Though it has little impact at present, the different elements you place on your beast will affect its functionality when it's eventually imported into the full Spore game. The type of mouth (or mouths) you place on it will determine whether it's an herbivore, carnivore or omnivore. Leg and feet types will dictate its speed rating, and armor will also boost its health. Other elements will provide various forms of attack, abilities, and social traits. It will be interesting to see how all of this plays into the actual game, but for now they're merely peripheral details.

Test Mode gives you the opportunity to see your creations in action. They'll appear in a medium-size area in one of several available background environments where they can be moved around. It's fun to hit the different action buttons to see how they respond. You can make them emote, dance in different styles, and engage in other entertaining activities. Up to three baby versions of your creature can be spawned to interact with. It's cute, since they will mimic your behaviors. From this mode you can also take pictures, short animations, and video segments of your creation. These can then be e-mailed to a friend or uploaded to the Sporepedia for others to enjoy.

Making creatures is just the tip of the iceberg, since the full game is due out in September, players will be able to create vehicles, buildings, and other elements of their growing creature civilizations. For $9.99, Spore Creature Creator lets you get a jump on the action. Concocting cool critters is incredibly addictive, and the ability to save any and all of your beasts for future use in the game is pretty awesome. A limited demo version of the creator is also available as a free download from EA's site for those who want to play around to get a feel for the program. Hardcore Spore enthusiasts might want to pick the retail version up ahead of time to have access to the full range of parts to play with.

By Nathan Meunier
CCC Staff Contributor