Black & White

"Probably the Best Game on the PC!"

I was expecting a lot from this game - after 3 years in development who wouldn't? Luckily, unlike other eagerly awaited games that fail to live up to their incredible hype, this game does it in every way.

GRAPHICS:
Admittedly you'll need a monster PC to get the most out of this game and this keeps it from getting full marks, and even with a good PC you'll get occasionally glitchy textures (at least both me and my friend did). Despite these small annoyances, though, you can still get hundreds of (fairly detailed) people on-screen, and, most impressively, you can zoom your view out to see the whole of your island and then back in to see a worm in an apple in seconds. The textures are also great and the huge character models such as Nemesis' creature in the first level are very impressive.
9/10

SOUND:
The game is full of speech from your advisors and disciples which is crystal-clear, and the sound effects (such as the animal noises and fire or storm sounds) are spot-on. The music is sparse, but it fits the mood perfectly - it's what you'd expect a God to listen to.
9/10

AI:
Normally I wouldn't give a whole section to a game's AI (Artificial Intelligence) but this deserves special mention as it's so superior anything before. It's like your creature is learning and is a living entity inside your computer. It puts the so-called 'intelligence' of previous virtual pets like Tamagotchi and other games like Half-Life with 'thinking' characters to shame. It won't be shown off so much if you choose something like a tiger or leopard who is quite stupid, to be honest.
9/10

CONTROLS:
The game controls superbly. Basically everything can be done with a mouse, with the keyboard merely providing a few convenient shortcuts. It's definitely worth getting a mouse with a wheel as it will make it much easier (I use a Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer which is highly recommended, if you can afford it at $80). A force-feedback mouse will also give you at least one extra task to play. Overall, the controls are absolutely brilliant and totally intuitive.
10/10

LIFE SPAN:
The story mode will last you around 25 hours if you don't rush it, but this will go by in a matter of weeks if you get as thoroughly engrossed as I did (I sat down early in the morning and stopped for dinner at 5pm having only had a quick break for toilet and a snack). After this there is multiplayer over the Internet or an LAN and skirmishes where you can train your creature and battle enemy gods. This game WILL dominate your life.
9/10

OVERALL:
You must have this game. If your PC can run it smoothly and you enjoyed any of Molyneux's other games (Populous, Dungeon Keeper) you'll never leave your PC again. I've never come across a game so full of frustration, fun, blood, sweat, and tears as this, but it has everything in just the right proportions so as to keep you enthralled from installation to the last click of the mouse.
10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/15/01, Updated 03/11/03