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Spore Creature Creator

Topic: Software

 From HandWiki - Reading time: 9 min

Spore Creature Creator
Developer(s)Maxis
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts
Designer(s)Will Wright
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X
Release
  • NA: June 17, 2008
  • EU: June 27, 2008
Genre(s)Character editor
Mode(s)Single-player

The Spore Creature Creator is a software that allows players to create their own creatures with a standalone version of the Creature Editor from Spore; the software was one of the first aspects of the game to receive focused development, and underwent ten rewrites since the start of development.[1] It was rated E by the ESRB in early March 2008, indicating that the editor would be released separately well before the game's release as a utility program. Electronic Arts told MTV Asia that "EA Screen will provide visitors a chance to interact with EA's game producers hailing from the studios, and unveil the hugely anticipated SPORE Creature Creator demo version to gamers for the first time in Asia."[2] Electronic Arts VP Mark Buechner stated on the Spore Facebook page that the editor would be released in June or July 2008, saying, "We are looking at releasing it two to three months before the launch of the full game."[citation needed]

The SimCity Box artwork showed a blurb stating that the creature editor would be included with it.[3] IGN revealed that the Spore Creature Creator utility would be available in two different versions on June 17, 2008.[4] There was a paid version (for $9.95) and a free demo that was downloadable from Spore.com and included for free, bundled with The SimCity Box. The free version of the editor only contained 25% of the available creature parts that were found within the full version. In Australia , on August 30, 2008, three state newspapers owned by News Limited offered the full version either free or for $2.[5]

The utility includes a test environment for players to see their creatures go through animations and allowed the player to import other user-created creatures through the Sporepedia at Spore.com. The utility included screen capture and video tools as well,[4] including YouTube functionality.[6] The editor also gave the user the ability to create animated avatars,[7] and output in RSS and embeddable HTML code to facilitate easy incorporation into such sites as MySpace and Facebook.[8] The software is automatically superseded by Spore when it is installed, since the Creature editor is already present on the game.

Shortly after its introduction, the Creature Creator was used to create creatures with oversized genitalia, either stand-alone or engaged in coitus (a phenomenon quickly dubbed "sporn").[9] EA responded with e-mails sent to those who made pornographic machinima from its demo, and has flagged certain on-line accounts for "TOS violations".[10] Furthermore, YouTube pulled several such videos for violations of its own TOS.[11]

By June 24, 2008, users had already uploaded over one million creatures to the site.[citation needed] During Electronic Arts' E3 2008 presentation on July 14, 2008, Wright humorously noted that fans had done God's work at 38% efficiency by creating the same number of currently known species on Earth, 1,589,000, in about 18 days, compared to God's 6 days.[12] When Spore debuted on September 1, 2008, over 3 million creatures had been added to the Sporepedia via the Spore Creature Creator.

When installing Spore, Spore Creature Creator would be uninstalled.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic83/100[13]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Eurogamer9/10[14]
PC Gamer (UK)90%[15]
VideoGamer.com8/10[16]
Common Sense MediaStarStarStarStar[17]

At the time of its release, the game received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[13]

References

  1. ↑ Spore (June 27, 2008). "Spore 1UP Will Wright Interview". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3tq5PSq6EQ. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  2. ↑ News Desk (March 6, 2008). "EA Play Launches In Singapore". MTV Southeast Asia. Archived from the original on March 10, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080310170723/http://www.mtvasia.com/News/200803/06015511.html. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  3. ↑ Siegel, Scott Jon (April 15, 2008). "Rumor: Spore Creature Creator included in SimCity box". Engadget (Joystiq). https://www.engadget.com/2008/04/15/rumor-spore-creature-creator-included-in-simcity-box/. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "SPORE™ Creature Creator Complete". EA Games Store. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080514055818/http://eastore.ea.com/DRHM/servlet/ControllerServlet?Action=DisplayProductDetailsPage&SiteID=ea&Locale=en_US&productID=96890600. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  5. ↑ Kozanecki, James (July 28, 2008). "Aussies to get Spore Creature Creator in newspaper promos". http://www.gamespot.com/articles/aussies-to-get-spore-creature-creator-in-newspaper-promos/1100-6234572/. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  6. ↑ Ocamop, Jason (May 22, 2008). "Spore Creature Creator Hands-On". http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/05/22/spore-creature-creator-hands-on. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  7. ↑ The Official Spore Channel (June 9, 2008). "Spore Creature Creator Tutorial 3". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oL-0vWc2Iss. 
  8. ↑ Remo, Chris (June 12, 2008). "In-Depth: The Evolution Of Maxis' Spore". http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=18992. Retrieved June 12, 2008. 
  9. ↑ Wortham, Jenna (June 18, 2008). "NSFW: Horny Gamers Upload 'Sporn' to YouTube". Wired. https://www.wired.com/2008/06/nsfw-horny-game. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  10. ↑ Shaw, Anne (June 20, 2008). "Spore Creature Creator Spawns 'Sporn' and Upsets EA". eFluxMedia. Archived from the original on June 22, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080622233730/http://www.efluxmedia.com/news_Spore_Creature_Creator_Spawns_Sporn_and_Upsets_EA_19267.html. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  11. ↑ Kalning, Kristin (June 20, 2008). "Free EA software release spawns 'sporn'". NBC News. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/25272162/#.WAQDCYMrLcs. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  12. ↑ McElroy, Justin (July 14, 2008). "Wright: 'Spore fans 38% god' [sic"]. Engadget (Joystiq). https://www.engadget.com/2008/07/14/wright-spore-fans-38-god/. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Spore Creature Creator for PC Reviews". https://www.metacritic.com/game/spore-creature-creator/critic-reviews/?platform=pc. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  14. ↑ Gillen, Kieron (June 25, 2008). "Spore Creature Creator". http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/spore-creature-creator-review. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  15. ↑ "Spore Creature Creator". PC Gamer UK: 82. September 2008. 
  16. ↑ Orry, Tom (July 1, 2008). "Spore: Creature Creator Review [sic"]. VideoGamer.com. https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/spore-creature-creator-review. Retrieved October 17, 2016. 
  17. ↑ Paramchuk, Jeff (June 18, 2008). "Spore Creature Creator". Common Sense Media. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/game-reviews/spore-creature-creator. Retrieved October 16, 2016. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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