Let the 'Spore' advertising blitz begin

SAN FRANCISCO--If you're a video game fan, you are probably quite aware that Electronic Arts' evolution game Spore is just days away from launch.

You've played with the Creature Creator, you've read the stories, you've watched the videos. Maybe you've even had a chance to see Spore's creator, Will Wright, give one of his famous talks on the subject.

But if you're not a gamer, you might not have any idea what Spore is. Until now, that is.

As I was returning from lunch Wednesday, I noticed a giant billboard on the side of a building just down the street from CNET Networks' headquarters with the phrase, "Tired of your planet? Flights leaving daily at Spore.com."

So far, this is the first advertising for the game that I've seen in public. But I can only assume it's just the beginning of what will be a very large ad campaign.

After all, EA has a ton invested in the game, and the stakes are high, both for the company and for Wright, the highly regarded designer behind SimCity and The Sims among others.

And while I'm sure I'm a couple days behind on this--I was out of the office since last week--I haven't heard any other talk about Spore billboards, so it caught me by surprise, especially since I've been following the progress of the game so closely and also since the billboard is just feet from my office.

Either way, I'll be very interested to see how this presumed ad blitz takes shape: Will there be TV ads? Big glossy spreads in magazines? An alternate-reality game?

If you happen to run across something interesting, please do consider dropping me a note. I'd love to hear about it.