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Black and White 2 is the 2005 sequel to Black and White. The game was developed by Peter Molyneux, who's infamous for overhyping games. Does Black and White 2 fall into this category? Yes, yes, and yes.

Graphics

Black and White 2's graphics are a drastic improvement over #1. But better graphics is an expected trait of any sequel, its not anything groundbreaking or new. When viewed from a distance the vast landscape and glistening waters look excellent. People who have checked out the screenshots already know this, but the screenshots were taken from a distance for a reason. Up close the textures look downright awful and a clear indication that Molyneux is very selective of things to show off in his new games.

Story

The story is simple as it gets. You play as a God and you watch over the Greek tribe. The opposing Aztec tribe attacks and destroys your capital in an attempt to rule a Godless world. You escape with a handful of survivors and begin rebuilding your civilization, gaining help from the other tribes, and building back up your godly powers. Your two advisors will help you accomplish this task by giving you advise and re-teaching you the ropes of being a God. In my opinion these two are the best characters in the game... because they're the only characters in the game. This dosen't change the fact that they're really inventive, funny, and entertaining. The two advisors are the good angelic one and the bad devilish one. When their personalities bounce off of eachothers it makes for some great dialouge and humor. It's just a shame that they weren't put in a better game.

Gameplay

Your controlled avatar is the hand of god and with it you perform many actions that would normally have a tab. Its a fairly innovative, multipurpose interface and its ashame that it wasn't put in a better game. You use the hand to do everything from picking up citizens to constructing a building a structure all the way to giving a platoon the order to attack the enemies.

Conclusion

Black and White 2 has undoubtably built upon the previous installment and many features are unique, innovative and fun to play with. Unfortunately all of Black and White 2's clever ideas weren't used to their potential and failed to deliver a stimulating gameplay experience. It quickly gets boring and repetetive and you go from level to level sending soldiers to fight or building as many structures as you can. If you wish to buy Black and White 2 despite my clear warning, just know that its been discontinued and you most likely won't find it in a store. I got lucky and found one copy at my Gamestop, and now I wish I hadn't.

Learn more about this author, Thomas A. Polymath.
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