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Posts with tag Spore

DS Fanboy Interview: Griptonite's J.C. Connors on Spore Creatures and more

Posted Sep 15th 2008 12:00PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Interviews, Features


Spore has been much more than a game over the years - years! -- that we've been talking about it, and it's tough to produce a companion piece in the shadow of such an epic project. From the reception of Spore and the DS crony, it's sadly clear the two were destined to sink or swim together. But Spore Creatures deserves its own time in the sun, despite what you may have heard; for a handheld title, it's certainly ambitious, and the amazing development team at Griptonite Games has done more with less.

Griptonite Games has worn several nametags in the past few years. When last we spoke with them, they were Amaze Entertainment, and their own identity as Griptonite was shelved. Now, Amaze is a part of Foundation 9 and the Griptonite name has been dusted off. In all the chaos of nomenclature, one thing has remained a constant: this little corner of the development world has been responsible for some real gems. We recently sat down with studio head J.C. Connors to discuss Spore Creatures, our Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night (GBA) withdrawals, and the unexpected excellence of Disney Friends (yeah, man, Disney Friends).

DS Fanboy: Spore Creatures is an interesting companion to the main title. What can you tell us about the best aspects of the DS game?

J.C. Connors: Hands down, the creature creator. It's one of the coolest features ever seen on the DS.

Gallery: Spore Creatures


NEXT >>

Metareview: Spore Creatures

Posted Sep 12th 2008 7:30PM by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: Metareview



With all the current hype surrounding Spore, even ardent DS fanboys such as ourselves have to strain to recall Spore Creatures. It looks like a totally different game to its PC counterpart, and we quite enjoyed it when we went hands-on at GDC '08. So which is it: the sleek, refined alpha member of its species, or a sloppy afterthought of a game, heading for history's rubbish bin? We copied and pasted some other people's thoughts to find out!
  • IGN (78%) gave the game one of its better reviews, praising its sense of fun and creativity: "Spore Creatures isn't intended as a replacement for the core PC Spore experience -- it's meant to compliment that design with a unique experience that lifts many of the core elements. And for the most part it succeeds in that task: this is a fun, involved, albeit more linear DS experience with a few quirks that get in the way, but even with those quirks it's great to experience a game on the more limited handheld with a similar sense of creativity that PC gamers will have in Spore."
  • Eurogamer (5/10) isn't so keen, arguing the game is crippled by its linear nature: "What it doesn't offer is any sort of Free Play option where you can do your own thing. You can indulge your creative desires or you can play the game. You can't really do both at the same time in any satisfying way, which suggests that "linear action adventure" simply wasn't the right direction to take the Spore concept for its handheld outing."
  • GameSpot's (65%) Kevin VanOrd just couldn't emotionally bond with his creations: "It's still a cute adventure across multiple planets, and it features a pared-down version of the creature creation tool that helped make the PC release such a success. It has some annoying quirks, and it won't inspire an emotional connection between you and your digital doppelganger, but Spore Creatures is still a pleasant diversion and an appealing, if ordinary, companion to its bigger brother."

Gallery: Spore Creatures


This post is a part of our Metareview category, but we also like reviewing things ourselves, and making sure our voice is heard. We're conceited and self-absorbed like that.

Reimagining the Zelda franchise's characters as Spore Creatures

Posted Jun 23rd 2008 6:00PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: Fan stuff


The internet has been set on fire by the recent release of Spore Creature Creator, which has been used to create not only some really weird and interesting things, but also variations of characters found in other games. Above, you'll see 19 different characters from The Legend of Zelda games.

The full spectrum of characters is covered, from the incredibly annoying Navi, right down to the ferocious Beast Ganon. So check out the video above.

[Via Go Nintendo]

Spore Creatures evolves new screens, Japanese release date

Posted Jun 16th 2008 12:30PM by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: News, Screens



In the beginning, there was a confirmation.

Shortly thereafter, a release date and gameplay details emerged from the primordial ooze a Newsweek interview, and an involuntary chemical reaction a Joystiq hands-on session soon produced screens. Then, for some time, nothing. Until this morning, that is, when we found that the screens had suddenly multiplied in number, and had inhabited our gallery!

The newly developed screens were joined by boxart for the Japanese version of the game, which sort of reminded us of Pokémon Trozei!'s box, and a Japanese release date: September 11th.

So goes the ongoing story of the evolution of Spore Creatures.

Gallery: Spore Creatures

GDC08: More like Cubispore

Posted Feb 21st 2008 8:00PM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News

Nintendo had a playable demo of Spore Creatures at their booth, and I availed myself of the (scaled-down) miracle of (simulated) life. I don't know about the scope of the full game, having played for just a few minutes, but the initial stage of the game was easy to understand.

Starting out as a small creature with just a pair of eyes and a little worm-like body, the game paired me with an identical friend. This friend walked me over to a "nest" where I could add a part -- in this case, a mouth. You use mouths to eat things! Different parts give different attributes -- how much can be eaten, what type of food the creature prefers, and such. In addition, they add to your social ability. I chose one based on the unofficial "looking hilarious" attribute.

After this I was shown how to make friends. To engage another creature, you call out to it and then sort of pet it with the stylus (really). If you're social enough, they'll be your friend and can be asked to dance (in a Samba-esque minigame) and even follow you. After this, I was led into combat, which involves clicking on a "fight" icon and then scratching away at the creature.

Really, more than anything, Spore Creatures reminds me of an expanded Cubivore, with friends instead of just enemies, and expanded combat based on more than just eating. This is a good thing.

Gallery: Spore Creatures

Spore Creatures producer Jason Haber talks up the game

Posted Feb 19th 2008 5:00PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: News

To say that Spore Creatures is a radical departure from the PC game is an incredible understatement. But, we're not complaining, because hardware limitations on the DS are a lot harder to work with than say, oh ... a PC. But that doesn't mean all hope for the game is lost, as producer Jason Haber says Spore Creatures will be worth your time.

One of the things that has been most criticized about Spore Creatures is its look. Haber describes the inspiration for the look of the game as being from "the look and feel of flat Japanese rod puppets and shadow box art, and how their creators would customize scenes to bring them to life." He goes on further, adding that this "was something that we wanted our players to be able to do on the DS, allowing the game to feel completely unique while supporting an intuitive and open editing system."

Haber also hinted a bit in regards to DS-to-Wii functionality, responding to the question with "for Wii features and connectivity, we have not announced anything in particular, but that is the future and who can really predict the future?" The remainder of the interview is pretty interesting, so be sure to give it a read.

Gallery: Spore Creatures

DS Daily: Spore, Spore, Spore (How Do You Like It)

Posted Feb 15th 2008 9:00AM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: DS Daily

EA recently revealed the design for the DS Spore game, Spore Creatures. To be blunt, it's ... not the whole Spore. Instead of shrinking the whole game down for the DS format, Maxis decided to make a different, smaller-scale game about the life and adventures of one evolving critter. We kind of assume they know what they're doing (they're Maxis), and we know that Will Wright is a fan of the DS, so we have reason to believe that this is a good decision.

But we aren't sure. Are we getting screwed over by a half-assed Spore, or has Maxis made the right decision by designing a more portable-friendly game? Obviously we haven't all played it, but we're sure you have some kind of feelings already.

Gallery: Spore Creatures

Europe to get Spore two days early

Posted Feb 13th 2008 6:00PM by Candace Savino
Filed under: News

According to Maxis's Patrick Buechner, "Europe is the priority for Spore." After years of being shafted and having to wait while American and Japanese gamers get titles first, how does that make all of you in Euroland feel?

Of course, it helps that there's a ton of PC gamers in Europe. Fortunately, for those of you planning to get the DS version known as Spore Creatures, the games are set to release on both platforms (and Macs) simultaneously.

The goal for the European release is September 5th, which happens to be two days before the American one. Buechner also says that these dates are very makeable, so gamers shouldn't expect delays. We can't help but be a little bit skeptical on that issue, but we're willing to believe him for now.

Gallery: Spore Creatures

Joystiq gets their hands dirty with Spore Creatures

Posted Feb 13th 2008 12:00PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: News

For many of you, yesterday's news meant that life would have to take a break on September 7th of this year. Friends will be lost and your job will likely alter to one of playing God instead of filing paperwork like you currently do. Yup, it should be a very good year.

That is, until we read up on Joystiq's impressions with the DS version of Will Wright's game. First of all, it's being developed by Foundation 9 and not Maxis. Although Maxis did say they're handling "design" internally, we're not all too pleased to know that another developer is making this game and it won't be under the scrutinizing eye of Will Wright day and night.

Second, this game is going to be very different from Spore on the PC. In Spore Creatures, you're abducted by aliens, along with a pal of yours, and you must go on a long quest to save your friend. You'll make other friends, evolve and fight to survive. But, the focus is clearly on collecting items and maintaining one creature, rather than all of the awesome stuff one can do in the PC game.

That isn't to say that Spore: Creatures is a completely lost cause. The game will allow players to trade creatures over Wi-Fi Connect, so we're glad to see that. Also, the creature creation system sounds robust, from what Joystiq found. And, also the game will benefit from a good stylus-driven control scheme.

Gallery: Spore Creatures

Spore gets dated for September as DS details emerge

Posted Feb 12th 2008 4:00PM by Candace Savino
Filed under: News

Well, butter my butt and call me a biscuit. It seems that Spore has finally been given a release date (or at least, the DS, PC, Mac, and mobile phone versions were). The much anticipated game will be gracing our favorite dual-screened portable on September 7th. Yes, that's quite a long way away, but it's better than the "possibly 2009, but who really knows?" window we had before.

We're wondering, though -- how many of you potential Spore buyers plan to get Will Wright's game for the DS? While there's been a lot of hype for the game, it's usually not on the handheld front. The lack of excitement might be slightly justified, however. Obviously, the DS and mobile phone games are going to suffer some cutbacks when compared to their computer counterparts.

According to a Newsweek interview with Lucy Bradshaw, the vice president of Maxis and executive producer of Spore, the DS version will be called Spore Creatures and will focus mainly on creature creation. The title will also have a different, Japanese-based art style, and features "unique abilities" for the creatures in the game. The Wi-Fi will be similar to that of the PC and Mac titles, however, and allow players to trade or share their creations with friends.

While the game might not be as deep as the computer ones, it still appears to be pretty epic, so having the option to carry it around at all times might be a good thing.

Hey, and it beats getting the mobile phone version, amirite?

[Via Joystiq]

Creator of Harvest Moon interested in making a game like Spore

Posted Dec 4th 2007 5:00PM by Candace Savino
Filed under: News


Is anyone else interested in some sort of Spore meets Harvest Moon hybrid? If you are, the future might very well be a rosy place, indeed, because Harvest Moon creator Yasuhiro Wada dreams of making a game similar to Will Wright's creation sim. He recently told Gamasutra, "Eventually, I'd like to make something like Spore, where you create something, and from there, new stuff is going to be created again and again and again ... But you want to be one of the people living in the city, and to be a part of this growing too."

Wada also said that King's Story (which was his concept) was originally supposed to be more like Spore than what it turned into. We like how King's Story is shaping up, so we're not really bothered that it deviated from its original idea, but it still would be nice to see Wada's true vision ultimately realized. Hopefully we'll one day see this Spore-like game that he wishes to make.

DS Daily: How about EA?

Posted Feb 5th 2007 9:00AM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Features

It's no secret we're ten sorts of excited about the coming of Sim City DS, but despite the unabashed fun of city building, we know a whole lot of folks who aren't terribly excited about EA pledging to increase development for Nintendo. It's a tradeoff, it seems -- we want games like Spore and Sim City, but everyone loves to hate EA. Does it balance? Is it worth slogging through a bevy of less beloved EA games to get the gems that crop up? How do you feel about EA and Nintendo setting up as best good friends?

DS is "interesting" for Spore

Posted Aug 9th 2006 2:57PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: News

IGN has an interview with SimPapa Will Wright about his plans for Spore, the universe-creation sim scheduled for PC next year. While Wright says that right now, they're focused on creating Spore for the PC, he would like to see it become a full-fledged power franchise, and he points right at the DS as a possibility.

Wright, who recently pointed to the lack of a mouse for consoles as a problem for simulation games, said, "the DS is also very interesting to us, as its control scheme could be very manageable for the game." While the stylus is no mouse, it can certainly provide similar functionality and perhaps even more precision in some cases.

Sadly, Wright's comments on Spore beyond the PC make any possible plans sound very long range ....

[Thanks, vidGuy!]

Will Wright confirms Spore will hit the DS

Posted Mar 23rd 2006 5:00PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: Interviews, News

Ray Almeda, of AMN, sat down with the Spore creator yesterday evening and asked if gamers would be able to play the upcoming title on the DS (and Sony's handheld...thing), with which he responded "Yes...definitely."

Will's past attempts in gaming have been nothing but gold, with his Simcity and The Sims franchises being easily accessible to people in all walks of life (heck, some of my assignments back in middle school were to build fully-functioning cities in Simcity) and pushed the envelope of conventional game design. It's no wonder that so many eyes are on him and his upcoming project. We just hope Spore on the DS will be WiFi compatible in some way.

Spore is currently slated for a 2007 release.

 [Update: Definitely fixed a typo.]

Spore growing on the DS?

Posted Mar 21st 2006 11:47AM by Ludwig Kietzmann
Filed under: News

An article over at Gaming Steve (who still frightens us with his hollow and glassy stare) states that at the ongoing Game Developer's Conference, EA's mobile division announced that several of their key franchises would be headed to "mobile" devices. Last time we checked, the DS was a mobile device (yes, even the Phat one), meaning that there's a distinct possibility that the likes of Battlefield, Sin City, Medal of Honor, Sims, Need for Speed (you know, those old chestnuts) and, more importantly, Spore, could be hitting the DS sometime in the future. To be more specific, sometime in 2006.

Let's think about that for a second. Though the game would no doubt be scaled down from the complexity it enjoys on the PC, generating a small society in the palm of your hand and gently nudging your little organisms to work and grow into impressive beasts with a stylus is not something we'd likely turn down. In fact, we're quite sure we'd viciously pluck it straight from Will Wright's hands and snarl at anyone who attempts to take it away.

[Thanks Brian!]

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