Spore, my Impressions...

[lozina]

Originally posted by: AstroManLuca

He's really into RTS games so he was naturally disappointed with the RTS elements. He wishes he could have more control over his city's layout, as well as more options for fighting units.

Yeah check this out. As mentioned there is only one resource: food. You can buy a building (using food, oddly) which is a fisherman hut. You can then make a villager a fisherman by selected them and right clicking the hut. They walk to the hut and they grab some fishing pole thingie. Then you can send them to a fishing spot to fish.

There is no cost to making that fihsing pole, and your villager can fish all year long and never get any better. Then if you get attacked you can literally have the same villager walk to the "axe hut" pick up a free axe which is created out of thin air and the villager is suddenly as fierce a warrior as the raiders.

I really wish there was a slight rpg element to each villager, so if they stayed an axeman and fought for a time they get better, while a fisherman too gains skill while fishing, etc..

Also wish they at least had 2 more resources: stone and wood. To build tools and structures.

 

[Nizbot]

This game was not intended for hardcore gamers. It's pretty obvious. It's still a very enjoyable "strategy" game that many different types of people can enjoy.

 

[TidusZ]

If spore didn't have all the hype it received, nobody would of noticed and the reviews would of been ~7/10 where they belong. Its an amazing game for kids, but otherwise its a waste of time.

 

[Anubis]

Originally posted by: TidusZ
If spore didn't have all the hype it received, nobody would of noticed and the reviews would of been ~7/10 where they belong. Its an amazing game for kids, but otherwise its a waste of time.

i only heard about it because of the DRM issue and them getting mad at people for making giant TIT creatures on the with the creature creator a few months ago, i still don?t really know what this game is all about

 

[warcrow]

**POSSIBLE SPOILERS**

I made it to the center of the Galaxy. A funny little cutscene takes place blah blah and they bestow upon me the "Staff of Life". It has the ability to transform a planet with a status of T0 (think Mars) into a T3 (Earth).
Captured some footage of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmAucvH0-gQ

(at the end there, you can see me planting a colony)

 

[mindcycle]

LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: mindcycle
LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

man that's hillarious near the end when he does the tea bagging gesture

 

[Jeff7181]

Originally posted by: mindcycle
LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

Some of those are pretty hilarious... amazing how sensitive people are about stuff like that. Don't like it? Don't play it/don't look at it. Don't have to download content from other players if you don't want things like that.

 

[AstroManLuca]

Man, I can't tell if that antispore guy is for real or not. His writing is so crazy it seems like he's just trying to parody the people who got all offended by the game.

 

[KaOTiK]

Originally posted by: mindcycle
LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

lmao that penis monster one, omg hahahha

 

[Modular]

Originally posted by: KaOTiK

Originally posted by: mindcycle
LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

lmao that penis monster one, omg hahahha

That one is hilarious.

 

[mindcycle]

Originally posted by: AstroManLuca
Man, I can't tell if that antispore guy is for real or not. His writing is so crazy it seems like he's just trying to parody the people who got all offended by the game.

I thought that at first too. Sadly, some people are just that stupid.. So i'm going with it's real.

 

[Red Storm]

I guess I'm one of the few who actually enjoys the game then. People complained that features that were shown off during early stages were later removed... almost every game out there does this. The devs have to do all they can to hype it up as much as possible. That being said, I'm really enjoying Spore. The creature and space stages are definitely where the game shines the most. I'd definitely say it was worth the cost.

 

[Red Storm]

Originally posted by: lozina
Yeah check this out. As mentioned there is only one resource: food. You can buy a building (using food, oddly) which is a fisherman hut. You can then make a villager a fisherman by selected them and right clicking the hut. They walk to the hut and they grab some fishing pole thingie. Then you can send them to a fishing spot to fish.

There is no cost to making that fihsing pole, and your villager can fish all year long and never get any better. Then if you get attacked you can literally have the same villager walk to the "axe hut" pick up a free axe which is created out of thin air and the villager is suddenly as fierce a warrior as the raiders.

I really wish there was a slight rpg element to each villager, so if they stayed an axeman and fought for a time they get better, while a fisherman too gains skill while fishing, etc..

Also wish they at least had 2 more resources: stone and wood. To build tools and structures.

These are villages, not modern civilizations. There are no standing armies. Every tribe member participates in just about all the actions. As for their weapons and tools popping out of thin air.... you mean like in almost every other RTS game where units magically appear next to a barracks or a building goes from piles of bricks to completed in the blink of an eye?

 

[videogames101]

Originally posted by: mindcycle

Originally posted by: AstroManLuca
Man, I can't tell if that antispore guy is for real or not. His writing is so crazy it seems like he's just trying to parody the people who got all offended by the game.

I thought that at first too. Sadly, some people are just that stupid.. So i'm going with it's real.

I honestly can't tell.

 

[Dumac]

I played for a couples hours, and I'm currently about halfway through the creature phase.

I really enjoyed the cell phase. I thought the whole experience was fleshed out, and I liked how big of an impact the design of your creature had upon how he worked. If the cell phase was more fully fleshed out, with more customizable organisms and way more than 12 parts, I would play it as it's own game.

I'm not liking the creature phase quite as much, but it's still interesting to see other creatures and control the development of mine.

 

[Nutdotnet]

Originally posted by: Red Storm
I guess I'm one of the few who actually enjoys the game then. People complained that features that were shown off during early stages were later removed... almost every game out there does this. The devs have to do all they can to hype it up as much as possible. That being said, I'm really enjoying Spore. The creature and space stages are definitely where the game shines the most. I'd definitely say it was worth the cost.

Me too, I'm really having fun with it. Although I'm not a hardcore gamer. Building my creature is pretty sick...and seeing what other people have built and having them inhabit my planet is pretty cool too.

 

[QuantumPion]

I just got the game last night, half way thru creature phase.

I agree with most of the comments here:
a) The DRM totally blows. I was considering not buying it at all, but broke down and decided to screw it and just buy it. It will be the last time I ever buy a DRM'ed game if it causes me any head ache.
b) The installer did not work in vista x64. The game installed, but did not create any icons to run it. Furthermore, I can't create my own shortcut to run the game, it just crashes. I have to actually run the program by clicking the actual executable in the sporebin directory. I had the same problem with the creature creator.
c) The graphics aren't great, but good enough.
d) The game is very easy. It is not counter-strike or civilization, etc. It is a game made for the non-gaming masses IMO. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, I like having a fun easy game to chill out with every now and then. However, I think the replayability and overall value is low for this reason. The game just lacks depth in the long run.
e) The music, animations, and overall presentation are deicdedly maxis/will wright-ish. Super cute.

 

[Crafty35a]

Originally posted by: QuantumPion

b) The installer did not work in vista x64. The game installed, but did not create any icons to run it. Furthermore, I can't create my own shortcut to run the game, it just crashes. I have to actually run the program by clicking the actual executable in the sporebin directory. I had the same problem with the creature creator.

In Vista, it doesn't create a shortcut in the Start Menu or desktop -- it will be in your Games folder (Start -> Games).

 

[BigDH01]

I was disappointed with Spore as I find it to be quite boring. The first time playing through, I even stopped for a few hours because it couldn't maintain my attention. After looking at the gameplay video posted earlier in this thread, I must admit that I am now majorly disappointed. I just watched the first couple of minutes but there are already things that pop out. There is no underwater stage. You go straight from ooze to land. The attacks aren't customized to your weapons. I have a big spike at the end of my tail in Spore but it is never used to attack the enemy. My creature just does a generic swipe and bite. And although I haven't played around with it much, you can't drag bodies after you've killed a creature. The demo looked much more serious and in depth than the actual game.

The game was a real bore fest for me. I play SimCity, Civ, and Total War and like them all. I think this game is trying to be a lite version of all of those but fails miserably to keep my attention. The stages aren't terribly connected nor are the powers you take to the next level terribly useful. The design of your creature is pretty much irrelevant once you hit stage 3. Stage 3 is a shallow and tedious RTS game that reminds me of Warcraft (only a lot less fun). Stage 4 is more like C&C, but again, much, much more shallow. The building/vehicle creator is neat but really has little impact on the game itself. I've only played some space games like Gal Civ but Spore falls short here as well. And again, the earlier stages don't necessarily affect how you do here.

Bottom line, this game really is just a collection of mini games, mini games that all fall short of alternatives in their genres. If my creature doesn't carry over well into the tribal and civ phases, why don't I just play better RTS and civ-based games? They are far more fun and in-depth and I don't have to waste my time creating a creature that doesn't matter.

Not to be condescending to anyone, but this game is for people that are more into design than gameplay, want an easy game after a long day, or are under the age of 12. I think most RTS and RPG players will be disappointed and regret spending money on this game. And I haven't even mentioned the DRM.

 

[smoothvirus]

Originally posted by: mindcycle
LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

She.

If it's a fake site it's absolutely brilliant - back in the day myself and some of the other posters at the now-defunct cruel.com website used to pull stunts like this.

This blog perfectly balances along the line of "insane, but not so insane that it might actually be real."

 

[smoothvirus]

I'm enjoying the game so far. Back when the creature creator came out I downloaded a bunch of creatures from my favorite movies/TV shows/books. Right now I am in the creature stage and it's fun to come across the hill and meet a bunch of the Gazurtoid from the old DOS game, Starflight. (The Gazurtoid are mean as hell BTW) Another time I was wandering around and came across a Night Stalker from Dougal Dixon's 1981 book, After Man. Except it was 50 feet tall.

Imagine seeing a giant version of this thing: http://www.mun.ca/biology/scarr/Dixon_Night_Stalker.jpg

 

[Smilin]

Originally posted by: mindcycle
LOL http://antispore.com/

Check it out if only for the videos he has posted.

I'm pretty sure that nutbag has started a few anti-vista threads over in the OS forum too. He seems strangely familiar.

 

[TheVrolok]

Originally posted by: Red Storm
I guess I'm one of the few who actually enjoys the game then. People complained that features that were shown off during early stages were later removed... almost every game out there does this. The devs have to do all they can to hype it up as much as possible. That being said, I'm really enjoying Spore. The creature and space stages are definitely where the game shines the most. I'd definitely say it was worth the cost.

I agree. I'm a hardcore gamer, and I still don't mind playing this relaxed, easy game. It's a nice break from the more advanced games. I don't sit and play it for multiple hours on end like I've done with my difficult/hardcore games. I play an hour here, or 45 mins there, and I like that. It's a nice "got a spare half hour" game to play when I get home from work before I go to the gym. I've probably played for 6 or 7 hours and I'm enjoying myself - no, it's not the most entertaining game I've ever played, and no, it isn't as open ended as some of the hype made it seem (but did anyone really believe it would live up to that hype?), but it's not bad at all.

Oh, and as a note, the evil DRM (not that I enjoy DRM, I don't, but I don't blow it out of proportion either) has caused me 0 problems. The same amount of issues I received while installing/playing Bioshock, Crysis, and Mass Effect combined.

 

[KeithTalent]

Finally got this yesterday. Played through the way too short cell stage, grew my legs, hit land with my buddies, then I had to go to bed.

I'm having a lot of fun so far and the game looks quite good with everything maxed at 1920x1200; colours are vibrant and the world feels very lively. I plan on doing the next stage tonight. The only part that is disappointing me, strangely, is the sound. I was expecting a lot more depth to the soundtrack, something that felt more, I don't know, epic? I'm certainly not feeling that and it actually detracts from the game a bit. I do have a minor graphical glitch, whenever the writing comes on the screen at the bottom (announcing a milestone or whatever) the screen starts to flicker. It may just be a Crossfire thing, so I'll have to try disabling that.

I'm the same TheVrolok when it comes to the DRM no problems whatsoever, same as with Crysis and Bioshock.

Anyway, so far so good.

KT