Spore

[SkylerOcon]

I just want an elongated version of each stage. And did I mention that I wanted the game to be hard in some way shape or form?

 

[Pluvia's other account]

I just want a bit more depth.

 

[Crimson King]

The game is ridiculously easy. It is however very frustrating. The whole Grox thing has left such a sour taste in my mouth that I can't even play the game and enjoy it. I am trying to make the entire center nothing but my allies and we attack that Grox but they have about 1,000 star systems. It's not hard to beat them, just ridiculously tedious.

 

[SkylerOcon]

I just got so bored with the Space Age that I stopped playing.

Step 1) Fly through hoops
Step 2) Go out to space and terriform something
Step 3) Go out to space and blow something up
Step 4) Go out to space and get an ally
Step 5) repeat steps 2-4

 

[Witchking_of_Angmar]

I don't play Spore for the fun of the stages at all anymore; that wears off very quickly. Really, the stages are all rather shallow, easy, and way too short, on every level. The only reason I still really love this game is because if you look a tad bit closer, there's a bunch of things you can do just to **** around, and because of your creatures. I've turned to simply using the game to see how my creature would act in each different phase, to see the creature in action, per se. I know, the test mode can show you how it moves, but it's nothing like taking your creature and lovingly guiding it to the top of the food chain in creature phase.

Also, I'm trying to see if I can't be a decent Spore artist (as in, someone that gets featured creatures). Apparently, there's a lot of advanced techniques out there, and I'll see if I can't put some of that to good use. The Creators are the only "good" part of the game. For some reason, the game can be terribly trashy at times, and amazingly addictive at others.

 

[QED]

I read the first few pages and then I read the last few pages. I love the difference between the hype before the relase and the opinions after playing the game.

So many expectations and failure(controversial?) of delivering: lack of depth, too easy, tedious, etc. Sounds oddly familiar on the smashboard forums, no? *wink wink* ;D

Whatever the gameplay opinions are, I think we all can agree that DRM (secuROM and whatnot) is a horrible insult to the consumer. Not many people want to "rent" a mediocre game for 50 dollars.

 

[pay.$.]

i liked the game, i thinks its good, im in the space stage and i like it but finding the groxs and then what do i do? go to the center or do i kill all the groxs, all 100000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000.01 of them and i dont know what to do. is there some great power at the center or not?

 

[CodeBlack]

I read the first few pages and then I read the last few pages. I love the difference between the hype before the relase and the opinions after playing the game.

So many expectations and failure(controversial?) of delivering: lack of depth, too easy, tedious, etc. Sounds oddly familiar on the smashboard forums, no? *wink wink* ;D

Whatever the gameplay opinions are, I think we all can agree that DRM (secuROM and whatnot) is a horrible insult to the consumer. Not many people want to "rent" a mediocre game for 50 dollars.

Well, reviews change depending on who you ask.

I've seen just as many people criticize the game for lack of depth as people who praise the game for it's varied gameplay. Some people state the tedious parts of the space race as being the ruin of the whole game, while others consider them only minor annoyances, while lauding (am I using that word right?) the exploration and terraforming aspect. It's all relative.

Though the first group does outnumber the second on this specific forum.

As for difficulty... well, it's a Will Wright game. Difficulty isn't the point.

 

[Witchking_of_Angmar]

i liked the game, i thinks its good, im in the space stage and i like it but finding the groxs and then what do i do? go to the center or do i kill all the groxs, all 100000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000.01 of them and i dont know what to do. is there some great power at the center or not?

Once you get to the center (you don't even have to destroy the Grox) you get a cutscene, a certain power, and the story part of the game is basically over.

 

[Crimson King]

Yep, then you have nothing to do but return home, babysit, explore, babysit, terraform while babysitting, etc. etc. etc.

 

[Witchking_of_Angmar]

Screw dem babies, let em die, I say. I just cheat myself a couple mil spore dollars and max out every planet. If one of my planets does end up croaking, who the **** cares?

But really, even if you take that approach it's not that much fun anymore if the only goal you have is getting more badges/achievements. Which is why I mostly just use the designers right now.

 

[Crimson King]

Yes, when a game can only be passable by cheating, it's not my definition of fun.

 

[CodeBlack]

Yes, when a game can only be passable by cheating, it's not my definition of fun.

Well, technically it's not. You just suffered a glitch in random generation. Anything that uses random generation runs the risk of this problem, and, given that it's only one bit of the game, that the game is, as a Will Wright game, the game is still open ended even if you destroy them, and the replay value of the other stages, it doesn't exactly destroy the game, especially it's not preventing you from playing.

I just felt the need to say that, feel free to ignore that...




And now on to the actual point of this post:

Those patches that everyone said were going to be released are out, by the way. One of the things they've fixed is the overoccurrence of attacks and crises in Space Mode, as well as adding a few cool new things.

Has anyone gotten them yet? I'm having problems myself. It automatically starts downloading and such when I launch the game, but when it gets to the verification stage, a popup suddenly comes up and states that the files have been modified and that I must reinstall. Every single time I've tried to install for the past week. When I look at the log of the installation, nothing comes up... Of course, since I have a Mac, this is the only way to install the patches, and I can't do the sensible thing and just download the files directly from the site.

Anyone else have this problem?

 

[Crimson King]

They've been out for a while. I am waiting for the patch that makes the Space Phase fun. I really lost all interest in going from generic planet to generic planet and starting from the ground up while babysitting allies' planets.

 

[CodeBlack]

They've been out for a while. I am waiting for the patch that makes the Space Phase fun. I really lost all interest in going from generic planet to generic planet and starting from the ground up while babysitting allies' planets.

That's a whole To-Each-His-Own type thing there, though... What you call boring (particularly exploring planet after planet) is what many people find to be the most fun. It all depends on your perspective.

 

[Crimson King]

I just can't find anything fun with have an empire that I can't do anything with.

I had a 50 + planet empire, making millions, the problem? I have to go to every planet to collect ore. WHAT THE ****? Then the Grox are still in the way from me exploring everything, and my allies can't defend themselves at all. There just isn't any fun to be had.

 

[Crimson King]

Anyone still playing this?

 

[Charizard92]

Hello. No wait. Yes, I have been playing this game (practically all my creatures are raptors), Yes, I got the expansion pack. No, I'm not playing it now.

 

[Thrillhouse-vh.]

Anyone still playing this?

My younger brother plays creature stage over and over (I don't blame him).

I was thinking of starting another society from Cell stage up.

 

[notftomearth7]

Okay, this the first game that I would legitimately pay $100 for. This is a god game that goes beyond what any other God game has done before, and it's 10x more interesting and fulfilling than the Sims.

 

[Crimson King]

Wait until you hit Space. You will retract ALL of that.

 

[notftomearth7]

Wait until you hit Space. You will retract ALL of that.

Why would I retract that? Spore is so awesome I don't think anything could ruin it.

 

[Narukari]

Spore to me just felt like 5 minigames packaged together.

Way too much hype was put on this game, like when Discovery Channel showed this game as an "Evolution Simulator". I wanted my bacteria to form a creature based on how it behavied, not just some cutscene that says your protozoan is now a creature. Then let you change it in any manner you want. I was also hoping for some of my offspring to end up with mutations, and if the mutation would keep the creature alive, then it would grow up to have more offspring. Not the weird equip system it had.

Needless to say I am now boycotting EA Games until they fix their DRM problems. I bought the games and now I get less access to them than the pirates.

 

[Crimson King]

Why would I retract that? Spore is so awesome I don't think anything could ruin it.

Space is the most repetitive, monotonous, and boring aspect of any game I have ever played. The first time you get invaded is exactly like that last time you get invaded. To collect minerals, you have to visit every planet. This is a game that actually penalizes you for expanding.

 

[notftomearth7]

This is a game that actually penalizes you for expanding.

WHAT? Why would it do that? Isn't that the whole point of the game? And besides, I think it would be rather fun to be invaded. Call me foolish but none of those things you mentioned make me want to retract my original statement, although I'm confused as to why it penalizes you for expanding.

 

[Crimson King]

When you create an empire with 20 + stars, and each star has at least 2 planets, and you have about 40 planets in your empire, talk to me. You have to visit each every one of those planets to collect minerals, which is time consuming because as soon as you get far along, you'll either have to backtrack A LOT to get to a planet under SOME type of attack or go and help an ally. This happens CONSTANTLY.

 

[Charizard92]

Space is the most repetitive, monotonous, and boring aspect of any game I have ever played. The first time you get invaded is exactly like that last time you get invaded. To collect minerals, you have to visit every planet. This is a game that actually penalizes you for expanding.

Ditto, I'd could play every stage again and again, except the space stage. It's repetitive, being good is boring, being bad is painful, and WHERE'S A TANGIBLE END?! I H8 sandbox things, I just want a ****ing end so that I can continue with my life.

 

[Crimson King]

I LOVE Sandbox games, and this game had the chance to be a perfect one, but instead you are left with actually thinking "Oh wait, I need to go find all these creatures on other planets to build this up? No thanks."

What would have been an acceptable end is if I could go, walk around any planet I want, and start at any phase and build that planet to space if I wanted to. Then, an acceptable end would have to include going to the center, but once I do that the Grox are no longer evil or as infinitely out stretched or SOMETHING to make the game have a conclusion. Right now, all that happens at the end of the game is you go to the Center, there is a mildly funny movie, you get the staff of life, (a device which allows you to instantly get a planet to level 3) and then you are sent on your way. That object WOULD be perfect for getting rid of the Grox if you weren't left with just 42. Haha, I get the reference, but that won't stop over 1,000 planets.

Also, when the game came out, and still unfixed, there were missing star systems. This one guy had ONE Grox planet left in a section near the core. As you get close the core, you can't fly as far, so at the max distance, he couldn't even get halfway to the Grox planet. That is a game that is broken, Maxis knows about it, and they haven't fixed it. And that's why the game is horrible.

 

[Zook]

Jeez CK, you just crushed all hopes I had for this game. Almost.

I'm on creature stage right now, and I think that alone is worth it. Cell stage was fun, too.

 

[LUVTOY77-ROGUE WIREFRAME]

When Game Informer first released an article on this game, I was PUMPED for it. That was what, 2 years ago or something??

Then I saw it in the store the other day--like 70 bucks! Or more! Why is it so expensive, and is it worth it?

From the comments above I'm having my doubts

 

[Crimson King]

Jeez CK, you just crushed all hopes I had for this game. Almost.

I'm on creature stage right now, and I think that alone is worth it. Cell stage was fun, too.

The Cell and Creature phase are honestly the best phases in the game. Tribal is pretty fun too. Wait until you hit the Civilization phase though, and then wait until you play Space for a while.

When Game Informer first released an article on this game, I was PUMPED for it. That was what, 2 years ago or something??

Then I saw it in the store the other day--like 70 bucks! Or more! Why is it so expensive, and is it worth it?

From the comments above I'm having my doubts

That's the collector's edition. I think the game is on sale on Steam.

 

[Zook]

Eh, I thought Civilization was fun, too. Just started space.

Check out these bad boys:

(For some reason, his eyes are closed)

 

[Crimson King]

Eh, I thought Civilization was fun, too. Just started space.

Check out these bad boys:

(For some reason, his eyes are closed)

Civilization was LAME. There is no build time for units, so there is no real strategy to it. You get the ore you need, then mass build troops until you hit your cap, attack the nearest town, replenish troops as needed, repeat until you win. Space is just tedious.

 

[Crimson King]

Despite the disappointment that is Spore, a new expansion is coming out: http://kotaku.com/5286933/spore-galactic-adventures-attacks-the-mothership

The expansion adds A. missions, and B. the ability to create missions/scenarios. So, instead of just building your own, you can download other people's ones and play those.

The game was dreadfully boring once I finished the Tribal phase, so unless this expansion will add stuff to the original game, I don't see me spending full price for it. One thing that better be fixed for this to work is the frequency of events. If I am running a planet wide mission to topple some empire (my first mission would be to do something like Star Wars over several planets, like most people will do), then I don't want to get 20 alerts saying my allies need help, I am being attacked by pirates or alien invades, or my allies are having environmental issues.

Seriously, the original could have been saved with mods.

 

[TurtleFreak]

The best part of the new expansion is that it will let you land on a planet and get out of your spaceship. It really appears to add a whole new stage to the game even larger than some of the ones we already have.

 

[Crimson King]

If anyone is interested in fixing this abomination of a great idea, check this site out: http://sporedum.net/better-spore/

They are on version 1.51, and they are striving to fix the game to be balanced and fun. I would wait until 1.6, which is coming out after GA and will work with it.

 

[metalmonstar]

It certainly isn't as bad as you make it out to be CK. It just lacked depth. Tried to be too much. I am sure if Maxis put all its efforts on one or two stages it would come out great.

 

[Zook]

Is anyone here considering to buy the Wii version of the game? It's just creature phase, I think. Or something like that.

 

[Crimson King]

It certainly isn't as bad as you make it out to be CK. It just lacked depth. Tried to be too much. I am sure if Maxis put all its efforts on one or two stages it would come out great.

No, it's much worse. Here is why.

The game was shown in 2006, and the game that came out in 2008 was totally different. They actually nerfed a ton of stuff in the Space and Civ stage from early demos. In fact, the Civ stage was really close to Sid Meier's Civilization games. The biggest issue of no depth is they will, likely, charge to fix that when it should have been done from the start. Proof of this? The first expansion is all about expanding Space.

Space is a fun stage at first, but once you get 100 + stars with who knows how many planets, you will have to visit every single planet in order to collect your ore. Not only that, as you grow, you will get allies who are incapable of helping themselves. So, basically, Space is just useless micromanagement with nothing to prepare you for that. With Galactic Adventures, Maxis realized how horrible the Space mode was and added Adventures - missions and build-a-missions to the Space phase. The concept is cool, but the action and gameplay look bland at best.

Civilization phase is broken beyond repair. In order to fix it, they will need to basically start from scratch. First, they need to add a build time to vehicles and allow you to actually build other buildings. On top of that, they need to diversify the different paths. Religion and War were identical in Civ because while War used bullets and bombs, Religion just used propaganda or something like that to do the same exact task.

Of the modes, Cell was the best. It was actually fully developed and fun, and then, Creature mode was also well done. Tribal was a great transition as well, but then you hit Civ, and it's extremely boring.

I am getting GA once 1.6 of BetterSpore hits. If that doesn't make the later modes fun or tolerable, I am done.

As for Wii version - it's just a cash in. Don't waste your money, or just rent it.

 

[Witchking_of_Angmar]

What Galactic Adventures needs to do to make Spore good is to actually be a good action adventure and not just a remake of Creature phase. The reason I didn't enjoy Creature as much as I could have is because it was essentially just point and click. There was no action. There was no real difficulty either, other than repeating the same thing over and over and staying away from enemies that are clearly out of your league. In other words, GA needs to have depth, which is something Spore lacks.

If GA does turn out to be good though, Spore will once again be awesome simply because you can now actually use the customization and creation tools which, while cool and fun on their own, only really come to life when you can interact with them well, which is kind of lacking in Spore as it is.

Also, those modding tools look awesome, once I get my new computer build working, I'll definitely reinstall Spore and have a try. If I manage to make a tool that collects Spice from your planets automatically, that alone would make Spore worth a try again for me.