With the success of Spore, which sold over 2 million copies in its first few weeks on sale, we were bound to get some spinoff titles, the second of which is Spore Origins for the iPhone. Spore Origins contains the same evolutionary style of gameplay as the original, though on a slightly smaller scale.

I first got a taste of the Spore style of gameplay with an old SNES game called E.V.O The Search for Eden (which I still own to this day). The game went completely under the radar which was a shame, as it was a great mix of RPG, action, and simulation. By eating creatures smaller than you, you’d eventually evolve into greater forms, starting out as a small fish and advancing through different forms as you also advanced through the timeline of the planet.

Spore and Spore Origins function in very much the same manner (which makes me wonder why this concept is so popular now, yet wasn’t back then), as you feast on small creatures to gain evolution points which can then be used to add new abilities to your Spore. These primarily consist of offensive and defensive enhancements, allowing you to kill creatures quicker, withstand more blows from enemies, or give you greater movement speed for catching or avoiding other creatures.

The game primarily consists of going through this evolutionary process, though some stages are thrown I n every few levels which are mazes you must navigate, and there’s some boss battles as well. The only real disappointment on the gameplay front is that it’s over too quickly, with your Spore being unable to advance beyond the creature phase. While you can build 4 different Spores at a time, and make each one look unique, the actual customization options are limited, and your Spore will eventually end up at the same point each time, likely with the same enhancements and abilities.

The in-game controls are accomplished entirely via tilting the screen, which is very intuitive and responsive, though you’ll find that the iPhone constantly wants to go into sleep mode as a result of not touching the screen regularly, which will pause the game when it happens, but the screen will dim noticeably for some time before that point. Touch controls are used in the menus, where you have ability to outfit your creation with different items collected throughout the game, change its size and shape by pinching or stretching it, and change the colours of your creature.

EA pushes the iPhone further than any developer out there that I’ve come across. SimCity was one of the greatest graphical accomplishments on the iPhone and Spore Origins ranks right up there with it. The colourful and unique creatures are joys to behold, and downright disturbing at times, complete with giant, piercing eyeballs. The music also offers enjoyable accompaniment to the action.

Spore Origins still lacks any type of online component at present, at seems unlikely at this point, which is a shame, as online play of some sort was hinted at before the game released.

Spore Origins is a good time while it lasts, though after playing through the full version, the end comes sooner than I would’ve liked it to. Considering the hardware limitations and price though, this is hardly a surprise. Spore is a creative and graphically outstanding game that everyone should experience at least once.

Pros

• Outstanding graphics
• Creative designs
• Addictive gameplay, you’re constantly driven to see what form you can achieve next

Cons

• Disappointingly limited compared to the original, though not unexpected
• Tilt controls means screen wants to constantly go into sleep mode

Price - $4.99

Score: 9/10

Spore Origins on iTunes