"AMAZING."

Introduction
Many people have heard of the Creatures series of games, but few people remember it. This is the only Creatures game I've played (yet), but it might well be all I'll ever need. Granted, Creatures isn't for everybody, since it's no fast-paced action game, but those who think ''artificial life'' (AL) might even be slightly interesting will probably find this game absolutely fascinating.

The Three Species
There are three major species of Creatures: the Norns, the Ettins, and the Grendels. You basically raise the Norns (you can't control them per se, but you can guide their actions). The Ettins are neutral and like to steal machinery, and the Grendels are vile, stupid, disease-carrying beasts who love violence. Note that you can actually cross-breed these using the gene-splicer, so don't think for a minute that these are the only kinds of Creatures possible!

Detail, Detail, Detail
It would be difficult to deny that this is among the most detailed designs in the history of computer games. Each Creature has a very complicated neural net consisting of about 1000 neurons, a Digital DNA code, and a bloodstream. The latter can carry many different chemicals which can be anything from Vitamin C to Testosterone to the superlatively lethal ATP Decoupler. These alone show a high attention to detail, but add together the way the Creatures learn language, how bacteria float around in the air (and how Creatures like Grendels carry them), and, well, the list could go on forever...you get the point. ;)

Machines!
Machines are a very interesting part of the game. You have the big machines like the recycler (converts stuff to bioenergy), the replicator (duplicates existing objects), the creator (creates new objects), and so on. But you also have little gadgets like Creature Detectors. What's more is you can hook them up to each other to get really complicated functionality. Very fundamental knowledge of circuitry may be helpful in some cases (such as to help you understand what an AND gate does), but isn't necessary. Indeed, you don't even have to understand everything! Even simple machines can be useful. The only catch is that Ettins love to steal gadgets...so you have to keep a watch on your more critical machines!

Geography
This game takes place in a spaceship with four Terraria (plural of ''Terrarium''). The Norn Terrarium is a safe place (though Ettins may hang out here, and Grendels can invade from time to time), so it's best to keep your Norns here. The Jungle Terrarium should usually be avoided (by the Norns; you can visit anywhere freely without fear), because the flora and fauna are unfriendly at best...and Grendels hang out here...and there's tons of bacteria...you get the point. If an egg goes missing, it's probably here. The Desert Terrarium is the home of the Ettins (if your gadgets go missing, check here!), and the Aquarium is self-explanatory.

Outside of the Terraria are the bridge of the spaceship to the front and the engineering section to the rear. There's some helpful stuff here for both the player and the Creatures, particularly the Medical Bay which is good for periodic (or sporadic) checkups...or emergencies!

Interface
Purely point-and-click, with use of the keyboard for typing in commands (which isn't as bad as it sounds). My only quibbles (and they're pretty small) are that you can accidentally praise or reprimand a Creature when you're trying to click something else (but with some care this isn't a problem), and that your inventory can get crowded very quickly, making it difficult to see which items you have. But this may be intentional, to discourage hoarding of gadgets (and encouraging you to use them!)

Music
Absolutely fantastic. You'll hardly notice it's there, but this is far from a bad thing. For instance, it'll never distract you. Yet, if you want to listen to it, it can really take you in with its haunting simplicity.

Graphics
I tend to review graphics last to make the point that people tend to concentrate way too much on graphics. In fact, stupid ''eye candy'' usually makes a bad game worse. But since this is far from a bad game, I'll say the graphics are fantastic! They're a perfect complement to the music and gameplay. The Norns all look cute (but not annoyingly cute unless you get annoyed by cuteness too easily). The Ettins are cute, too, and the Grendels somehow manage to, paradoxically, be cute and ugly at the same time. Nothing to complain about here!

Overall
There's so much to do in this game, you could probably play it for a thousand years if you had the time. But did I mention you can make your own agents (objects you interact with), and download others from the Internet? While I only use the official extensions, the option's definitely there if you want more. It certainly doesn't hurt! Unless you can't sit still for 10 seconds, you might well never be bored again. All of these things combine to provide a perfect score of 10 out of 10.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/23/03, Updated 07/23/03