by now.

(You know you guys used to have a 35% duty on packaged software? Fun times. Thankfully that got removed in '84.)

Amen to that

[patio11]

Amazing how folks on Slashdot think that the industry is totally deaf.

"I'm too much of a Mac snob to buy games that would even function on another system."
"I pay $15 a month for WoW because I have to but torrent everything else I can get my hands on, because I hate DRM."

Its almost like that sort of attitude among customers might, hmm, drive business decisions or something.

Re:Amen to that

[Paradigm_Complex]

I just view companies like EA as I do children, or maybe dogs. These ideas, justified or not, are too complicated for them.

Child does good you praise it, child does bad you put it in time out. Dog does good you give it a treat, dog does bad you stuff it's face in the mess it made and yell "bad dog." EA does over-all net good you buy their game, EA does bad you boycott it and maybe yell on their forums. Don't try to say "Making for mac is good but [details]." Details are confusing while they're still struggling with the whole Mac-good or Mac-bad thing. Again, like children or dogs it may take a good number of reward-punishment cycles before these ideas start sinking in and you can try to teach it something else. Don't be discouraged when yet another game is released with DRM or Cider.

Re:Amen to that

[discord5]

Child does good you praise it, child does bad you put it in time out.

The problem is that this child has over a million parents telling them they don't care, and little less than a hundred parents telling them it's bad. The over a million people are the ones that make the company money, the few hundreds are those that don't.

To each his own opinion and all that, and far be it from me to judge how you spend your money. In fact, I think that DRM is a good reason not to spend your money, but saying "bad dog" to EA with a few hundred people while they're making a small fortune (on what seems to be a good game for once, compared to the usual excretions that flow forth from that company), just seems rather futile.

As for me, I bought the game in the hope that it will make them come up with something original and entertaining every once in a while instead of aforementioned excrement they've blessed the world with. The fact that it's DRM'ed doesn't bother me more than the fact that if the amount of installations is exceeded I'll download the crack and get on with life.

Am I part of "the problem"? Maybe, probably, sure. Do I care enough? Well, you can answer that one yourself I guess.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a civilization to make consisting entirely out of obscene objects. brb

Re:Amen to that

[Paradigm_Complex]

For the most part I agree. There are a cases where companies did remove or lessen DRM thanks to complaints and boycotts such as mine (See: Bioshock, Mass Effect), but they're few and far between. I'm hoping against the odds that more people will join in to make these few cases more common - I recognize that we're a long way off from revolutionizing the industry. I have no intention of demonizing people who don't care enough to do the same - the problem is caused by the companies, not their consumers. If it doesn't bother you, enjoy. It sure bothers me, though ):

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Crookdotter]

I've never understood this attitude. Everything in the world is repetitive. Pick a game, ANY game. Football, darts, rugby, World Of Weirdos, Half Life, etc etc. They are ALL repetitive. That's what games are.
Spore might not be a good game, but being repetitive should never be seen as a negative. Games are repetitive, and repetitive != dull.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Amouth]

i miss that game - but i am still not intrestedin spore

Kids have been rubbing it in....

[Doug52392]

On a gaming community forum, some kid posted this days ago and said "HA HA"... (on Facepunch, http://forums.facepunchstudios.com/showthread.php?t=603042). He also posted in game screenshots...

I, for one, can't wait for SPORE! :D

Re:Kids have been rubbing it in....

[SupremoMan]

I see someone demanded the ultimate proof: "Make a penis vehicle. "

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Anonymous Coward]

most games 'quickly become very repetitive and dull', hasn't stopped anyone yet.

the big games now are FPS, which are the most boring and repetitive games ever.

-- all preceding comments were opinions, not facts.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[bothra]

I anticipate that Spore is going to get pretty boring pretty quickly FOR ME. It doesn't look like it'll have much replay value FOR ME.

FTFY

5 Days Early?

[Anonymous Coward]

Duh, it's because of time zones. When it's Thursday here in the states, it's like February in Australia.

Re:5 Days Early?

[VeNoM0619]

Which is why I always ask everyone who is east of me (USA)... whats it like in the future dude...? Totally excellent?

Re:What's so great about this game?

[jollyreaper]

I guess I should have elaborated, because I wasn't making a joke. Spore just looks like it will quickly become very repetitive and dull.

It's supposed to be a sandbox. Did you have a sandbox as a kid? I did. It was only as boring as the limits of your imagination.

Of course, if Spore turns out to be a crappy sandbox, then you can't really blame it for being boring. But Maxis has had a history of creating good sandboxes so I don't think I'll have to eat my words.

I just want Stephen Colbert to cover the game so we can see him do a Spore Report.

Australia isn't alone

[Masterwinks]

Apparently Spore is also released in other places too. People in Europe are also enjoying the game as we speak.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[brkello]

I think your definition and my definition of "elaborated" differs a great deal.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Captain Murdock]

Agreed. Halo is basically the same thing every time, but some people will still play consistently for months at a time.

convicts = underclass

[DrSkwid]

The convicts thing is because they criminalised being a member of the urban poor.
In my city, Nottingham, if you stole over the price of a loaf of bread you went to the gallows. Transportation was often for anti-social behaviour such as gossiping (I wish I was joking).
There's a list of 10,000 names in The Galleries of Justice. The role call of the underclass. The footings for the gallows are still in the street outside.

Re:convicts = underclass

[Anonymous Coward]

... In my city, Nottingham, if you stole over the price of a loaf of bread you went to the gallows. Transportation was often for anti-social behaviour such as gossiping (I wish I was joking). ... The footings for the gallows are still in the street outside.

So those transported to Australia were the pettiest of petty thieves and wag-tongues? Seems some of them of them have gotten a little better at thieving given the Spore prices mentioned above.

Now about the footings for the gallows... I reckon if you were to build a new gallows and stretch a few necks when Hanging Day rolled around you might manage to dissuade some of your youths from getting all stabby.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[bigstrat2003]

But c'mon, it's made by the same guy who made those other titles (or at least signed off on them) Will Wright.

That, by itself, means nothing. SimLife I haven't heard of, so I can't really judge it. But although I love SimCity, I think The Sims is pure shit, and is the worst idea for a non-game I've ever seen (seriously... if I want to live real life, I'll do it, not play a game about it). Surely I can't be the only one for whom Will Wright's name carries very little weight, just because his stuff is so hit-and-miss as to whether it'll be great or terrible.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

Wow, ok. So now it's flamebaiting to state a negative opinion about a game? What will Slashdotters think of next?

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

Some games are more repetitive than others, and some types of repetition are not as good as others. Spore looks like it'll get boring very quickly.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

Did I ever say that my post is to be taken as fact? Did I ever say that it isn't just my opinion?

This was also the case with other games

[SupremoMan]

I recall Civilization 4 expansion being released early in Australia by a good week. I was very pissed about that cause I preordered it. Then when it was finally my turn I went to pick it up, and some GameStop Douche sold it to another person...

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Mr. DOS]

Welcome to /., etc. etc. (Boy does it feel weird to be saying that to someone with a lower UID than mine.) I think you probably ended up with that just because you didn't explain why you felt that way. So, what makes you think it's going to be dull?

Personally, I don't think it's going to be anything close to dull as a whole (although some parts may be). Repetitive at the beginning of a new game/planet/whatever they're calling it, maybe, but if it plays out properly, it shouldn't be the same twice (unless you're really trying for that).

      --- Mr. DOS

Re:What's so great about this game?

[drachenstern]

SimLife is one of those that really makes you scratch your head. Compare also SimEarth, SimPark and SimAnt. Then there's the SimTower that was never part of the Sim series.

But then again, WW was responsible for the SimCity series, and that's one that most of us grew up on. I know I started with SimCity Classic and then loved SC2k and SC3, etc, so that's what I base my opine on. I have never personally played The Sims, so don't count me in the group of having to live through an avatar. Sounds cute, if you're a 14 yo girl. I'm not, so it never sounded that great. But most of us know a 14yo girl (or one that used to be 14 in the past 10 years), so we can at least ask someone if it was any good.

I think the key here is that WW has a knack for picking game concepts that are going to be intriguing. This one seems to have taken some of the best bits of several games and done a mashup, so we'll have to wait and see how it turns out.

As for me, if I have to pay $100 (or whatever) and then cough up another $xx to play online monthly, then I pass. I refuse to play those games, based on I've got better things to do with my time. But if it's like SC and battlenet [when I played SC on bn, it was free... don't know anymore], then I might check things out for $50 (US).

Re:What's so great about this game?

[bigstrat2003]

I'll agree that SimCity is great, and that Spore is intriguing... I'm just saying that I refuse to get hyped up about a game just because it has Will Wright's name on it, cause he's had some real duds too.

I'll yarr-harr Spore to see if it's any good, and if it is, I'll buy it. I'm not closed-minded, just cautious.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Anonymous Coward]

And here is the troll moderator from before.
You made a good point, so I gave you an insightful :)

Re:What's so great about this game?

[drachenstern]

Well yeah I agree about the "Will Wright stamp of approval".

You'll notice I was responding to an AC, so took a little liberty in making myself a "Will Wright" fanboi, but have a look at a little more obtuse game, that looks like it was the progenitor of Spore:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SimEarth:_The_Living_Planet

Re:What's so great about this game?

[tolomea]

Well...

Cell stage was kinda hectic and reminded me of flow, didn't get boring before it was time to move along.

Creature stage got boring and fast, maybe next time through I'll try something aside from killing everything in sight.

Tribe stage was fun and gave me a surprising amount of challenge for easy difficulty setting.

And then I was designing a town hall for the start of Civ stage when it crashed, rebuilding that is going to be tedious as hell.

I was going to buy this

[duckInferno]

until I heard about the draconian anti-consumer software installed (because that's what it is. anti consumer), so now I'm going to just wait for it to be cracked (one day? two?) and pirate it on principle. Anything more than a CD key can eat my dick.

Re:I was going to buy this

[Anonymous Coward]

Your opinion means nothing because you're just another piece of shit thief justifing your bad behaviour.

You're the root cause of why they put that shit in their products in the first place and why the PC market is dieing.

Nice going fucktard!

Re:I was going to buy this

[Anonymous Coward]

You're the root cause of why they put that shit in their products in the first place and why the PC market is dieing.

Eh, I'm not so sure about that. If companies think DRM software stops piracy, then they should be rather pissed at those who code it, because as seen by Spore being cracked already, it certainly isn't doing a very good job at it. I think it's known by now that morality, fear of the law, and incentive (online play and what have you) are the only things that stop someone from pirating a game.

What this DOES stop, however, would be a different sense of piracy than it is commonly used, not the online sort.. the sort from your average consumer who purchases the game and would lend it out to their friends and family members. A three install limit makes people think twice about this activity.

I am not saying this is an acceptable excuse for out and out not buying the game (though I do think the three install limit to be bullshit, but that's another matter), I just don't believe SecuROM is in place to stop people from downloading it.

Re:I was going to buy this

[duckInferno]

And DRM is the root cause of why "shit thieves" like me persist in this "bad behaviour". Which came first? The DRMs or the angry consumers?

I like to think I'm making a difference here by putting my foot down. I know I'm not the only one by a number of posts on the DRM issue in this article and many others. A number of developers (not just for software) intentionally stay away from DRM because they know consumers hate it. I'm contributing to that number by pocketing my wallet and browsing to the pirate bay. I call myself an idealist. You can call me what you want.

Re:I was going to buy this

[duckInferno]

Exactly. To go into further detail on my original post...

Overall outcome of using DRM:
- The game is cracked within a day, hindering the pirates about 0%.
- Some legit consumers are stung by the DRM to varying degrees. Some of these consumers either download a pirated copy or a crack to get their game to actually run. A good portion of these consumers will avoid the brand in the future.
- People who originally wanted to steal the product, still steal the product. No money lost from "lost sales". This group makes up the largest percentage of downloaders and forced with the options of paying for it vs. not playing it at all, they'll take the latter.
- A smaller number of people, who would have bought it, instead pirate it upon learning of the DRM. (hi!)
- The pirated copy is higher quality than a legit copy as it's the same product minus the DRM.
- The reputation of the vendor/developer suffers.
- The DRM provider, having pulled off a successful scam^H^H^H^Hsales pitch, makes a lot of money.

And yet...

[ekhben]

... we're still waiting on WALL-E.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Anonymous Coward]

Limited replay and boring? You have got to be kidding right? I think the idea is more you never really have to start over once you start but can keep going to your hearts desire. Create new worlds and races, perhaps play once warlike and another peacefully. Maybe go Borg like and go on a galactic conquest. Or predator and build your collection of heads of other races, hehe. Once you reach the highest stage "galactic", you can jump to any of the other stages and back again. Jump to different species, etc. I think the only reason it would really ever get boring is your limited imagination.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Jorophose]

All those Sims games were great. I still play them.

SimCity2000 and Sims Deluxe Edition + vacation are my personal favourites. I'd play SimAnt if there was a working windows version.

It's too bad they don't lump all the old sims software and sell it as a single package for like 20$. Better than having it rot on somebody's shelf somewhere, while we suffer. Or pull a Rockstar and put it up as downloadable for free.

Australia Confirmed

[Anonymous Coward]

I can confirm this, I live in Australia and had pre-ordered the Galatic Edition. Was a little surprised when I got a call Monday to say it would be in Tuesday, but rocked up at the game store and hooray spore was mine.
Had to wait the entire day of work before I could get home and play it, but once I did it played fine. Connected to my account from the creature creator and off I went.
I haven't seen anything besides Maxis created creatures yet though. I don't know if that is because the populating server isn't running or there just isn't many there.

But yes we have it and yes its running. Yes it has a couple of bugs :( But nothing deal breaking.

Pussy Nazi Sez

[Anonymous Coward]

No pussy for YOU!

Re:What's so great about this game?

[GaryPatterson]

I remember buying it so long ago, but the hype was too much for the game to live up to.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eco_(computer_game)

Screenshots from the Atari-ST version:
http://www.mobygames.com/game/atari-st/eco/screenshots

Ah, memories...

Meh...

[Anonymous Coward]

It's hardly a consolation considering we get most other games later than other places, if at all...and we lack an R18+ classification for video games which means games need to be reworked for Australian release.

Re:"Huge markup for apparently no reason" = ask go

[PopeGumby]

Why Melbourne?

NOT 5 days early

[Anonymous Coward]

It's only actually been released 2 days early as Australia has an official release date of September 4th.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

Just because you can do lots of things doesn't mean those things won't quickly become shallow and uninteresting.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[meringuoid]

I loved SimEarth. I always used to do horribly abusive things in it, though. Life quality for my sentients was rarely better than Hellish. I remember once I'd boiled off the oceans, but somehow preserved life and ended up with a jungle world looking something like a 19th-century dream of Venus. The avian race that prevailed there ended up hitting the Exodus while there were still a few information-age cities in the world. So the fast-spreading info-age cities replaced the nanotech cities the moment they left, then transitioned straight back up to nanotech, then took off in their turn... an endless stream of sentients getting the hell out of my monstrous hellhole of a planet.

I liked creating the hidden robot species, too. There wasn't much could survive in competition with them. I did manage it once: with dinosaurs. Dinosaurs versus robots: someone should make that movie.

Already cracked

[Anonymous Coward]

and released by RELOADED. Get the torrent here http://www.mininova.org/tor/1763526

Early release date for everybody.

Re:"Huge markup for apparently no reason" = ask go

[mabinogi]

It has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with GST.

Games here have always been around $100, starting from when that was a direct exchange rate conversion from US dollars.
Now the US dollar is worth less than toilet paper, but the local price hasn't changed.
GST has NOTHING to do with it.

And just for your information, your geography seems to be about 100 years out of date.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Vehstijul]

Defensive, much?

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

What the fuck are you talking about?

Re:What's so great about this game?

[Das Modell]

Protip: learn what "context" means before you go around using mod points. It can't be that hard.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[raynet]

Ah, ECO, I am pretty sure it was more awesome that it now looks.

Re:Too expensive - If you buy retail

[Dan B.]

Your a geek, shop online like the rest of us
http://www.cheapgames.com.au/spore-pc-p-2032.html - A$74.95

Buy + torrent

[Dan B.]

Sadly this is what many will do, including myself. I don't want to break the law or support piracy, but I am mad keen on checking out the game after spending hours on the creature creator.

Thus I have ordered my copy of the game, yet the torrent is currently running. I wont ever run out of account activations but I'll be damned if I am letting a game install what is essentially Malware on my PC.

Re:What's so great about this game?

[bassmodel]

i used to imagine my sandbox was a sandbox when i was a kid, but that just lead to a really nasty feedback loop destroying years of my youth and gnawing deeply into the joys that could have been my young adulthood. hell, i just got off the potty trainer last year. so, unlike Das Modell, it is not boredom i fear, rather it's playing Spore inside a game of Spore inside a game of Spore inside a game of Spore inside a game of Spore inside a game of Spore inside a game of Spore...