I used to play both.
I was quite impressed by the zooming in that game. From total island overview right down to seeing a worm in an apple (very much like in Supreme Commander, but no apples).
I had a hard time training the creatures. At times it felt like a glorified tamagotchi game.
I found it difficult to stay on the "good" side, as it was quite easy to mess up with your followers by mistake.
Also, you were encouraged to slap your creature and stomp on "non-believers", which was quite distasteful.
All in all an intriguing game, but with too many flaws to be enduring.