Black & White 2.

Raziaar

Raziaar

I Hate Custom Titles
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The game was released. Has anybody played this? Share your opinions, please!
 
Should be arriving tomorrow! I've been in dire need of a game where you can just kick back and do what you want for a bit.
 
It came out yesterday didn't it? That means the stores up here probably have it today. Lemme check :)
 
whoa it's out?

I thought it just had gone gold...hmmm

*scrambles for reviews*
 
It comes out on Friday in the UK and I am on the verge of despair because my computer is playing up. So it looks like I won't be able to play for a bit. :(

PCG UK gave it a really poor score too. But that won't stop me from getting it. The first game was too refreshing not to.
 
its comin 2moro, the first part was very nice
 
I ran to the mall this morning to pick up my reserved copy at EB Games, brought it back to my room, ripped open the case, reached for disk one, only to realize it wasn't there. Sure, I had Disk 2, 3, even 4!, but no install or play disk. ;(

Luckily a friend was willing to burn me a copy, but the emotional scars may never heal. The agonizingly long install process is going as I type, so I'll report back here with my first impressions later.
 
PCG gave it 79% didnt they... still.. my sister wants it, so I might buy it.
 
I watched a video review on gamespy or somewhere, they said its good if you like open ended style play. The missions arent very defined, and you can get sidetracked easy I guess. The military strategy part looks fun, and having your pet to evil things looks fun too. I might get it, but after I beat fable: the lost chapters.
 
I bought it, but I can't install it. It gets onto the 2nd disc, when it gives me "Error: Data error (cyclic redundancy check)." What the hell?!
 
its out? hmm listening to some of the reviews it doesnt sound too good :/
 
From all the reviews I've read, here's the jist:

  • The game is one big tutorial; it's 100% patronising.
  • The game is incredibly simple. There are only 3 unit types, for God's sake (there's some irony in that last phrase).
  • The creature aspect has been dumbed down, but is still incredibly fun.
  • The graphics are amazing.
  • Everything "new" that has been implimented has been done much better elsewhere.

I'm probably still going to get it though.
 
I'd like to see it played using a Revolution controller. That seems like the perfect way to interact in Black & White.
 
Getting it regardless of reviews.
The first was too fun to not get the sequel.
 
Sad truth is, Molyneaux games look appetising but there isn't much meaty filling. Their structure is always the same - easy peasy resource gathering, population growth, biggest number wins, move to the next map, rinse, repeat, suddenly get thwarted by stupidly impossible last level and give up trying.

But then he has created some of the most original and entertaining games over the last 15 years, even if they were all piss and wind. Populous is still one of the best games ever made and it's the reason I bought an amiga.

But B&W... the first Black n White was amazingly good, even if it was overly twee and patronising. And only 5 levels long. And full of monotonous whiney villagers. And cursed with the mother of all bugs on the last level that stopped you actually finishing the game. What made it good was... it was fun. You could do what you wanted, you made your own entertainment. I spent hours teaching my monkey to take a dump on top of a house, and I enjoyed it.

B&W2 is apparently what Mr.M wanted the first one to be but was restricted by technology. If you are expecting a different game, forget it - it is still Black and White, just improved. That's why review scores are so low.
I will still be buying it simply because there is nothing else to play until next month, and if I get bored of it, so what - there are more great games coming out this xmas than at any other time in gaming history, I ain't gonna be bored for long.
 
Well, that's all i wanted.

When's it out in Australia?
 
Oh Peter Molyneux, where did you go wrong? I had so much faith in you...
oh well, guess I still have The Movies and Demitri to look forward to.
 
I was going to buy this, but I've just bought Fable and some of the reviews are pretty lame.

Unless they release a demo I won't be buying.
 
StardogChampion said:
I was going to buy this, but I've just bought Fable and some of the reviews are pretty lame.

Unless they release a demo I won't be buying.
Click to expand...
A game like B&W2 isn't really demoable, without spoiling some aspects of the game.
 
Hmm, I think it's overhyped like B&W.

I bought B&W and it was fun for the first couple of worlds. But then it got boring, and I was disappointed that it didn't keep me interested as much as I had hoped.

After all these reviews about B&W2, it seems as though it would disappoint me in a similar fashion. I shall be saving my money for something like Civ 4 instead.
 
sounds like they didn't fix how stupid villagers is...which is the main reason I didn't like the first one....I never was very interested in the game, but now I'm definitly not...
 
PCG gave it a good review. It sounds like villagers are fixed.
 
Playing through the tutorial, unfortunately they release the patch tomorrow so you can't skip it yet. Anyway, I'm liking it.
 
Axyon said:
Playing through the tutorial, unfortunately they release the patch tomorrow so you can't skip it yet. Anyway, I'm liking it.
Click to expand...

Keep us posted on how it develops.
 
kirovman said:
Keep us posted on how it develops.
Click to expand...
Yeah, will do. I'll take shots along the way... my path to evil has already begun :eek:
 
Axyon said:
Yeah, will do. I'll take shots along the way... my path to evil has already begun :eek:
Click to expand...

Tut tut, Axyon. Poisoning the Villager water supply already? :E
 
Getting mine Oct 13th... I WANT IT NOW!

What computers are you playing it on? I've heard the system specs are ****ed up
 
From about 3 hours of play, I can safely say that Black and White 2 is an outstanding game. The graphics alone make it worth my money - I could just sit back, grab a drink, and watch the virtual sunset all day.

However, I think Lionhead were a little too zealous in addressing the complaints against the first one - the gameplay is definitely more focused, but it comes at the expense of some of its soul and character. A good example is the Creature - in the original, you basically had no idea what was going on in his head, but as such, he really felt like a real pet, and never knowing what he was going to do next was a lot of its charm. In the sequel, everything is much more streamlined and less frustrating, but almost to the point of the creature being a really powerful unit rather than a pet. Thought bubbles appear over his head that tell you exactly what he is about to do, allowing you to preemptively punish or praise him. While punishing or praising, there is a meter ranging from "I will never do this again" to "I will do this constantly." As many reviews have said, he turns into a a set of on-off switches, all but destroying the illusion that the first game crafted so well.

Black and White 2 is really the type of game where I could keep complaining until the word limit, but at the end of the day, I'm having tons of fun. Looking back at my post, I realize that I sound basically just as negative as most of the reviews I've read, but apparently what these reviews forget to mention is that at the end of the day, BW2 is a fun game, and that's all that really matters.

EDIT: Looking back on my post, I realize I didn't really justify why I'm enjoying it so much, exactly. The production values and graphics really do add a lot, and the city building aspect is a dream if you're the type of person that worries more about the design of your Sim City than its inner workings. Just click and drag on the ground to create freeform roads! It's genius! I really don't want this to turn into a full review, but if anyone is looking to buy it and has any questions, I'll be happy to help.
 
Well in the 1st one if you put your hand over the creature it'd pretty much tell you what he's about to do via the little tips at the bottom of the screen. It'd always say something like, "Your creature wants to help out" or "Your creature is hungry" and so on so judging by where he was going you could pretty much tell what he was about to do anyways. As far as the punish sayings, it sounds better to me. Before we just had a meter of -100% to 100% of punish or praise. I never knew exactly what was the best amount to praise or punish for certain acts.

One thing I hoped they fixed for the sequel is the excessive free-roaming AI of the creature. My creature (if not leashed to a tree or building at all times) would always just wander around the island and eventually be killed while I'm trying to work on villager stuff. You'd think he'd learn from this...but nope...he comes back to life, sleeps it off and goes right back out there again.
 
Edge gave it 7/10 I have always trusted Edge's judgment and 7 is enough for me to buy the game. I havn't got around to actually reading the review as they had a 5 page Perfect Dark Exclusive :D

I will obviasly read the review tonight and most likly buy it tomorrow
 
AmishSlayer said:
One thing I hoped they fixed for the sequel is the excessive free-roaming AI of the creature. My creature (if not leashed to a tree or building at all times) would always just wander around the island and eventually be killed while I'm trying to work on villager stuff. You'd think he'd learn from this...but nope...he comes back to life, sleeps it off and goes right back out there again.
Click to expand...
My Lion's been roaming around the hometown, and no further unless I tell him to. They've fixed a great amount from the previous game - villagers will get on with sorting their needs, and the only thing you really need to do for them is set up blueprints for their houses and change the time when they're all tired.

A couple of shots from earlier, this truly is a beautiful game:

0010ex.jpg

0023up.jpg

0034uf.jpg
 
AmishSlayer said:
Well in the 1st one if you put your hand over the creature it'd pretty much tell you what he's about to do via the little tips at the bottom of the screen. It'd always say something like, "Your creature wants to help out" or "Your creature is hungry" and so on so judging by where he was going you could pretty much tell what he was about to do anyways. As far as the punish sayings, it sounds better to me. Before we just had a meter of -100% to 100% of punish or praise. I never knew exactly what was the best amount to praise or punish for certain acts.

One thing I hoped they fixed for the sequel is the excessive free-roaming AI of the creature. My creature (if not leashed to a tree or building at all times) would always just wander around the island and eventually be killed while I'm trying to work on villager stuff. You'd think he'd learn from this...but nope...he comes back to life, sleeps it off and goes right back out there again.
Click to expand...
So you'll probably really like this game. I just felt like the creature felt more "real" when you didn't have any meters or anything telling you exactly what you needed to do. I was in the minority with that opinion, I think, so that's why Lionhead made these changes.

Here are some screens:

My Monkey:
monkey2.jpg


An amazing sunset:
sunset.jpg
 
Narcolepsy said:
So you'll probably really like this game. I just felt like the creature felt more "real" when you didn't have any meters or anything telling you exactly what you needed to do. I was in the minority with that opinion, I think, so that's why Lionhead made these changes.
Click to expand...

It's not that I need the game to hold my hand as to exactly what my creature is doing..but if they do have a meter (like they did in the first one) I'd like it t make more sense than just a percentage positive or negative. I guess when I play Black & White I kind of try to form my creature into a certain kind of animal with certain behaviors in mind and it was kind of hard to shape it with the praise/punish system they had in place. With better direction cues on what my creature is doing and praise/punish info then I'll be able to mold his behavior easier.

I'm not exactly looking for a real pet in my creature. I'm just looking for some AI to shape and mold for my purposes in the game.

EDIT: BTW...water looks AMAZING in that last shot. Does it look really good in motion too?

EDIT2: And what exactly is in the lower left? Shortcuts to other menus?
 
I'm not exactly looking for a real pet in my creature. I'm just looking for some AI to shape and mold for my purposes in the game.

EDIT: BTW...water looks AMAZING in that last shot. Does it look really good in motion too?
Click to expand...
Yeah, that's why it's just impossible to make a game that really makes everyone happy. And yeah, the water is mindblowing, and it shimmers realistically and everything in real time. :E I was hardly joking when I said I'd buy this game for the graphics alone.

In response to your second edit: You click on one of those icons, and it brings up a toolbar at the bottom of the screen where you can do lots of stuff (buy miracles, unlock buildings, see objectives, etc.). I don't really have the interface figured out yet, so I can't get too much more specific than that.
 
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