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Unfortunately, the Creatures 2 launch did not go as planned. The [[Early Adoption Program]] failed to deliver on its basic promise of being "early", and the game had several major flaws, the most notable of which was a [[Creatures 2 (genome)|deficient norn genome]] that lead to [[OHSS]]. [[Cyberlife]] was subsequently accused of gouging customers when they released a [[Life Kit]] with an improved genome (as well as other features) but neglected to release this as a patch to the original game until several weeks had passed.
 
Unfortunately, the Creatures 2 launch did not go as planned. The [[Early Adoption Program]] failed to deliver on its basic promise of being "early", and the game had several major flaws, the most notable of which was a [[Creatures 2 (genome)|deficient norn genome]] that lead to [[OHSS]]. [[Cyberlife]] was subsequently accused of gouging customers when they released a [[Life Kit]] with an improved genome (as well as other features) but neglected to release this as a patch to the original game until several weeks had passed.
  
In addition, documentation was considered scanty, especially by those who had owned [[Creatures]] - much appeared to have been reserved for the strategy guidebook, [[Creatures 2: Official Strategies & Secrets]]. This could be a result of tighter deadlines for the manual rather than than the book (considering Mindscape's requirements for translation, packaging and distribution) or publisher-related editing of the manual for simplicity. However, these reasons did not go down well with people who had just bought a $40 game only to find that the manual's instructions for getting norns to feed [http://groups-beta.google.com/group/alt.games.creatures/browse_frm/thread/d81ff511d1cbccaf/cacb34114bc1eaa4 did not work reliably].
+
In addition, documentation was considered scanty, especially by those who had owned [[Creatures]] - much appeared to have been reserved for the strategy guidebook, [[Creatures 2: Official Strategies & Secrets]]. This could be a result of tighter deadlines for the manual rather than than the book (considering Mindscape's requirements for translation, packaging and distribution) or publisher-related editing of the manual for simplicity. However, these reasons did not go down well with people who had just bought a $40 game only to find that the manual's instructions for getting norns to feed [https://groups-beta.google.com/group/alt.games.creatures/browse_frm/thread/d81ff511d1cbccaf/cacb34114bc1eaa4 did not work reliably].
  
 
Overall, Creatures 2 was probably a commercial success (despite inadequate marketing, which affected subsequent games as well) - however, it could be seen as a strategic failure, as for many it compromised the trust between the [[Creatures Community|community]] and [[Cyberlife]]. Much had been promised, and yet many users considered the only improvement over the original to be the graphics. [[Third-party]] developers were naturally less willing to work on a game that they did not really enjoy playing, and this probably affected the supply of [[COB]]s. Things improved after the development of the [[Canny Norn]]s and [[Nova Subterra]], but some people had lost interest by then, and it is impossible to say how many people would have become part of the community but never found out about the improved genomes and so grew prematurely tired of the game.
 
Overall, Creatures 2 was probably a commercial success (despite inadequate marketing, which affected subsequent games as well) - however, it could be seen as a strategic failure, as for many it compromised the trust between the [[Creatures Community|community]] and [[Cyberlife]]. Much had been promised, and yet many users considered the only improvement over the original to be the graphics. [[Third-party]] developers were naturally less willing to work on a game that they did not really enjoy playing, and this probably affected the supply of [[COB]]s. Things improved after the development of the [[Canny Norn]]s and [[Nova Subterra]], but some people had lost interest by then, and it is impossible to say how many people would have become part of the community but never found out about the improved genomes and so grew prematurely tired of the game.
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==External links==
 
==External links==
 
* [http://www.gamewareeurope.com/GWDev/creatures_more.php/?id=517_0_6_0_M27 C2 Ecology in a Nutshell]
 
* [http://www.gamewareeurope.com/GWDev/creatures_more.php/?id=517_0_6_0_M27 C2 Ecology in a Nutshell]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20071015152923/http://www.gamewaredevelopment.co.uk/cdn/C2Species_List.php C2 species list (archived)]
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* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071015152923/http://www.gamewaredevelopment.co.uk/cdn/C2Species_List.php C2 species list (archived)]
 
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090522121117/http://ccdevnet.org/~fuzzie/prettyc2/ C2 is pretty!] A series of screenshots taken by [[Fuzzie]] showing the prettiness of C2. (archived)
 
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090522121117/http://ccdevnet.org/~fuzzie/prettyc2/ C2 is pretty!] A series of screenshots taken by [[Fuzzie]] showing the prettiness of C2. (archived)
 
* [http://adf.ly/r9YOV Creatures 2 Soundtrack] - Download the C2 soundtrack here!
 
* [http://adf.ly/r9YOV Creatures 2 Soundtrack] - Download the C2 soundtrack here!

Revision as of 09:04, 3 July 2017

Creatures 2 norns were cute, if a little dumb

The second game in the Creatures series, Creatures 2 took place in Albia centuries after most of the original Creatures world was destroyed by a massive volcanic eruption, caused by the Lone Shee's spaceship (the Capillata) taking off. Released in September 1998, it included a far larger world, more complex Norns and ecology, and introduced the Ettins, as well as the Genesplicer (which allowed the artificial combination of two Creatures into one).

This game is no longer available separately, but can be purchased as part of Creatures: The Albian Years. The background images for Creatures 2 are available at C2 Back. There are also a set of comic strips in the Creatures 2 style entitled River and Petal.

Read the Creatures 2 Credits.

Game Requirements

  • Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT4.0 (SP3)
  • Pentium 166 or faster
  • 4 X CD ROM or faster
  • 16-Bit sound card
  • 2MB 16-Bit colour SVGA display adapter
    (800X600 resolution minimum)
  • 16 MB RAM (32MB recommended)
  • 300MB of free hard disk space

Compatibility

The original version of Creatures 2 will run on Windows 2000, Windows Millenium Edition and Windows XP, but not Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8/8.1 or Windows 10. The GOG Albian Years version, however, is fully compatible with these operating systems. Deji has also found a fix to get the regular game to run on Windows Vista and Windows 7. To get the GOG version working on Windows 8 and avoid the Black Box of Doom, please follow this this guide instead. Please note that these fixes may not work with all versions of Creatures 2, and the game seems to suffer from severe lag on Windows 8/8.1 and Windows 10.

The GOG version asks for Creatures 2 to be run in 16-bit mode. It will prompt you to change it, though you will have to change it back manually. A workaround for this can be found here, making launching Creatures 2 much easier, and removing the need to change the color depth back when finished.

Official breeds

Interesting facts

  • In the initial Creatures 2 genomes, Norns have 771 genes, while Grendels have 547 genes and Ettins 597 genes
  • Nearly half of the genes in each creature control poses and appearance; the rest are concerned with biochemistry, organs and brain structures
  • The first creature in Creatures 2 was a Norn called Alice
  • A Macintosh port of Creatures 2 was begun by long time (Millennium/ Cyberlife) programmer and wise old sage Keith Hook. Keith took over the management of the Origin2 project and the port was passed to a contractor. Unfortunately this work was never finished and Mindscape lost interest in the project.
  • The Creatures 2 inside box art features a mysterious Norn that appears to have the limbs and hairstyle of a Purple Mountain Norn, but with a more modern-looking body and main head. It is unknown what this Norn was intended to be, though it could likely have been a "dummy" norn used to make sure everything in the world was to scale.

History of Creatures 2

Creatures 2 was widely anticipated. It is likely that around 450,000 copies of the original Creatures had been sold by the time the game was released, and a huge following had developed behind it.

Unfortunately, the Creatures 2 launch did not go as planned. The Early Adoption Program failed to deliver on its basic promise of being "early", and the game had several major flaws, the most notable of which was a deficient norn genome that lead to OHSS. Cyberlife was subsequently accused of gouging customers when they released a Life Kit with an improved genome (as well as other features) but neglected to release this as a patch to the original game until several weeks had passed.

In addition, documentation was considered scanty, especially by those who had owned Creatures - much appeared to have been reserved for the strategy guidebook, Creatures 2: Official Strategies & Secrets. This could be a result of tighter deadlines for the manual rather than than the book (considering Mindscape's requirements for translation, packaging and distribution) or publisher-related editing of the manual for simplicity. However, these reasons did not go down well with people who had just bought a $40 game only to find that the manual's instructions for getting norns to feed did not work reliably.

Overall, Creatures 2 was probably a commercial success (despite inadequate marketing, which affected subsequent games as well) - however, it could be seen as a strategic failure, as for many it compromised the trust between the community and Cyberlife. Much had been promised, and yet many users considered the only improvement over the original to be the graphics. Third-party developers were naturally less willing to work on a game that they did not really enjoy playing, and this probably affected the supply of COBs. Things improved after the development of the Canny Norns and Nova Subterra, but some people had lost interest by then, and it is impossible to say how many people would have become part of the community but never found out about the improved genomes and so grew prematurely tired of the game.

Related links

External links