EA, the publishers of games like Mass-Effect, Dragon Age, and Battlefield, once dared to commission a game in which the point of view was from a single living organism. There are hardly any games like Spore around these days, where the potential for freedom is nearly limitless.
A Quick Overview of Spore
We play as a singular microorganism that evolves into a full-fledged species. There are different stages of development of the creature we control, which are as follows.
- The Cell Stage: The cell stage is from a top-down view where our creature consumes meat and plants, or either of the two, to grow while avoiding predators.
- The Creature Stage: The perspective shifts when we advance to the creature stage. Using DNA points, we can morph our character with physical features and upgrades for combat and defense. Proper interaction with other species also takes place in the creature stage. Befriending creatures adds them as allies, and attacking them makes them enemies.
- The Tribal Stage: The next stage is the tribal stage, where we control the major area of influence. It’s a fight for survival against other tribes to become the most powerful one. Our actions will determine if our creature’s species is benevolent or malicious.
- The Civilization Stage: After the tribal stage, the civilization stage is where the creature’s dominant tribe splintered into different factions worldwide. Conquest starts; the goal is to unite the globe under a singular nation; yours.
- The Space Stage: Lastly, it’s the Space stage. Depending on our choices, the singular microscopic organism creature we help shape either goes on a journey of enlightenment in space or causes havoc across the galaxy. The possibilities in Spore are endless, and few games have the same degree of freedom.
Similar God Sim Games Like Spore
Now that we’ve understood how Spore is as a game, let’s look at a few alternatives that can give you a similar experience.
1. Civilization VI
Conquest and warring factions are part and parcel of God sim games like Spore. Civilization VI takes things further by introducing different nations, each with a distinct look and play style. Players must raise their army, grind for resources, and amass enough manpower to march into battle for victory.
If you’re a sadist who likes to push calamities over your game creations, Civilization VI has you covered. Natural disasters like floods, earthquakes, locusts, and famine all can ruin your people in the game. On the other hand, if you want your nation to prosper, you put in the work.
Raise the level of technology, develop the culture, bring people to colonize the lands, construct infrastructure, and build weapons of warfare. Historical leaders are present in Civilization VI, which adds a flavor of authenticity to the game. If you enjoy Spore’s tribal stage, CivilizationVI specializes in that area, and it’s worth checking out.
2. Kerbal Space Program – One of the Very Unique Games Like Spore
If you’re looking for a game with depth similar to Spore’s space stage but also a casual experience, Kerbal Space Program is that game. The hilarious physics of the Kerbal Space Program is a treat to watch in the many spectacular failures of rocket launching. Many players suffer the laugh-out-loud moments when their rocket explodes during or before lift-off.
Aside from the humor, Kerbal Space Program has astonishing depth. The game’s rocket construction stage requires careful planning and a lot of trial and error testing. Eventually, after a successful launch, the game isn’t over; on the contrary, it’s only begun.
The aspect of space exploration, discovering new planets, landing your spaceship in different terrains, and establishing contact is part of the game. The level of immersion in the Kerbal Space Program is impressive, and it’s a game you’ll get lost in for hours. Not bad for a game like Spore that’s spoofing a big concept from it.
3. Thrive
From the humble beginnings of a singular microscopic cell to a terrifying horror capable of destroying anything in its path, Thrive is a love letter to Spore. You can’t ask for a better game that perfectly captures the essence of what made Spore such a fascinating game. The game follows the same formula as its inspiration, only with a few welcome changes.
Thrive encourages players to combine different D.N.A to create and morph the playable creature. The aim is to grow the creature in size, intellect, agility, and physical strength and add external predatory appendages. The main purpose of constantly evolving your playable creature is to thwart enemies that come to attack you.
The other species are on the hunt for resources, and it’s a race to the finish because the playable creature is also in need. Thrive is a fantastic game like Spore, which makes players think about the complexities and the combination of mutations that are nearly endless in the game.
4. Plague Inc. Evolved – One of the Closest Games Like Spore, Literally!
A game that lets you be as evil as a diseased cell is worth your time because it’s an intriguing and terrifying concept. Plague Inc. Evolved puts great emphasis on players to find ways of spreading the influence of the disease. The game depicts the human body’s deterioration and the impact of a fatal illness that can destroy a person’s health beyond repair.
Plague Inc. Evolved involves players noting how a disease spreads from person to person, starting from patient zero. The goal is to infect the global populace, and there is no room to slow down because humans in the game are also hard at work.
The game’s adjustable settings bring various changes that influence the spreading rate of the pandemic. Other variables make the game feel like a stand out within the God Sim genre of games like Spore. We highly recommend it for its bizarre and interesting concepts executed brilliantly.
5. No Man’s Sky – One of the Most Excellent Games With Similar Vibes To Spore that Players Will Like
Our last suggestion for fans of God Sim games like Spore is No Man’s Sky. Quite literally, the game has no place off-limits; it all depends on how much effort players are willing to put in. The number of planets in the procedurally generated world of No Man’s Sky is almost infinite.
The game has no set time limits, similar to Spore, and players are free to explore, interact, and discover exciting wonders of space. No Man’s Sky has a very engaging story on top of the gameplay, so fans have a reason to stay invested. If you like other space games like Mass Effect, we recommend checking out our list of similar sci-fi games to scratch that itch.
The shared idea in Spore and No Man’s Sky is that no matter how powerful the player character may become, they’re still one being. The galaxies are vast and endless; we’re a small fragment of its grand design. We highly recommend checking out No Man’s Sky to get your fix of Spore’s space stage goodness.
Conclusion
We hope you had fun viewing our list of games like Spore; let us know if you think there is any game that deserves to be here, but we didn’t include it. It was difficult for us to compile the list because the choices were limited. Still, we can’t say we didn’t have fun with the curation.
We value your feedback and encourage you to leave comments, as we love engaging with our readers. Our picks for today’s list are diverse but are within the same ballpark as Spore. If you like a similar list of game recommendations, check out the top 5 split-screen Games Like A Way Out.
