Black & White

You play the role of a deity in a land where the surroundings are yours to shape and its people are yours to lord over. Be an evil, malevolent god and the natives will worship you with fear in their eyes. Play as a kind, benevolent god and they will worship you with love in their hearts.

In Black & White you are a god. You can pick up villagers, rocks, trees and all sorts of things. There are things called miracles, which you can use, such as lightning bolt, food, and fireball. In this game, you have some foes, such as Nemisis and Lethys, and an ally called Kazaar. You can also impress villagers to make them believe in you more and to expand your realm. Another thing you can do is own a creature, which is a great thing to have because they can learn and perform miracles, impress villages, and do damage to villages. Over all, this is a great game! -- Neil Richmond, EncycloZine

Amazon.com:
If you've ever wanted to play god, Black & White should definitely be on your short list. This highly anticipated game takes the concept literally, letting players navigate and influence a lush world using only the "hand of god" as an interface. Players can use the hand to uproot trees, hurl rocks, rescue (or punish) followers, and control all aspects of the camera as it zooms, dips, and swerves over the completely 3-D environments.

The game gets off to a slow start, but things pick up once players get to choose their creatures. Creatures are giant animals that serve as your physical link to the mortal world, and they have a sophisticated artificial intelligence that lets players teach them how to act. In the beginning, there's only a cow, ape, and tiger from which to pick, but the choices expand as the game progresses. And for a limited time, Amazon.com customers can download a bonus creature--a magnificent horse. Click here for details.

Ultimately, creatures grow, and their appearance gradually changes to reflect both their tendency toward good or evil and the treatment they've received from the player. Deny the animal access to food and it will lose weight. Pet it each time it eats a villager and you'll soon have an evil juggernaut that strikes fear into people's hearts. Most of the game's fun comes from spending time teaching your creature and simply watching the crazy things it does of its own volition. Best of all, players and creatures don't have to have the same alignment, making it possible to be an evil god with a glowing, beloved, benevolent creature. It all depends on why you choose to reward or punish the creature.

Unfortunately, Black & White tries to be too many things at once, and there is rarely any real focus. It's difficult to enjoy training a creature when villages need protecting, villagers need direction, and buildings need to be built in order to expand the player's influence and ultimately win each level. It wouldn't be so bad if the villagers were half as smart as the game's creatures, but they require a lot of micromanagement to work efficiently. The single-player campaign gives players plenty of time in each mission to overcome these shortcomings, but prepare to spend many long hours administrating your holdings for every hour of pure joy that Black & White is capable of providing. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• Great graphics and animations
• Exceptional creature artificial intelligence
• Plenty of keyboard shortcuts, greatly simplifying the complex camera controls

Cons:

• Managing villagers and buildings can be a chore
• The manual is completely inadequate considering the complexity of the creature AI

Amazon.co.uk Review:
The premise of Black & White is simple. You play a God, responsible for a group of worshippers. Add in a collection of huge monsters (sheep, cows, tigers and more) plus tasks to complete along the way, and you get an immersing game that's easy to pick up and even easier to get pulled into.

Unusually, Black & White lacks any form of standard user interface. The only icon you'll see on screen is a giant hand (yours) with which you do your godly tasks. Complex actions are governed by mouse movements, and as the game progresses it requires greater mouse dexterity to cast spells and the like. While this interface can be daunting at first, it becomes second nature after some practice.

As the game progresses there are a number of quests to complete, and you're also responsible for looking after a creature. It's here that Black and White excels. The creature's artificial intelligence is superb. Treat it nicely and it will amble around the countryside performing good deeds to the delight of the populace. Treat it harshly and woe betide anyone who gets in the way of its giant feet and hands.

The visual landscapes are equally impressive, as is the detail of the inhabitants or "helpers" as they guide you across the rolling hills and surrounding oceans of your island. But the scenery, like the creature, morphs with your gameplay. Evil empires appear black and scorched, while a happier atmosphere breeds an open, warm environment for your worshippers. Combat comes in the form of one-to-one stand-up fights between the creatures. The fighting can verge on the surreal-for example, a kickboxing cow squares up to a boxing ape in the middle of a forest as worshippers chant praise all around.

With Black and White, UK games designer Peter Molyneux has taken AI to new levels and created a game that's bound to be imitated. Do note, however, that this is not an ideal game for the casual RTS or shoot 'em up fan. There are long periods of inactivity, and the general pace can feel sedate as you take in the beautiful graphics and calming soundtrack. Even after playing for 10 hours you'll still be scratching the surface of this intense gaming experience. --Stuart Miles