Spore Revolution

Spore to Release a Demo

Yes!  There will be a demo of Spore released to the public before the actual game comes out.  When though, we do not know yet... In an interview with IGN's Dan Adams on July 10th, we've had a hint of a demo.  Here's is the quote!

IGN: Are you planning on putting out some kind of demo or beta program?

Patrick Buechner: We are going to release the creature editor portion of Spore in advance of the core game release. Probably several weeks before. We know there are a lot of people anticipating Spore and we appreciate their patience. We really want to give them the game that they're waiting for.

Several weeks before is still a long ways off, but at least we'll get to play it before its official release!  Be sure to sign up to the official Spore newsletter for updates about when the beta will be out! We'll get the chance to create the first creatures to pollinate the Spore worlds.. WooHoo!

Vehicle Editor in PC Gamer

There are some great new interface pictures in this month's copy of PC Gamer, which is going to be for sale on December 12th 2006.  The article itself can be found on their website, entitled Spore Vehicle Editor Interview, and was published on November 27th 2006. 

Will Wright on the Colbert Report

Wow, Will Wright on National TV!  This was a great interview of Will Wright, interviewed by Stephen Colbert from Comedy Central on December 4th 2006.   There really isn't any new information on Spore from this interview, no game demo either.  What Mr. Wright did say was that Spore is going to be released in the 2nd half of 2007 which we already knew.  He didn't get any more specific.  A couple interesting things I noted was that I have rarely seen Stephen go so easy on someone he interviewed. Sure he mocked a little, but he didn't argue.  Oh yeah, Will Wright must've taken a speech class because I don't recall him saying any "umms"!  :D My favorite lines follow:

Mr. Colbert: Spore sounds strangely like a reproduction system. Is it a sex game? Audience laughs.
Mr. Wright: Well in its basic, yes! Audience laughs.

For those interested, there is also an article by Newsweek on-line entitled Exclusively: Behind the Scenes of Will Wright's Visit to the Colbert Report, published on December 5th 2006.

Here is a video of the the interview for you:

Will Wright Interviewed by Guardian Unlimited

Will Wright was interviewed by Guardian Unlimited's Stever Boxer. The article is entitled From a Germ of an Idea to a Spore of a Franchise, and was published on August 3rd 2006. From this article, I learned that they will have a flag system in place so that inappropriate creature designs don't go mainstream, such as a walking penis. Also, once you get into the space phase genetic engineering is unlocked and DNA points are not required anymore to change your creature.

Discover Magazine Interview

Will Wright is featured in of the articles of the August 2006 edition of Discover Magazine which you can purchase at news stands today.  The article can also be found on-line at the Discover website, entitled The Discover Interview: Will Wright. It was written by Alan Burdick.  You will need to subscribe to the magazine in order to read the complete article. It consists of a Q&A interview with Will Wright.

Part 1

Part 2

• Through your games, you come across as a guy who's trying to decipher the natural world bit by bit, through computer simulations.
• What were you doing at age 10 that steered you toward game design?
• Spore takes its cue from astrobiology, both in its spatial sweep--from microbiology to galaxies--and in its interplanetary spread of life.  What turned you on to the subject?

Part 3

• So Spore is an existential game?
• I'm told you collect artifacts from the Russian space program.
• Would you ever go up in space?

Part 4

• Do you play computer games besides the ones you design?
• What makes a game compelling to you?
• So games are fun because they allow us to play with time?
• You've collected and analyzed thousands of hours of data gathered from people who play The Sims online.  To what extent is playing The Sims a behavioral experiment?

Part 5

• You've modeled planetary dynamics, ant colonies, even the way players play your games.  What's left?
• You're doing this for fun? That's what you do on the weekend?
• In Wikipedia, Spore is described as a "teleological evolution" game.  Do you think the game will bring natural selection to the masses?
• If you could rebuild Earth in any way--add or subtract any creature or process, for instance--what would you do?

Will Wright Interviewed by GameSpy

GameSpy was able to get an exclusive interview with Will Wright!  In the interview, Will Wright confirms that Spore will not be released til April or May 2007. Spore will be released for PC first and then later for other platforms.  The article is entitled Breakfast with Will Wright, written by Steven Kent and published on May 11th 2006.

G4 TV has 2 Spore Videos

The G4 TV have two videos available about Spore.  One is an actual interview of Will Wright and G4's Kevin, entitled Inside Look at Spore.  The second video is of a hands-on video where Kevin tries to create his own creature, and is entitled Hands-On: Spore.  To find the videos, use the Search by Keyword search, and search for Spore.

Will Wright Q&A Interviews

I have been searching the Internet for Will Wright Q&A interviews about Spore and have found a few.  I have listed them here in chronological order. 

• Wright Hopes to Spore Another Hit published by Wired News on May 20th 2005.  Written by Daniel Terdiman.
• Episode 13 and Episode 14 published by Gaming Steve on May 24th and June 6th 2005. A two part interview, with podcasts available.
• Breakfast with Will Wright published by GameSpy on May 11th 2006.  Written by Steven Kent.

If you know of another Q&A interview about Spore feel free to comment and I will add the links to this post.