When we last spoke to The Sims' studio head, Rod Humble, he was applauding the franchise's retail success. Now the exec has another, albeit more personal reason to celebrate, having climbed up another rung on the corporate ladder, laying claim to the role of The Sims' brand's executive VP. The move follows the recent hiring of Jeff Green, who left the world of game journalism last month to throw his body on the gears of EA's expansion factory as well.

Humble replaces former lead, Nancy Smith, who EA notes will handle "special" The Sims-related projects before eventually moving into a new as-yet-undefined role in the months ahead. We offer congratulations, and suggest he celebrate his new position by locking co-workers in the bathroom or pushing them in the corporate pool before deftly removing any means of escape.

Look, we consider ourselves experts around here. Bungie tries to put one past us? Heck nah! Case closed. But then this little ditty hits our inbox and we're totally stumped. What is this? A game? Is this supposed to get us excited about something? You ever get the feeling, like, there's this whole other planet of other people who play other games...? Yeah, we got that feeling right now.

What do you know, people actually did pay for Spore. EA recently announced that its DRM-riffic title Spore has sold one million copies worldwide across PC, Mac and DS platforms. The publisher also stated that 25 million creatures, vehicles and buildings have evolved in the Sporepedia.

Not that there was any doubt that Spore would ever reach the million sold mark, but whether its "mile wide, inch deep" gameplay brings it The Sims level of success remains to be revealed.

You probably wondered, when you heard about a Sims movie, how they planned to turn a game with literally no plot into a film. Here, according to producer John Davis, is the plan:

"... So this is the way I did it: The Sims, as you know, you can control your imaginary world, right? And in our movie, a young man, a 16 year old kid or a 14 year old kid and his friend get their hands on this thing called the Sims Infinity Pack, right, which is kind of this very strange video game store which was there just for that moment, and seemingly wasn't and all that. But what they realize is that they can scan their world in, because this is the most life like, real Sims game ever. And as they are playing this they are all of a sudden realizing is what they are playing on the game is having an effect on the real world. So in effect, through the game, they are able to control their world. It's wish fulfillment, and obviously it turns against them."

It's a larger quote than we'd normally post in full, but we didn't want you to think we had tampered with it in any way. So as not to make this post take up any more real estate on the front page, we've put our mature and insightful critique of the film's concept right after the break.

If any sort of parallel can be drawn between Spore and the creatures you foster into civilization within its digital confines, then we've reached a very proud moment. After it emerged from the development seas, wobbling on two spindly legs, Spore has now gone through its first evolution, thanks to a recently released patch that should help the fledgling game walk just a bit straighter.

There's a bevy of changes, from a difficulty increase in the game's first half and a decrease of random attacks on your home planet during the Space stage. Read all about Spore's evolutionary step right here. The patch is available via BigDownload.

Not content with authoring scathing reviews on Amazon, several gamers outraged by EA's approach to DRM in Will Wright's everything sim, Spore, have decided to evolve their line of protest. GameCulture has dug up several amusing, user-created creatures from the game's galaxy, all of them brandishing rather unsubtle traits -- despite lacking traditional faces, it's clear that they frown upon the game's three-install limit.

Regardless of your thoughts on the whole matter, we're pleased to see the promise of user-generated content fulfilled in such an interesting, self-referential way.

[Via GamePolitics]

It's been almost one week since Spore came out. For those that have contributed to the exponential rise in Sporepedia entries (over 14 million at the time of this writing), we want to know your thoughts on the game. If you would be so kind, please answer a few questions regarding the game, the phases and the editors.

But, we have a sneaking suspicion that the blog, which aims to let "Electronic Arts know that their biggest attack on Christian values to date will not be tolerated," is horrifyingly real. What's the attack? Well, as near as we can figure it's because Spore's structure would seem to insinuate that evolution is real. There's another thing that does that, what's it called? Oh, yeah ... science.

The bad news is that Will Wright is lambasted as an "evil man," in part because of his membership in "the only church in america [sic] that ordains homosexuals on a regular basis." The bonus is that it's a really great resource for pictures of Spore creatures with giant penises, which we simply can't get enough of.

Maybe it's the High Fidelity fan in us, but we love top five lists. They're easy to read, don't tax our brains with too much complexity and most importantly, don't require too much of our precious, precious time. And if you are going to take those moments out of your day, shouldn't it be on a worthwhile list? Say ... on the Top Five Favorite Games of World's Smartest Game Designer Will Wright? Behold!

5. The Civilization series
4. Grand Theft Auto series
3. Battlefield series
2. Advance Wars on the DS
1. The Flight Simulator series

So, are you surprised? Will Wright is, apparently, a total nerd. You know what just got left off at number six? Tri-Dimensional Chess. True story.

[Thanks, Pugnate]

We went into social mode at last week's official Spore launch party to chat with Caryl Shaw, producer of the enormously anticipated "everything sim." Specifically, we wanted to hear her thoughts on how the game's being received around the globe – especially in light of some unexpectedly low and mixed reviews.

Shaw's of the opinion that the varied scores come as a result of several factors, not the least of which is its mish-mash of genres. "It's not really like a traditional game," she said. "Spore is just this magical creativity experiment." (She also hopes that it helps pave the way for more genre-bending experiences "magical creativity experiments.")

The Digital Rights Madness around Spore has started an internet war. After demonstrating their power earlier this year with the "Mass Effect Sex-box" author, a gang of ruthless Amazon reviewers have struck Spore (and to a lesser extent the Galactic Edition) down to a paltry 1.5 out of 5 stars. Here's what those Negative Nancies are saying:

• Dumbed down experience and draconian DRM
• DRM is a show stopper
• Spore: I Refuse to Buy Until DRM is Patched Out
• No Way, No How, No DRM
• drm makes me a sad panda
• $49.99 too much for game rental

Notice a trend here? The Spore DRM, so far as we know, works exactly like Mass Effect's system: You have 3 activations for installation, and after that you will reportedly have to call EA for more (and uninstalls won't work to raise that number). Of course, those reviews haven't stopped Spore from being #1 in video game sales on Amazon (Galactic Edition at #12), and we doubt any negative reviews will. As Will Wright aptly told MTV Multiplayer, "We would rather have the Metacritic and sales of Sims 2 than the Metacritic and sales of Half-Life."

Don't be surprised if this Sunday's edition of ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown looks a bit more like a game of Madden. According to a New York Times report, the Disney-owned sports network will use the "EA Sports Virtual Playbook" and a special studio and camera setup to allow "both real and virtual people move around the ESPN set to demonstrate plays and possible situations." It sure sounds a lot simpler than getting real NFL players to crash around the set, but we'll reserve judgment until we see it in action this weekend.

The review embargo lifted on Spore today, and the critics wasted no time weighing in on Will Wright's oft-delayed opus. The general consensus seems to be that an amazing level of quality is there, but depth may not be, which is really the last complaint we ever expected anyone to level at Spore. Go figure.

• PC Gamer UK (91/100): "Spore falls a little short of its promise at every stage, but bear in mind that its concept is as close as we've come to a game incarnation of the Lord our God."
• IGN (88/100): "In fact, Spore is essentially five distinct games woven together. And here, Maxis demonstrates a weakness, as a number of these games come off as lightweight or limited. However, Spore is a prime example of something that is much more than the sum of its many parts.
• Gamespot (80/100): "Taken on their own, its pieces are nothing special. As parts of a singular ambitious vision, they work far better. Throw in the best customization tools seen in years and an enthusiastic community brimming with creativity, and you have a legitimately great game that will deliver hours of quality entertainment. "

In the terrible glut expected this holiday season, it's good to see Microsoft and Rare bringing a piñata to the party. According to reviews, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise doesn't seem to bring anything radically new to the fiesta, but it does make significant improvements to the formula introduced in the original. If you didn't like the original, it appears you can just move on. But, if you found the sweet candy fix of Viva Piñata addictive the first time, it looks like you'll be in for another treat.

• 1Up (A): "If you hated the original, Trouble in Paradise isn't going to change your opinion. If, however, you somehow missed out completely on the piñata party the first time around, I implore you to check it out now -- it's certainly much deeper and more addictive than its playful visuals would lead you to believe."
• Game Informer (83/100): "Keeping your piñatas happy can still be monotonous in task, but the expanded content and finely made multiplayer relieves some of the repetition that plagued the first game. Viva Piñata retains its child-like charm, but the content is layered with deep strategies and entertaining gameplay that can suck anyone's life away."
  
• GamePro (80/100): "There are also some minor additions that attempt to sweeten the pot but they don't add too much. The new trick stick, which allows you to teach pinata tricks, and a wide range of toys are fun to play with, though. There's also support for the Xbox Live Vision camera which allows you to scan in special pinata cards, but it's a gimmick at best. Still, despite some irritating design elements, Trouble in Paradise is a fun game that retains the charm of the first Viva Pinata."
• GameDaily (80/100): "Rare could've easily slapped a couple of minor changes into this game and given us an expansion pack. Instead, Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise offers enough to make it a worthy sequel. It'll be a little too cute for some, but others will see past the adorable exterior and find the delicious treats inside, just like a real pinata."