December 2, 1999 Web posted at: 2:38 p.m. EST (1938 GMT) by Barry Brenesal

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(IDG) -- In its third release, Creatures has acquired a set of goals, and in so doing has become the most original and unorthodox of RTSes. Never mind Command & Conquer. Do you have what it takes to teach, nurture, and protect a family of cute fuzzy aliens?

The impetus for the Creatures series was to create a computer game that used genuine artificial intelligence (AI). In most games, AI is a misnomer. They imitate human behavior by imposing a complex series of rules on their worlds' inhabitants -- the classic example being SimCity. Behavior isn't learned; it's simply followed.

By contrast, the Creatures series really does use artificial intelligence. Its Norns, Ettins and Grendels learn behavior patterns through sensory input -- watching and listening to others, "hearing" your typed words or receiving a tickle or a slap from you -- and synthesize these to create an ever-expanding repertoire of realistic responses. When the AI for most computer games are compared to Creatures, it's Pinky vs. the Brain.

Creatures 3 places you aboard an abandoned spaceship of the Shee -- an advanced technological race. Their four terrarium environments (plus the Bridge and Engineering areas) are completely self-supporting, and should be able to perpetually nurture the creatures that the Shee took along for the ride, including the childlike Norns.

But the Shee's one biological failure, a Grendel, has slipped aboard unnoticed. She's breeding a small but deadly litter of these bad-tempered, disease-ridden beings in the dangerous jungle terrarium, and it's only a matter of time before they take over the ship.

Fortunately, you have help: dozens of machines aboard the spaceship, which can be moved and linked to perform tasks. For instance, you can connect a creature detector to a medical scanner and an emergency medical transporter, so that, once a sick Norn is detected, it's immediately moved to sickbay.

However, some machines require special keys to improve their efficiency, and only your Norns can grab these for you. And you have to deal with the Ettins, who quietly wander around the ship, occasionally disconnecting machines and moving them to their own terrarium for no apparent reason. Your Norns will have to reacquire these machines.

Good as the goal elements are in Creatures 3, I'm also greatly impressed by the elaborate, completely interactive environments aboard the Shee spaceship. It contains literally hundreds of unique animal, vegetable and mechanical agents in four balanced ecologies, with extensive help files.

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I've enjoyed previous Creatures releases, but they weren't games. They were toys, providing amusing activities without purpose or structure. With Creatures 3, the series has acquired both focus and form. It may not be a form that gamers are used to, but that can be a virtue when you're faced with enough tired C&C clones to pack a landfill.

Strongly recommended.

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