Accessories

DRM is bad for legit users
Spore not only has a piece of software that runs in the background, but it only allows 3 installations EVER. The people out there that pirate games will find this a barely noticable speedbump on their way to pirating the game ANYWAY. The legit user that reloads PCs often is screwed.

DO NOT BUY THIS GAME HUGE BUG PROBLEMS CRASHES
I was really enjoying this game, but then EA started releasing patches, and now it crashes like crazy. I've tried re-installing, which got rid of my saved games, and I've looked for tech. help to no avail. DO NOT BUY THIS GAME

Lowered Expectations
Look everybody don't hang the team that put together Spore. Everyone was expecting them to reinvent the wheel and they didn't, they did something better, created a fun game. Spore does have flaws but when you have such an open ended game(as far as character creation is concerned) there are going to be issues. So take a breath and take in what you are experiencing. This is a rpg, rts, p&c adv., and a buch of other abbreviations rolled up into one. It is this diversity that makes this game great and ultimately flawed. It is fun to get to go through all these different games with the same character but there was so much to do the creators didn't have a chance to make all phases of the game work perfectly. Or at least that is how I feel. Spore is fun and encourages creativity, it also has never crashed or given any other types of technical issues. I say give it a chance and you might be suprised.

READ BEFORE BUYING.
So I recently bought Spore, after reading a bunch of negative reviews on Amazon. I played the Cell and Creature stages, which consist of basic and repetitive tasks. The Tribal Stage is a little better, but very basic. The whole alliance/warfare options, being your only options, sort of limit the game. The first four stages had endless potential, and I must day I was let down by the simplicity of these stages.

However, the space stage is the cat's meow, so to speak. The sheer detail and complexity of the environment is overwhelming. This is obviously where most of the work into producing this game went. The exploration of the millions of user generated planets leaves the possibilities limited to your fellow humans' imaginations. The space stage is quite entertaining, however limited the player is by the alliance/ warfare options.

It is sort of annoying how you can just add parts to your creature, and spend time perfecting it, instead of the creature adapting to it's environment. And it is also tantalizing how all the work you put into your creature is unnecessary, seeing as how your creature could be a blob and still prosper.

That being said, I would recommend this game for most kids and some adults who enjoy this sort of "God" game. It is very entertaining, with much thought and detail put into it. I feel like the game could be less limited, but the gaming experience is still one worth discovering.

Great for Kids; Adults? Not so much
My 9 y.o. son got this game for Xmas & absolutely loves it. I played because I was curious and needed a new game. The game is simple and boring for adults. It's awesome for kids and I highly recommended it for children because of simplified strategy and game play. My son likes all sorts of games from childrens' games to difficult strategy games (Medieval Total War) and he is in love with Spore. I gave the game the rating I did based on my own experience with the game.