Only a few weeks ago was Spore creator Will Wright expressing his concern over the hype for Spore.
"...some people will be disappointed that it’s not 'hardcore enough' or it’s not 'easy enough' or that we didn’t do this or that. We’ve gotten to that point any additional hype isn’t serving us well. It’s a concern", he said.
Now he's explained to MTV why the game isn't hardcore enough, "We were very focused, if anything, on making a game for more casual players.
..."we looked at the Metacritic scores for Sims 2, which was around 90, and something like Half-Life, which was 97 (actually, it was 96), and we decided — quite a while back — that we would rather have the Metacritic and sales of Sims 2 than the Metacritic and sales of Half-Life."
So, there you go then... apparently one does design a groundbreaking game based on review scores, just not the higher review scores. Still, more sales will make EA boss John Riccitiello happy. Despite the fact that the game - which has received some less than adulatory reviews - currently has no micro-transactions, Riccitiello has stated that "The microtransaction potential for this game is huge".
Keep your eyes out for our review of the game based on a copy that the evil editor rushed out and bought with his own coin (well, Maestro card) this very Friday.
"...some people will be disappointed that it’s not 'hardcore enough' or it’s not 'easy enough' or that we didn’t do this or that. We’ve gotten to that point any additional hype isn’t serving us well. It’s a concern", he said.
Now he's explained to MTV why the game isn't hardcore enough, "We were very focused, if anything, on making a game for more casual players.
..."we looked at the Metacritic scores for Sims 2, which was around 90, and something like Half-Life, which was 97 (actually, it was 96), and we decided — quite a while back — that we would rather have the Metacritic and sales of Sims 2 than the Metacritic and sales of Half-Life."
So, there you go then... apparently one does design a groundbreaking game based on review scores, just not the higher review scores. Still, more sales will make EA boss John Riccitiello happy. Despite the fact that the game - which has received some less than adulatory reviews - currently has no micro-transactions, Riccitiello has stated that "The microtransaction potential for this game is huge".
Keep your eyes out for our review of the game based on a copy that the evil editor rushed out and bought with his own coin (well, Maestro card) this very Friday.
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Comments
Taffee 8 Sep 2008 13:09
1/7
I kind of figured this backwards. He said that he looked at Half Life's terrific score, and realized that the score doesn't necessarily indicate the game's commercial success. Therefore, he felt free to design the game without aiming at a higher meta score. I don't see how this could be understood otherwise.
deleted 8 Sep 2008 18:35
2/7
thats utter bollox, seriously oh im going to make a game, instead of basing it on a good story or theme i will instead find a game taht gets 80-90% on metacritic and sold s**t loads and thats my game???? it makes no sense, whats next gears 3 yeah we checked out nintendogs score and its sales a decided that gears would follow that way!
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actionmonkey 8 Sep 2008 19:36
3/7
If that's his excuse you know he's really grasping at straws. Spore is a bad, bad game and he knows it.
Apart from the concept and the customisation elements (which doesn't really pay off as the evolution is inconsequential) everything has been done before in a more interesting and dynamic way. The gameplay is over five years old and to cap it off is incredibly unbalanced for both hardcore and novice alike.
Apart from the concept and the customisation elements (which doesn't really pay off as the evolution is inconsequential) everything has been done before in a more interesting and dynamic way. The gameplay is over five years old and to cap it off is incredibly unbalanced for both hardcore and novice alike.
Bitterman 9 Sep 2008 11:21
4/7
Yes. It's obvious he should have just made another Generic FPS Shooter Sequel 4 game. Instead of trying to, y'know, innovate.
deleted 9 Sep 2008 18:23
5/7
Bitterman wrote:
Yes. It's obvious he should have just made another Generic FPS Shooter Sequel 4 game. Instead of trying to, y'know, innovate.
Innovation??? sure spore continues the Sim trend to the next level but come on, it was gonna go here eventually anyhoo, the guys just blabbing on about metacritic scores because spore got 87% if it got 97% then he wouldnt of said anything, the games missing a whole lot of something, once your past the designer elements your left with not much!
OptimusP 9 Sep 2008 22:17
6/7
haritori wrote:
thats utter bollox, seriously oh im going to make a game, instead of basing it on a good story or theme i will instead find a game taht gets 80-90% on metacritic and sold s**t loads and thats my game???? it makes no sense, whats next gears 3 yeah we checked out nintendogs score and its sales a decided that gears would follow that way!
Space marines raising space puppies to battle space aliens with actual good controls...now that's a idea! They should totally make that...would actually bring something new to the generic space shooter.
Just imagine your own space marine dog with inbuilt rockets and laser cannons and chainsaw mouth...Now that's how you make a 7/10 game into a hit!
deleted 9 Sep 2008 22:25
7/7
OptimusP wrote:
haritori wrote:
thats utter bollox, seriously oh im going to make a game, instead of basing it on a good story or theme i will instead find a game taht gets 80-90% on metacritic and sold s**t loads and thats my game???? it makes no sense, whats next gears 3 yeah we checked out nintendogs score and its sales a decided that gears would follow that way!
Space marines raising space puppies to battle space aliens with actual good controls...now that's a idea! They should totally make that...would actually bring something new to the generic space shooter.
Just imagine your own space marine dog with inbuilt rockets and laser cannons and chainsaw mouth...Now that's how you make a 7/10 game into a hit!
yeah tap that dog on the nose and instead of sneezing it bites your F@@@@@G arm off!