{"id":365,"date":"2017-12-15T19:04:00","date_gmt":"2017-12-15T18:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/therapieetjeuvideo.fr\/?p=365"},"modified":"2020-11-03T12:46:06","modified_gmt":"2020-11-03T11:46:06","slug":"spore-a-game-about-growing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/therapieetjeuvideo.fr\/en\/spore-a-game-about-growing","title":{"rendered":"Spore, a game about growing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the video game The Sims, the client has the opportunity to project a number of affects and perceptions through a single character or family structure, whose physical appearance and certain personality traits they have been able to shape. The client will also have to be attentive to the needs of his or her Sims character and maintain a relationship level with the other Sims encountered in the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Minecraft, the client becomes an explorer and creator of the world in which his or her character will evolve, and can thus project other aspirations and desires. Confronting dangers and the risk of losing goods and resources accumulated will bring into play another dynamic in the relationship with the Self in the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spore sits somewhere between these two gaming experiences: a dynamic and exploratory aspect as in Minecraft and a more marked relationship to the client\u2019s character with an ability to mould the avatar and the relational sphere as in The Sims; however one big difference is that the avatar in Spore is editable at any time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Spore is not only this in-between game, it also brings something that the other games do not have that will make it a particularly relevant therapeutic mediator. I used it for the first time in October 2015.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spore is a game that appeared in September 2008 and was designed by Will Wright, who is also the creator of The Sims. Like The Sims, Spore can only be played with a mouse, which makes it suitable for young clients who are not familiar with the PC keyboard \/ mouse because I use the basic version on PC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The concept is very simple: it is about making a microorganism evolve in several phases (cell \u2013 creature \u2013 tribe \u2013 civilisation \u2013 space). The organism originates from space inside a meteorite that crashes on a planet, dispersing this embryo of life in the oceans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The player will have to make sure that his or her cell feeds in order to grow, while avoiding predators, and by regularly working on the physical aspect of the avatar to improve its chances of survival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are the four key components of Spore in my eyes: to be born \u2013 to grow \u2013 to evolve \u2013 to take others into account. It is for this reason that when faced with a child who seems stuck in his or her development or struggling in relationship management because the child is too self-focused, I almost always offer Spore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These four components are constantly found in the game, whatever phase the player is in. In the first two phases (Cellular and Tribe), you have to get in contact with your \u2018half\u2019 to reproduce and have access to the Workshop. The aim is to modify the creature and on its return lay an egg symbolising its return to the nest. I will cover them specifically in a dedicated article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I first offer this game to a client, I explain to them, \u2018You are going to play as a little creature who crashes on the planet in a meteorite from space. We will have to help it grow so that it can one day get out of the water and walk on dry land\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As usual, I write down everything that is said and what happens on the screen and the client\u2019s attitudes. Each client therefore has their own saved game which no one can access. The backup comes in the form of a planet located on one of the arms of a galaxy to be named freely by the client.<\/p>\n

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<\/strong> Welcome screen when Spore is launched, the saved games are symbolised by circles (planets).<\/strong><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

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The first thing the client is confronted with is naming their saved planet, an act that is similar to naming their avatar in The Sims; for some this involvement is difficult because it requires revealing something of oneself (why this resistance?\u2026). Then it is necessary to determine what will be the future diet of the animal, carnivorous or vegetarian (the client does not know this but it is possible to change the diet during the game or even have both).<\/p>\n

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Free choice to name the saved planet<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n
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<\/strong> Choice of diet that will initially induce the behaviour towards other cells (predator or prey, etc.)<\/strong><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

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The introductory video begins in which a meteorite (carrier of life to come) is seen travelling through space, passing the sun to crash into the planet, some debris of which will plunge into the ocean. The camera then follows a piece of meteorite debris at the bottom of the ocean, which cracks opens and lets out a cell that will have to evolve in this aquatic environment that is not hostile at first.<\/p>\n

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