Darkspore Video Interview and Preview

In addition to posting a video interview with Maxis designer Mike Perry about Darkspore, Destructoid has slapped up some hands-on impressions of the PvP mechanics in the sci-fi action RPG.
After a solid amount of single player time, players are expected to have numerous squads of alien fighters. Squads are made up of three aliens at any given time, and it's expected that a good squad will have a well-balanced team. I had a huge brute of an alien with a laser gun and some tank abilities, a spindly fast alien with large claws, and a green thing that focused on projectiles and healing.

When squaring off against another player, players will want to switch out to best address the most immediate threat. Fighting against a tank character, you'll want to focus on immobilization and distance attacks, and if a healing character comes out, being fast will be a major advantage to you. Characters can be switched out any time, with only a minor cool-down. All in all, it actually feels somewhat like a real-time Pokemon game, if that makes any sense.