Spore is no Sim Universe, but it is still a very enjoyable sim game that really shines once you reach past a certain point. Your goal in Spore is to raise an alien race from single-cell organism all the way to galactic empire. This is achieved in the different phases: the Pac-man like Cell phase, the third-person RPG inspired Creature phase, the mini-RTS Tribal stage, the full-blown RTS Civilization stage, and the heavily Starflight and Star Control inspired Space stage. You flesh out your creatures appearance in the Creature stages while fleshing their mentality and behavior through all stages. Sadly the Space stage is the only phase you will normally come back to, as satisfying it is to go through all stages it can also be tedious. That said the Space phase is the closest part of the game that lives up to the original hype, there is a lot to do and there are literally thousands of worlds to visit as well as thousands of aliens to meet made by other players. Galactic Adventures enhances the game further with its in-depth adventure creator and solid gameplay that builds on the creature's phases mechanics. The game's biggest strength is its creators, its flexibility is currently unmatched and its easy to lose yourself making hundreds of aliens, vehicles, buildings, and adventures without even playing anything else in the game. Despite the two having very different gameplay, Spore is very much a precursor to No Man's Sky: both are sci-fi themed games with elements of simulation and exploration with the promises of nearly infinite gameplay. To say these games didn't deliver is an understatement; however, there is one huge difference between these two games: Spore is actually fun.
There are a ton of reviews panning the game for its DRM, it has since been removed though so don't worry about it anymore and ignore the numerous 1-star reviews getting mad at the game for DRM. This game is basically Master of Orion II made simpler but also has its own feel, streamlining mechanics of previous games, and a TON of personality. I would not say it is better than the game it feels so much like, but it is just as good. You have a selection of all the original Master of Orion races, and unlike in that game everyone is actually balanced. The Psilon are no longer unstoppable and the Mrrshan are actually useful. The game looks gorgeous and the UI is much easily to get a handle on than MoO or MoOII. The game's biggest strength is its character and world, all the alien leaders have a ton of personality and perfectly represent the race's they rule. The world feels more alive than in previous game and the advisors are actually endearing and feel helpful (unlike in other 4X games), this is all helped with the game's EXCELLENT voice acting and all-star cast. The one true flaw of this game is oftentimes it feels more like Civilization than Master of Orion in how it plays, however even then I think it helps the game more than hinders it. If you are a newcomer to the Master of Orion franchise or If you enjoyed Master of Orion II, but wish it looked nicer, had less micromanagement, and had a gentler learning curve then I highly recommend this game. It doesn't break boundaries, but is is just an all-around excellent sci-fi 4X game that is the true Master of Orion III.
From the start I had a hunch this game would end up suffering from its overhype, but I had not idea how bad the game would end up being. One paper this is an incredibly good idea: exploring literally thousands of planets with unique flora and fauna and interacting with aliens all with a Minecraft-type interface. Unfortunately the game is so buggy it makes an initial launch Bethesda game look bug free. The amount of crashes was inexcusable and the framerate dragged to a crawl multiple times and this was all on a powerful over clocked computer. The good news is the PS4 port isn't buggy at all, the bad news is bugs are the least of No Man's Sky's problems... If it were just bugs I could forgive this game, Armikrog for example was terribly buggy but now that it is ironed out it is a splendid game. But No Man's Sky's reward for getting past the bugs is an incredibly tedious experience. The amount of resource grinding is insane and is made all the more unbearable with your tiny inventory. Also the nearly unlimited number of planets you can explore? They start repeating after a while and even the life on them ends up repeating! The aliens have no personality and are just there to be vendors and exposition for a forgettable story Eventually the game did get better with an increased inventory and new types of planets... After about 22 hours of drudging through all the aforementioned problems. Even then the game remained tedious and boring. This is game is very much like Spore, an overhyped sic-fi game with incredible but ultimately unrealistic open-ended game ideas that ended up disappointing. The difference is Spore is an excellent game when you get past the fact it wasn't the Sim Universe we thought it would be, No Man's Sky is just a mess of bugs, boring gameplay, and broken promises.
Its important to play this game disregarding all the hype around it. As amazing this game is it is one of those unusual games that not everyone can fully enjoy. The gameplay is an interesting mixture of Shin Megami Tensei diplomacy and classic bullet hell when dodging enemy attacks. For those worried the game is overwhelming like other bullet hell games don't worry, the game is much more merciful and fair than something like Touhou. To be honest the game feels more like a point and click adventure game than a JRPG, the main thing you do in and out of battle is take in the atmosphere, experience the excellent story, and enjoy the incredibly clever writing. Most of the time battles feel more like puzzles than actual fights, though this is far from a bad thing if you are looking for Earthbound type battles this isn't your game. The game's battle system is definitely the most divisive thing in the game, its solid and creative but also very hit or miss among people. In the end though, the main reason to play this game is for the characters and story. Undertale is filled to the brim with satire on game tropes, references, and one of the best cast of characters ever to grace media let alone a video game. The game is also the perfect length for replaying, long enough to fit in a great story and side quests but short enough to make you feel "Ah that was fun... Lets do it again!". Indeed many memorable moments in the game are only gotten by playing it through in different ways. Is Undertale overrated? Yes, but seeing what it does right its the good kind of overrated. A game that is overhyped that lives up to most of the hype.
