Spore programmer creates indie iPhone game Earth Dragon

The lead designer of Spore's Creature Creator system, Chaim Gingold, just dropped us a line to tell us all about his first indie iPhone project, Earth Dragon.

"Unlike Spore, where I was the lead designer for the creative tools where players build stuff, Earth Dragon is a game about smashing castles and setting things on fire," Gingold explains about the mechanics of his cute, yet wonderfully destructive new game.

You take on the eponymous role of the Earth Dragon, tasked with destroying castles, eating people, breathing fire, battling archers and wizards, hoarding treasure, and kidnapping princesses. You know, a typical day in the life of a dragon.

You've been sent by Mother Earth to exact a harsh revenge upon the planet's mediaeval populace for being such careless polluters and generally irritating little buggers, and use a combination of intuitive accelerometer, gesture and touchscreen controls to wreak your havoc.

Gingold built the game himself in its entirety, helped only by Spore and Brutal Legend artist Jane Ng. He explains there's also a possibility of him releasing a castle editor used in the game's design, so you can build things up before you smash them back down.

Hopefully we'll have a video of Earth Dragon in action for you very soon, but in the meantime have a butcher's at the screenshots and give us your thoughts. We have a feeling this is going to be a good one.