We made it so you can zoooom in your camera while you play so you can see all the cool parts and modifications. We got it as close as we possibly could. We wanted it nice and tight so you could really see your work. It really brings home how this Hero is yours. You'll want to zoom out a bit though to play. Darkspore is all about the action around you, and zoomed in that much it's impossible to see what's going on. We made the regular camera so that you get the best angle to fight from.

MaxisAlex here, one of the gameplay engineers on Darkspore. I wrote this article for those who are interested in the process we go through to create a non-player character (NPC). It's surprisingly quick and fun! It starts with a kickoff meeting with the artists, the engineer, and the designer. The designer describes what the NPC is supposed to do in the game, how it behaves and what kind of abilities it has. There is often a discussion at this point about how to create the more complex abilities, such as what animations and effects will be needed.