EA announced yesterday that Will Wright's latest creation, Spore and Spore Creatures, is being released to the world over the course of the week. The DS version, Spore Creatures is the only version of Spore to be released on a Nintendo system. There is no word included on release date or details of the previously announced Wii version.

Spore Creatures puts the universe in the hands of the player allowing them to create and evolve life, establish tribes, build civilizations, sculpt worlds, and eventually conquer distant planets and civilizations. The robust tool set included gives players the ability to craft nearly everything in the Spore universe.

Spore Creatures will be available in most regions on Sunday, September 7.

SPORE AVAILABLE AT RETAILERS WORLDWIDE THIS WEEK FROM EA AND MAXIS

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Emeryville, CA – September 4, 2008 – How will you create the universe? Gamers around the world can find out this week as the highly anticipated video game Spore™ ships to retailers for the PC, MAC® and Nintendo DS™, mobile phones and the iPhone™. Spore is rated E10+ by the ESRB, and retails for $49.99. The collectable Spore Galactic Edition is also available for $79.99, which includes "The Making of Spore" DVD, a hardback art book, fold-out poster, 100-page Galactic Handbook and the National Geographic Channel documentary "How to Build a Better Being" DVD.

Spore will be on store shelves around the world on the following dates:

• September 4th: Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria, Finland and Australia
• September 5th: Rest of Europe and South America
• September 7th: North America

Spore gives players their own personal universe in a box. Create and evolve life, establish tribes, build civilizations, sculpt entire worlds and explore a universe filled with creations made by other gamers. Spore gives players a wealth of creative tools to customize nearly every aspect of their universe: creatures, vehicles, buildings, and even spaceships.

"Spanning hundreds of millions of years, Spore's scope is unprecedented in gaming. It has been a long time in the making and the team at Maxis is excited to finally share the game with the world," said Will Wright, chief designer at Maxis. "We can't wait to see the amazing worlds that our fans build, as they tell their own stories with the game."

"Spore is an outstanding achievement," said Frank Gibeau, President of the EA Games Label. "The blending of gameplay, editors and online community through pollinated content came together to deliver on Will Wright's big idea – to create and control your own personal universe. The team at Maxis has built an extraordinary game that has the potential to become a platform for creativity, and innovation for years to come."

To download a free trial of the Spore™ Creature Creator, please visit www.spore.com. For screen shots or more information about Spore, please visit our press web site at http://info.ea.com.