Spore - Most ambitious game to date?

[mr.Curmudgeon]

Game Demonstration:

Full Demonstration: (61 minute speech, including a 12 minute introduction to his 'awakening' to the need for shared and procedural content)


Anyone else looking forward to this game?
I'm glad I upgraded to a dual-xeon, looks like this game will smoke 'em.


mrC
Edit: changed title from 'Most ambitious game ever' to 'Most ambitious game to date', as I'm sure developers will continue to create amazing, mind-blowing, never-before-seen concepts.

[mr.Curmudgeon]

Btw, if you haven't heard about this game yet, it's from the developer of the Sims games. You really have to watch through the whole game demo in order to get a sense of just how HUGE this concept is. It's like a dozen meta-genres rolled into one game.

The inclusive use of 'Procedural Content' is the really the most amazing aspect of the game. I'm still a little unclear how the 'asynchronous multiplayer interaction' plays out...my impression is that you play as a single player, build your own world, define the constraints of the characters inhabiting it, as well as the build the environment, then someone can visit that world and it's added to their game (via download). From there, do they evolve it, or is the content 'pulled' and updated from your world?


mrC

[pointdablame]

Btw, if you haven't heard about this game yet, it's from the developer of the Sims games. You really have to watch through the whole game demo in order to get a sense of just how HUGE this concept is. It's like a dozen meta-genres rolled into one game.

The inclusive use of 'Procedural Content' is the really the most amazing aspect of the game. I'm still a little unclear how the 'asynchronous multiplayer interaction' plays out...my impression is that you play as a single player, build your own world, define the constraints of the characters inhabiting it, as well as the build the environment, then someone can visit that world and it's added to their game (via download). From there, do they evolve it, or is the content 'pulled' and updated from your world?


mrC

Once you download anothe player's world, your home computer will extrapolate that player's previous play style and evole it based on those characteristics.  So you aren't seeing me evolve my world on your system, but the computer is evolving MY world on YOUR computer in a way that they think I would do it if I was there.

That's how I understand it to be, and how I've read about it so far.   It's a very VERY ambitious game, but it looks good so far.

I'll need to upgrade my PC to play it though

[mr.Curmudgeon]

Once you download anothe player's world, your home computer will extrapolate that player's previous play style and evole it based on those characteristics.  So you aren't seeing me evolve my world on your system, but the computer is evolving MY world on YOUR computer in a way that they think I would do it if I was there.

That's what I imagined, but then...what happens if you "revisit" the player's world? Can you only do it once? What if you visit it early on in their game, would I be able to 'update' my cached version of their world? Or would that be a regression from where my PC evolved it initially?

I'm really curious about that aspect of the game. As I'm sure a lot of people are. Maybe I'll just have to wait until he presents at E3 or whatever. I'm kinda' glad he's keeping the multiplayer asynchronous, I'm more apt to play it this way. You just know there'd be hordes of pre-teens armies marching around conquering everthing in sight within the first five minutes of game launch.

Man, though, as a side note, the modifing stack ("verbs") on those in-game meshes..Holy crap! Why isn't 3DStudio that robust? 


mrC

[RayB]

Spore - Most ambitious game to date?

No, just little Flash games and stuff.
www.SporeProductions.com

 

[cdbrown]

This looks amazing.  Wish there was more info on their site.

[Zakk]

I don't think I have the time to spare to enjoy a game that immense.  Looks quite good though.

[mr.Curmudgeon]

This looks amazing.  Wish there was more info on their site.

What? An hour long video featuring almost the entire game wasn't enough for you?   


mrC

[Kremmit]

I don't think I have the time to spare to enjoy a game that immense.  Looks quite good though.

If I got divorced, and my wife got full custody, and I got myself injured at work and went on permanent disability, and moved to a new town where I don't know anybody, I might have enough time for this.

But for now, I need my game to be over within 5 minutes of dropping the quarter, please.

[RayB]

Keep in mind, this could still turn out to be like Black n White.

[Harry Potter]

looks good. when will it be released for *trial*?

[cdbrown]

This looks amazing.  Wish there was more info on their site.

What? An hour long video featuring almost the entire game wasn't enough for you?   


mrC

no

[Nannuu]

That's really cool looking.  Too bad I've never seen an ambitious game developer actually deliver their original ambition.

[pointdablame]

That's really cool looking.  Too bad I've never seen an ambitious game developer actually deliver their original ambition.

I think you should look up Will Wright's past games........

[jbox]

Penny Arcade is my hero.