Comments on: Spore in the Library http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/ The official blog of the Young Adult Library Services Association Sun, 12 Feb 2012 22:29:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Sarah Ludwig http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4681 Sarah Ludwig Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:23:24 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4681 Forgot to comment on your first point -- it definitely seems like the logging in problem WILL be an issue for those teens who want to log in in the library. I wonder if any librarians have contacted Maxis? Forgot to comment on your first point — it definitely seems like the logging in problem WILL be an issue for those teens who want to log in in the library.
I wonder if any librarians have contacted Maxis?

]]> By: Sarah Ludwig http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4680 Sarah Ludwig Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:21:27 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4680 Jami, I'm playing the game without logging in...and I haven't created an account. So, while I only have Maxis creations in my game, I can still play. That may be a work-around in the library. Jami,
I’m playing the game without logging in…and I haven’t created an account. So, while I only have Maxis creations in my game, I can still play. That may be a work-around in the library.

]]> By: Jami http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4679 Jami Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:18:51 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4679 One problem I ran into when wanting to play with my husband is that you can only have one account per computer, so while my husband and I wanted to purchase two copies of the game to play our own games and send creatures to each other, I wasn't allowed to sign in as me on my laptop because my husband had already logged in to make sure the game would work. This may be a deterrent from having the game installed on computers in a library since there is a limited number of worlds you can build on. Another problem that was encountered with Spore, is that you need the internet in order log into the game. A teen came into the library asking for my help because when he tried to install the game it pinged the internet which his parents have made the choice to not purchase for their home. When he looked for help on the EA website, it required him to set up an account to simply email EA about the problem. However I was able to find a phone number buried in the Terms of Service he could call and verify whether the internet is actually required to play the game. It's very sad to see DRM practically kill this game. I hope that it serves as a lesson to EA and the big industry that DRM this tight only hurts business. One problem I ran into when wanting to play with my husband is that you can only have one account per computer, so while my husband and I wanted to purchase two copies of the game to play our own games and send creatures to each other, I wasn’t allowed to sign in as me on my laptop because my husband had already logged in to make sure the game would work. This may be a deterrent from having the game installed on computers in a library since there is a limited number of worlds you can build on.

Another problem that was encountered with Spore, is that you need the internet in order log into the game. A teen came into the library asking for my help because when he tried to install the game it pinged the internet which his parents have made the choice to not purchase for their home. When he looked for help on the EA website, it required him to set up an account to simply email EA about the problem. However I was able to find a phone number buried in the Terms of Service he could call and verify whether the internet is actually required to play the game.

It’s very sad to see DRM practically kill this game. I hope that it serves as a lesson to EA and the big industry that DRM this tight only hurts business.

]]> By: Will http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4678 Will Tue, 30 Sep 2008 18:28:53 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4678 I've purchased Spore for my own home use, and it is a wonderfully creative game. I've also been pondering if there was a good way to integrate it into our library computers. Circulation of the item is out due to DRM, but I find even local installation on our teen computers an iffy solution. Much of the fun comes from advancing the creature you know through each stage and the consistency of the development. The single player game has maybe 10 different save spots for various players games, and unless there's a way to expand upon that then I'm worried that few of our teens would properly enjoy it because old saves would have to be deleted frequently to let new games be made. If anyone has found an easy solution to that issue, I'd love to hear it. I’ve purchased Spore for my own home use, and it is a wonderfully creative game. I’ve also been pondering if there was a good way to integrate it into our library computers. Circulation of the item is out due to DRM, but I find even local installation on our teen computers an iffy solution. Much of the fun comes from advancing the creature you know through each stage and the consistency of the development.

The single player game has maybe 10 different save spots for various players games, and unless there’s a way to expand upon that then I’m worried that few of our teens would properly enjoy it because old saves would have to be deleted frequently to let new games be made.

If anyone has found an easy solution to that issue, I’d love to hear it.

]]> By: Sarah Ludwig http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4677 Sarah Ludwig Tue, 30 Sep 2008 17:48:36 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4677 smac, It looks like a lot of those negative reviews are related to the DRM issue -- which, I agree, is a big problem, especially for libraries! smac,
It looks like a lot of those negative reviews are related to the DRM issue — which, I agree, is a big problem, especially for libraries!

]]> By: smac http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4676 smac Tue, 30 Sep 2008 17:31:22 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4676 Before you buy look at the reviews at the point of sales. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832130013 http://www.amazon.com/review/product/B000FKBCX4/ref=cm_cr_dp_all_summary?_encoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending smac Before you buy look at the reviews at the point of sales.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832130013

http://www.amazon.com/review/product/B000FKBCX4/ref=cm_cr_dp_all_summary?_encoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending

smac

]]> By: Sarah Ludwig http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4665 Sarah Ludwig Tue, 30 Sep 2008 11:14:17 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4665 That is such a great point. Like I said in my post, I have to be a vegetarian in Spore-- and I came to that conclusion because in one game, I chose to be a carnivore in the cell stage, and when I got to the creature stage, I couldn't stand to kill + eat my fellow spore creatures! So it really is very clear how the choices you make effect your path throughout the game. The game forces you to follow through on these decisions, although there are ways of changing your course gradually. That is such a great point. Like I said in my post, I have to be a vegetarian in Spore– and I came to that conclusion because in one game, I chose to be a carnivore in the cell stage, and when I got to the creature stage, I couldn’t stand to kill + eat my fellow spore creatures! So it really is very clear how the choices you make effect your path throughout the game. The game forces you to follow through on these decisions, although there are ways of changing your course gradually.

]]> By: Linda Braun http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4663 Linda Braun Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:52:31 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4663 The need to constantly make choices as a part of Spore really strikes me as a great tie-in for teens and playing the game in the library. Since teens constantly need to make choices - and learning to make good choices is a part of their development - Spore gives them the chance to do just that in a creative environment. It might also give libraries and teens opportunities for some interesting discussions. The need to constantly make choices as a part of Spore really strikes me as a great tie-in for teens and playing the game in the library. Since teens constantly need to make choices – and learning to make good choices is a part of their development – Spore gives them the chance to do just that in a creative environment. It might also give libraries and teens opportunities for some interesting discussions.

]]> By: Sarah Ludwig http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4662 Sarah Ludwig Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:28:20 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4662 Hi MK, I actually wasn't thinking of Spore as a circulating game, but as a game to be installed on library computers -- in that case, 3 dls per game would actually be too much for my library, where we have 4 designated teen computers. However, I do agree with both what you and Jami are saying about the DRM issues, because it would be awesome to be able to circulate Spore at some point. Hi MK,
I actually wasn’t thinking of Spore as a circulating game, but as a game to be installed on library computers — in that case, 3 dls per game would actually be too much for my library, where we have 4 designated teen computers. However, I do agree with both what you and Jami are saying about the DRM issues, because it would be awesome to be able to circulate Spore at some point.

]]> By: mk http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2008/09/29/spore-in-the-library/comment-page-1/#comment-4648 mk Tue, 30 Sep 2008 04:10:42 +0000 http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/?p=1365#comment-4648 As Jami pointed out in a recent post, thanks to the DRM on Spore you actually Couldn't just buy several copies for the library and make it available to teens--the game was first released with a limit of three installations. I just heard a brief story on NPR this morning that there's a pending lawsuit (alleging that the DRM actually makes computers more vulnerable to security threats, nevermind penalizing legitimate gamers who update their computers of operating systems) and the number of authorized downloads has increased, but it's still not unlimited, and thus, sadly, not a great choice for a circulating game. As Jami pointed out in a recent post, thanks to the DRM on Spore you actually Couldn’t just buy several copies for the library and make it available to teens–the game was first released with a limit of three installations. I just heard a brief story on NPR this morning that there’s a pending lawsuit (alleging that the DRM actually makes computers more vulnerable to security threats, nevermind penalizing legitimate gamers who update their computers of operating systems) and the number of authorized downloads has increased, but it’s still not unlimited, and thus, sadly, not a great choice for a circulating game.

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