To Spore or Not to Spore?

I love the game Spore. Not for the gameplay—the innovative, in depth elements of the game were neutered by EA/Maxis when it was released—but for the creative potential. There cannot be many other games with its level of user generated content and such an emphasis on creation.  That potential for creation is expanded upon by the Galactic Adventures expansion pack, which allows the player to create and share games with customizable objectives that can be combined in countless ways.

Even though I have trouble uploading my creations to the server most of the time, I still love the process of creating a playable story. But I sometimes wonder, am I wasting my time? Instead of creating in-game, should I be creating from scratch in the real world by drawing or writing?

The part of me that really enjoys the game insists, no I am not wasting time. Spore is but a medium, like pottery or charcoal or words, and the creations are still, well, creative. I also kind of look at it as “practice” creating—a fun, relaxing way to charge my creative batteries. Viewed in this light, playing Spore is actually a positive thing.

However, as with all games, there is a danger of being sucked in and losing track of time. Maybe moderation is the best approach…

(I went back and forth between writing this and playing Spore.)