By Walaika Haskins TechNewsWorld Part of the ECT News Network
09/03/08 11:40 AM PT
In the buildup to the release of the long-awaited "Spore" video game, the game's creators invited a handful of celebrities -- including David Arquette, Richard Branson and "Heroes'" Masi Okato -- to create their own creatures using the Spore Creature Creator. Visitors to the "Spore" Web site can vote for their favorites.
Is Your Website Killing Customer Confidence? Your Website's privacy policy can be a key factor in a customer's decision to do business with you, and it is vital to ensuring you don't run afoul of your online legal and regulatory responsibilities. Need more reasons? Read on.
Just days before the release of the much delayed and long-anticipated "Spore" -- the latest endeavor of "The Sims" creator Will Wright -- gaming publisher Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS) has enlisted the help of some Hollywood and technology heavyweights.
EA will add the celebrity critters to the
Sporepedia, a catalog of all the creatures users have created and published on the game's Web site, which will be available for download. "Spore" fans can also vote for their favorite celebrity monster.
After a more than three-year wait, "Spore" will make its bow on Sept. 5 in the UK and on Sept. 7 in the U.S.
Sowing Seeds
"Spore" puts the power of evolution and the universe in the hands of its players. Developed for PCs and Macs, the game follows a species as it evolves from a single-cell organism bathed in primordial ooze into a sentient race with intelligence and a social culture that ultimately develops into a society of intergalactic explorers who interact with alien life forms.
"Creature Creator," released in June, serves as an introduction to the open-ended game Wright created. Its users -- in this instance, celebrities -- mix and match up to 228 drag-and-drop flexible parts; shape them and then add a splash of color to create a singularly unique customized creature.
"The 'Spore' celebrity campaign is pretty interesting," said Mark DeLoura, a gaming technology consultant.
"I found it really fun to hit that
Web site and look at the creatures that celebrities created. Gives you a bit of insight into them, I think. Great stuff!" he told TechNewsWorld.
Who's Who of Critters
Celebrities such as "Heroes'" Masi Oka and Greg Grunberg, Stan Lee, Mario Lopez, Margaret Cho, Adam West and even Will Wright himself have signed up to craft their own Spore creatures using the "Spore Creature Creator," released in June.
Leading the vote, as of 4:30 pm on Tuesday, was Philip DeFranco's "DeFranco." The host of the online "Philip DeFranco Show" has racked up more than 135,000 views and received nearly 113,000 "like" votes for his horned creation. Advertising executive Alex Bogusky has the fewest "likes," 35, for his "Gluto Geminus," a biped with a long neck and spines running down its back, with just 221 views.
Although not inspired by the list of celebrities pegged to put up their creature creations, Michael Goodman, an independent gaming and digital media analyst, said SporeVote is a "nice marketing thing."
"It's not groundbreaking. What would be interesting is to see what [Stan Lee] creates and compare it to what other [celebrities] have created. How creative is he going to be versus others?" wondered Goodman.
Mic-Equipped Sony PSP-3000 to Hit Japan This Fall September 02, 2008
Sony is attempting to gain some ground on the Nintendo DS with a PSP upgrade that includes a built-in microphone that can be used, among other things, to make phone calls. Whether that new functionality -- as well as a better display and more storage -- will be enough is questionable. If any audience is likely to be receptive, though, tech-savvy Japanese gamers would likely top the list.
Related Stories
Quick Change Artists Resurrect Facebook's 'Scrabulous' as 'Wordscraper' July 31, 2008
After being sued by the owners of Scrabble and having their game banned from Facebook, the makers of "Scrabulous" have pushed out a new game: "Wordscraper." The new application is very similar to "Scrabulous" save for a few tweaks to the game's appearance and scoring method.
Gamers Spawn Bizarre Beasts With 'Spore Creature Creator' June 20, 2008
After giving gamers the power to rule over the daily lives of virtual humans in "The Sims," Electronic Arts will release "Spore," a game that gives the player the power to create and foster the evolution of virtual life. In the run-up to "Spore's" release comes "Spore Creature Creator," a mini game that incorporates elements of "Spore." "Creator" can be had for free or for $10 for more options.
Related News Alerts
More by Walaika Haskins
ZeeVee's Zinc Browser Gets Web TV Right April 29, 2009
The Zinc Browser from ZeeVee updates the old Zviewer with tighter navigation and better catalog options. The finished application offers a great way to find TV shows and movies anywhere on the Web, regardless of whether they're hosted by Hulu, CBS, Netflix, Amazon's on-demand service or others.
Game Sales Sputter, 'GTA' Fails to Steal the Show April 23, 2009
It may appear as though the video game industry is beginning to join the economy at large in its slump, as March numbers from NPD were less than encouraging. However, a year-over-year perspective is difficult due to the timing of game releases and holidays. Meanwhile, Take-Two hasn't seen much success in introducing its violent "GTA" series to the Nintendo DS.
Can Microsoft Win the Online Game? April 16, 2009
Now that the major video game consoles have been on the market for two and a half years -- or more -- hardware sales have slowed considerably. Online services, however, still have room to grow. InStat says subscriber bases will take off in the coming years, and Microsoft's Xbox platform may come out the big winner.
Headline Feeds
Talkback: 
