July 28, 2008
SPORE: Phenomenon or Revolution?
I've usually in the past written about general updates, my perspectives on the industry, and where and how TransGaming fits into the ecosystem. However, with the release of SPORE Creature Creator in June and the impending release of SPORE in September, both the brilliant brainchild of Will Wright and quite possibly one of EA's most industrious endeavours, I am compelled to provide some of my thoughts on why this game has created such a buzz.
First and foremost, TransGaming is thrilled to have been able to bring Creature Creator to Mac using our Cider technology. SPORE too will be a simultaneous PC/Mac release in September and the simultaneous availability of a product offering such as this should be applauded by Mac consumers everywhere. We're also thrilled to be able to provide these titles to the Mac gaming community through our new digital distribution portal, www.gametreeonline.com.
The Creature Creator has been described in a variety of ways, ranging from a new genre of game to a software toy. Having played enough with Creature Creator myself, this is an application that imparts unbelievable powers of creativity to users. It is easy to use, intuitive, a lot of fun, but also empowers us non-artistic users to enjoy that wonderful feeling of creating something limited only by our own imagination. The Creature Creator's interactivity and entertainment value is such that a user can engage in the experience alone or through a team effort. In fact, one of the things I love most about the Creature Creator (and reinforcing how well designed it is as an intuitive application) is watching my three and a half year old daughter design her creatures, while soliciting my input every so often on what colors I'd like her creature to be or what kind of "decoration" I'd like on the creature she's building for me. Watching her create has been amazing but even more amazing is the enthusiasm and happiness she expresses when she has finally completed her creature and has the satisfaction of making it sing, dance, twirl, etc. Take a look below for an example of my daughter's creation.
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The infinite number of possibilities of what one can do with the Creature Creator unto itself is incredible not to mention just how easy it is to build something truly spectacular and creative; but let's not forget that this is part of a bigger vision that Will Wright is creating. That's really what leads me to the question of whether SPORE is a phenomenon or a revolution. SPORE definitely stands apart from any other game out there and some would argue, rightly so, that this is an entirely new genre of gaming and could/should influence the future of the electronic entertainment industry. SPORE imparts an unprecedented level of interactivity and immersion and gives users the opportunity, as Will Wright has stated, to play"God". This level of control is a significant departure from most other games where users play a particular character. With SPORE the user shapes and influences the macro level ecosystem and they can witness the impact of the various decisions they are making, good or bad.
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Will Wright's previous success, The Sims, has sold over 100 million units to-date and is still a franchise earning blockbuster revenue. If that's any measure of how successful a Will Wright creation can be, then SPORE should eclipse The Sims since it amplifies the fun factor, the immersion, and the innovative game play experience. Within the first few days of the release of Creature Creator, over 1 million unique creatures had been uploaded to the Sporepedia. Will Wright has commented that today there are more unique creatures on the Sporepedia than there are unique species on earth.
I am inclined to believe that SPORE will set a new bar for where
electronic entertainment is headed given how unique it is in every
aspect. In my opinion, SPORE absolutely represents a new age of
electronic entertainment innovation and creativity and engages the
user in a way that no other game has ever been able to do before.
If you haven't already tried it, you must! Beyond the immersive nature of the game, Creature Creator has to get people to think about how dramatically this franchise will influence the future of electronic entertainment since it's also the kind of game that has broad appeal in a way that few games in the past have had.
The SPORE franchise has been under development for years and TransGaming's Cider portability engine has been able to bring this game to Mac in a very short period of time. Without Cider, a traditional Mac port would have been an industrious feat for anyone and keeping pace with the game would have been a challenge for the best of developers. SPORE on Mac truly does demonstrate the strength of TransGaming's Cider product as well as its flexibility in the vast array of games we've been able to deploy in a short period of time. I am confident that the Mac version of SPORE will continue to become a bigger success over time and I'm also certain that this franchise will propel Mac gaming forward in wonderful ways.
Enjoy Creature Creator and let me know your thoughts. If you've got a creature you'd like to share with others, send it to me at president@transgaming.com and we'll post some of the best ones on our site.
Sincerely,
Vikas Gupta
CEO & President
