Black & White 2: Battle of the Gods

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Black & White 2: Battle Of The Gods
Image: bwbotg.jpg
Developer(s) Lionhead Studios
Publisher(s) EA Games
Designer(s) Peter Molyneux, Ron Millar
Platform(s) Windows XP and Mac OS X (in development)
Release date April 24, 2006
Genre(s) Real-time strategy, God Game
Mode(s) Single player
Rating(s) ESRB: T , ELSPA: 12+
System requirements Windows 2000/XP, Intel-compatible 1.6 GHz CPU, 512MB RAM, 3.5GB hard drive space, 8x DVD-ROM, DirectX 9.0c compatible hardware, and a 64MB video card with 1.1 Pixel Shader support. Mac Requirements TBA.
Input methods Mouse

Battle of the Gods is the first expansion pack for Lionhead's Black & White 2, in which the player is pitted against an enemy god for the first time. The expansion adds a number of additional miracles to the game, including the ability to resurrect dead citizens or transform corpses into undead soldiers. Two additional creatures make an appearance, although neither is new to the franchise; a turtle, seen in the original Black & White, and the tiger from the Collector's Edition of B&W2.

Saved creatures may be imported from the previous B&W2.

Contents

[edit] Story

At the climax of B&W2, the player defeats the Aztec nation but leaves a number of them alive. Driven by a desire for revenge, they sacrifice their dead in a series of grisly rituals; hence, a god of death is born to rally the Aztecs, now aided with divine power and undead armies, against the player once more.

[edit] Features

There are a number of improvements or additions over the earlier game, including new miracles, buildings, and city improvements.

[edit] Miracles

  • Verdant: Transforms enemy villagers into animals. While in animal form, armies are completely harmless and incapable of combat also creates a number of animals when "poured".
  • Lava: Causes a volcanic eruption of lava, burning everything it touches.
  • Life: Revives the dead, and renders undead inanimate.
  • Death: Raises the dead as animated corpse-warriors, although they only last for sixty seconds. They can kill enemy villagers and destroy crops.

[edit] Buildings

  • Hospital: Increases the life expectancy of your villagers and heals any injuries in your citizens.
  • Abattoir: An additional food source independent of farming, which uses animals to make meals.
  • Blacksmith: Increases lethality of your armies by raising the experience level of new units.

[edit] Improvements

  • Flagpole: Makes villagers more patriotic
  • Signposts: Aids villagers in finding their way in larger cities
  • Small Animal Pen and Large Animal Pen: Prevents livestock wandering and provides support to your Abattoirs.
  • Dovecote: Attracts birds, making villagers more cheerful.
  • Pig Sty: Provides more dietary options for villagers.

[edit] Response

Critical response to the game has been very mixed, which garnered a score of 69 (Mixed reviews) from MetaCritic [1]. Many felt that the game failed to bring anything new to the series, and the shortage of new content resulted in considerable irritation among fans. In addition, bugs from the original B&W2 continue to plague the engine.

However, many feel that the pace of Battle of the Gods was substantially improved. The better storyline was also enjoyed, as well the fact that the player was battling an enemy god instead of merely a human civilization.

[edit] External links

[edit] Forums

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