"With Spore, we're looking way outside the game space, such as TV, movies, etc," Wright explained to Reuters. "We're basically planting the seeds to spread Spore out to a much wider group of people than would ever play a computer game."

Due out on PC and Mac September 7, Spore tasks players with creating and managing a lifeform from its cellular phase to galactic domination. A less ambitious Nintendo DS version, Spore Creatures, is due out the same day, and a free creature creator is already available for PC and Mac users.

Wright, the creative mind behind EA's widely successful The Sims franchise, stressed that the company will be "much more intelligent about harvesting other market opportunities for Spore than we were with The Sims," noting his belief that "Spore potentially has a wider net to cast [outside of video games] than The Sims did."

Electronic Arts recently partnered with United Talent Agency to help create movies and televion shows based on EA properties, with a live-action The Sims movie and animated MySims television show already in the works.