MaximumPC 2008 12

S

pore lets you take an extremely high-
concept journey from a single-cell
life form swimming through the seas
to a continent-spanning superpower to the
overlord of a galactic empire. Over the course
of about fi ve hours, you shepherd your critter
through four introductory stages; then you
leave for space.
That’s right, the fi rst four stages of the
game—cell, creature, tribe, and civilization—
essentially train neophyte gamers to play com-
mon game genres: primarily MMO, RTS, and
turn-based strategy. You then apply these skills
when your fl edgling species emerges from its
gravity well for the fi rst time. Despite lack-
ing the depth we’d expect from a stand-alone
game, the training stages are quite entertain-
ing. You make very simplistic choices: Are you
a carnivore or an herbivore? Do you fi ght or
befriend other tribes? Will you be an economic,
religious, or military superpower?
Once you leave your planet, the game

begins in earnest. You

travel between the

stars, expanding your

empire by conquering,

colonizing, or buying

planets from alien

races. As you become stronger, you encounter

increasingly powerful aliens, culminating in an

epic battle at the center of the galaxy. The space

game is packed full of gameplay, with an essen-

tially infi nite galaxy to conquer.

Spore is a technological triumph. By

procedurally generating art for everything

in the game, all the relevant data about your

species fi ts into a few small PNG fi les, which are

uploaded to the Spore servers. While you play,

you download other players’ species in the

background, where they populate your planets

and galaxy, which gives an already massive

game infi nite replay value.

We were disappointed by the game’s lack of

an auto-save feature; a few crashes cost us hours

of progress. And as your empire grows massive,

it becomes increasingly diffi cult to manage. De-

spite these fl aws, Spore is a game that everyone

should play. –W I L L S M I T H

VERDICT

$50, http://www.spore.com, ESRB: E

9

There’s never been a

game with as wide a

scope as Spore. Simply

breathtaking.

No auto-save, no plan-

etary automation, and

an occasional crash

deny Spore a Kick Ass.

POWERS OF TEN

SPORE

POWER OF ATTORNEY

When it’s time to expand your empire, you can purchase new solar systems or

conquer them. You can guess which option we chose.

Spore

The universe is your oyster in the latest

entry from Will Wright