Spore vs. Creation

Have you ever played SimCity or The Sims? Even if you haven’t, you undoubtedly have heard of them. They are games that don’t really have an “end” per se, but they do have such incredible depth that it is amazing to explore all that the game has to offer. They also have one other thing in common, they were both created by Will Wright.

Enter Spore. This is a Will Wright game that has been in development since 2004 and that will release on September 7, 2008 in North America. Although I never really got into The Sims, I was a huge fan of Sim City. I tend to have a geeky/technical bent, but I also love to design and explore. Add that to my endless need for competition, and you can see why I tend to like these types of games. And, if I have been sufficiently convinced by the marketing hype, I think that Spore is going to be an amazing game.

So, what is Spore? It is like five games in one. (And it better be, since it took years to develop.) Here is a brief rundown of the five stages:

• You start off as a single-celled organism in a tidal pool.
• You cell emerges onto land as a creature.
• You creature forms bonds with other creatures and forms a tribe.
• Your tribe becomes modern and develops into a civilization.
• Your civilization launches into space, exploring other planets and galaxies.

Some people have criticized the game for promoting evolution. I think it does just the opposite. It requires a God (you) to actually create your creature. Without intervention, this random assortment of cells would have never formed into a complex creature.

What astounds me the most is the sheer size of the game. Once you reach the space stage, you can interact with the creations of other players on over 500,000 planets. That’s insane! You can even browse the database of other creatures and their creations (vehicles, weapons, spaceships) and use them yourself.

If you want to get a free taste of spore, download the Creature Editor. It allows you to create and save creatures just like you would in the Creature phase of the game. It’s fun!

I highly recommend you check out each of the videos below to see exactly how Spore will play out. As for me, I think I’ve already convinced myself to buy it when it comes out tomorrow.

Cell Phase

Creature Phase

Tribal Phase

Civilization Phase

Space Phase

Quick Hits

I don’t like college football. Talk to me when there are playoffs.

I’m glad Tennessee lost. They can stop hoping until next season.

Can Vijay Singh only get hot when Tiger is injured or retooling his swing?

Thanks to Fae, my grass is green again.

I think discipline is better than motivation.

We start the Dynamic Marriage class tonight. I hear it’s better than the Static Marriage class.

I sold another $300 worth of O HELL NO stuff last month.

Google Adwords sucks. It takes over a month to get your ads approved.

The avocado eggrolls at Cheesecake Factory are amazing.

It’s been over six months since we moved, and we still have packages for the prior homeowner sitting on the front porch.

Our foundation is slipping. Major uh-oh. Thankfully, this part of the foundation is under warranty.

One of my fantasy football team names is The Screaming Rubber Chickens.

The other is Victorious Secret.

I’m debating on whether or not to purchase Spore when it comes out this Sunday.

There are always cops at Exit 25 on I-40. Always.

I have to go to a driving school in the next two weeks. I can’t wait. (Sigh)

Sarah Palin was a good choice. I think.

It’s annoying when people IM you and say “hey” and won’t type anything else until you acknowledge their greeting.

Traitor was a good movie.

The new Chicken Strips at Chick-Fil-A are awesome.

Six Years!

August 22nd, 2002 – Michael asks Hallie if she would like to start dating. Michael gets rejected.

August 25th, 2002 – Michael asks again. Hallie accepts.

August 30th, 2002 – We go out on the first date.

It’s been six years! Worth every moment. I love you Hallie!

Obama’s Acceptance Speech

I listened to Obama’s entire acceptance speech. I listened to no commentary before or after.

He is good. He is very smooth and polished. He even, at times, sounds like a conservative. He pushed for more personal responsibility from fathers. He asked for more accountability from schools and teachers. He promised lower taxes to the working class. He wants a balanced budget. These things are awesome.

I firmly believe that Barack Obama believes what he says. I believe that he does love this country.

But if you listened closely, what did you really hear? Barack thinks that every American deserves a top-notch education. He believes that every person deserves top-quality health care. He believes that it will be his job to make sure that companies provide more time off to workers and that they are penalized for shipping jobs overseas.

Oh, and he’ll pay for it all by taxing the best and brightest in America.

Doesn’t that sound more like Robin Hood? Tax the rich and disperse the money through government programs to everyone. That’s standard liberal thinking. It penalizes those that succeed. If we tax the high performers in this country, we severely limit the growth of the very people Obama wants to help. Companies should never be penalized for having huge profits–as that is what drives growth in our economy.

Many Christians are even starting to support Obama, as they see the Democratic party as the ones that will actually help hurting people. But we have to change the way we define help in this country. Help does not mean money or insurance or programs. And help certainly doesn’t mean that you deserve anything. The conservatives–and not necessarily John McCain–understand this.

If we remove the restraints of taxes and government, the American people will have more money and time to help those that are hurting. You see, it’s not the government’s job to help people, it’s ours. And it’s the government’s job to make that as easy as possible for us to do.

That’s what personal responsibility truly is. Obama’s definition is only about 80% truth, which makes it a bold-faced lie. It’s evil and it’s wrong.

Obama, your plan will not succeed. Your type of change is not welcome here.