For many of us, our first introduction into the realms of artifical life, or for us around my age, introduction into sciences, was this game series. In a time where the artifical life & simulation genre was dominated by "The Sims", many of this games fans stood strong dispite the numbers, and still do till this day, dispite the lack of intrest we've been seeing. And this is all for good reason, because, you'll never experence anything quite like these games.
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Creatures, the first game in the double pack of games, takes place on the abandoned world of albia, with all of the significantly more advance beings (The Shee) fleeing the planet many years ago, to find a new world. With only 6 of the Shee's greatest artifical life creations, the Norns, the player must ensure the survival of the speices against all odds, against the threats that loom in the caves below, and the beautifully designed trees of above, from both plant and life, including the Disease Ridden Grendels, a much less sucsessful experiment (Though, some would disagree) of the Shee.
The Norns you raise are very much alive, they have thier own emotions, brains and even genetics which will mutate over genorations for evolution, maybe you'll end up with a race which are hardened enough to eat the most dangerous of plants, or one which will fear the heat and strive in the cold. The possbilities are endless giving the game endless life. This is evidenced even further with the free add-ons and player created content, including new food, new animals, even new norn spieces, allowing your gene-pool to be even deeper.
A huge world dying to be explored. A speices to save. A journey like no other.
Welcome to Albia.
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Creatures 2, the second and stronger part of the two, improves on the formula set in the first game in every way imagenable, graphics, music, adventure possiblity, player created content, gene diversity, EVERYTHING is improved upon.
Set years after the first game, albia is thriving and alive, until a great volcanic eurption scars and splits the land apart, the anciant shee's labs are finally revealed, and with that, new beauties, and new dangers lurk, from a much more dangerous Grendel, to the all-mighty Borland creature, which only rears its head in spring time on a certian day, striking fear to all sea life.
The Gameplay is largely the same, aside the inclusion of unlockables, by exploring the world with your norns, you can unlock new kits, an ability to veiw the world without a norn needing to be selected, or most amazing, the ability to now select Grendels, or the new Creature, The Kleptomanic Hoarding Ettins.
The greatest thing of Creatures 2 aside it's larger scope, improved gameplay and beautiful world? The genetic splicer, which will take two creatures, even if they are of different speicies, like Grendel/Norn, and merge them into one, allowing unbelievable combination possibilities.
A beautiful world dying to be explored. Three Spieces to save. A journey like no other.
Albia just got bigger.