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Absolutely breathtaking even with its flaws

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 15 / 17
Date: April 05, 2001
Author: Amazon User

More than three years in the making, this could very well be the most highly-anticipated videogame in history. And as people like myself continued to wait for so long, the inevitable question was: would this game actually live up to what was promised? Or would it fall into the same trap as "Star Wars Episode 1" and be so hyped up that it could never possibly hope to live up to the impossibly high standards set for it?

Just to be safe, I was sure to purchase my copy at a store which I knew for a fact would allow me to get my money back if I wasn't satisfied, so I had nothing to lose here.

Incredibly, Black and White not only lives up to the standards set for it but surpasses them on several levels. There are some complaints which I'll mention out of fairness, but they simply can't detract from this game's sense of wonder.

As the basic idea of it has been described over and over again so many times I'm positive I don't have to go into detail about any of that. So I'll simply concentrate on the gameplay itself. It's so overloaded with information that you are guaranteed to feel overwhelmed the first time you play it, so don't expect to be able to sit down and have mastered its controls in an hour or so. This puppy demands complete commitment.

This is Peter Molyneux's programming equivalent of a movie masterpiece: this is his "Gone With The Wind", his "Titanic", his "Star Wars", his ultimate defining moment in entertainment history. Even if he did nothing else, this title would instantly earn him his current position in the industry.

The possibilities are endless and the AI is far more amazing that you could have ever hoped. The sheer fantastic thrill you will get from Black and White is beyond description as the title provides a wonderful change of pace for mature strategy gamers starved for thought and genuine emotion to be brought back into gaming. Now let's all get out there and whoop it up for Molyneux and his creating the work of a lifetime!

Ok, now that I've said my praise for the game...and believe me, I adore it...I now have to be fair and mention the negatives, which unfortunately keep this masterpiece from getting a full five-star rating. First of all, the controls are extremely frustrating to learn at first and definitely take getting used to. Fortunately, you have the option of reprogramming everything to your own personal liking controlwise, so that isn't anywhere near as much as a problem as it would be in other games. Second, there are some extra promised gems that didn't make it into the finished product, such as the ability to play your favorite CDs for your titan so he can dance to them, but Lionhead Studios has promised to bring more and more downloadable additions to the game each month so that isn't a problem either. They could literally continue to keep building this game forever, and that's certainly a plus for all concerned.

Also, I would be enjoying this game a lot more if it weren't for the technical glitches I've encountered during my time spent with it. I had to uninstall and re-install the game some five times before it began cooperating with me, and even then the opening animation sequences refused to cooperate even though the rest of the game played just fine. During gameplay itself, the only problem in the graphics I have encountered occur in your citadel, in which the animation sequences showing you moving from room to room are just as uncooperative as the opening portions. After a sequence involving a lion teaching my titan how to fight, it would inexplicably dump me back on to my desktop, leaving me to retry the section some three times and finally getting the program to save so I could continue properly. Also many of the options and settings in the game when set, such as graphics resolution and the creature help feature and even the opening sequence that shows a group of stars that are supposed to morph into your player symbol with your name under it, would only operate at random times of play and have no guarantee to work. One added feature that comes with the game (the ability to upload a webpage that your titan designs himself) didn't work at all. I hope that this can all be eventually repaired with patches in the future because the game itself is basically a lot of fun.

Be a god! Whee!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 11
Date: October 12, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Ever wish you could just... raze an entire village? Fling those annoying villagers around a bit? Or would you rather heal them and give them food? Well, now you can do whichever you'd like.

A child wanders off and goes swimming in shark-infested waters. His parents pray to whatever dieties will listen, hoping that he will be saved. You are born from their need. You pluck the little idiot out of the sea and set him down with his parents, safe and sound. The parents are grateful and they want to take you back to their village to be worshipped by everyone.

Since you're a new god, you have to learn how to pick things up, raise a creature, perform miracles, and more. Here to help educate you is your conscience: the side of good and the side of bad. These two are pretty entertaining. If you don't move for a while, they start say some funny stuff. You also meet other gods that try to help or hinder you.

That creature I mentioned is a pet. It has different needs. It needs food, water, and rest, and it'll be happier and stronger if you play with it and have it work out. At first, it can only pick up small rocks and bushes. But if it trains, it will be able to pick up bigger stuff. It'll also do better in combat. Your creature can go into battle with other creatures. Sometimes, it's for a mission, and sometimes, to keep an enemy creature at bay. You can choose to hit, block, use a special attack, or heal.

It can also learn to aide you. If it watches you or the villagers fish, it can learn to fish, too. It can feed itself or give the food to the villagers. Besides fishing, it can cast miracles, water crops, assign people to different jobs, provide wood, and more.

You'll need it's help to fulfill the wants and needs of your people. They might ask for food, wood, buildings, children, or protection. It's hard to keep them satisfied.

They can help themselves some of the time, though. You can assign people to jobs, like making babies, cutting down trees, or building. There are limited supplies of wood and food in each area, so you have to let it replenish or make some yourself. You can get food from fields, miracles, animals, or by fishing. You can water trees/forests to make them grow.

You have various miracles at your disposal, ranging from healing to making piles of wood appear to hurling fireballs. To cast miracles, you can use a one-shot miracle, which can be found underneath things or given to you, or you can accumulate belief through your villagers' prayers.

To move on in the game, you have certain missions to accomplish. Sometimes it's helping someone in need, sometimes it's defending yourself from a competing god, and sometimes it's getting a new village to believe in you. To gain a new village, you have to impress them, either through kindness or violence.

You have a choice in almost anything of being good or evil. Your creature's appearance and behavior will be affected by your alignment. You can control him using a leash. You pull him in the direction you want him to go and tether him to anything you want him to interact with. If he does something wrong, you can slap hime. If he does it right, you can pet him. He'll learn through positive or negative reinforcement.

I had one problem, and that was the fact that you can't skip the tutorial, so if you start a new game after beating it, it can get irritating. Other than that, this is a great game. You should buy it.

Great game, with some caveats

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 21 / 29
Date: April 10, 2001
Author: Amazon User

First, I have to totally agree with Gamespot's reviewer who said, "...[Black and White] was obviously a labor of love for Peter Molyneux [the designer]..." This game is gorgeous, complex, and takes the concept of strategy gaming to a new level. I've played few games that so immersed me in their storyline or so dazzled me with technological brilliance.

However, this game is a monster. I recommend a quick CPU and decent 3D card (I'm running 1G Athlon, GeForce 2 MX, and 768MB RAM...although there's no way you'll need that much RAM) to handle the overwhelming amount of processing this sort of environment (full, screaming, animated 3D worlds) requires. Additionally, if your system isn't the most stable, reinstall it and MAKE it stable. If anything is going to crash it, THIS game will. My own GeForce2 MX drivers have given me fits, until a new release gave me some respite. Also, check out bwgame.com to fix the Level 5 Creature bug BEFORE it happens to you.

Only a few bothers: 1. Society seems awfully wood-based, relying on the collection of wood for the majority of improvements. This is weird. 2. Control is rather imprecise. Make sure you're familiar with shortcuts and waypoints...or invest in a Strategic Game Controller. 3. Don't click on silver scrolls if you haven't finished exploring the world. Silver scrolls will drag you through the story line sometimes, and the story CAN be a little bothersome if you just want to PLAY. 4. It's impossible to just re-start the game (other than skirmish) without going through the entire creature training and bother. This is an adventure-game element that is annoying. Make sure you save your games. 5. Autosave can be a pain, as the saves get longer and longer as the game progresses. Check out bwgame.com for more info about this.

If you've got the system for it, and you're looking for real-time strategy with a twist, Black and White is undoubtedly the best game for you.

Great idea but lying to customers

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 23 / 33
Date: June 05, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game was a nightmare. Only great graphics, but poor interface, too much tutorials before starting the game (every time you start a new game, you have to go through ALL the tutorial again), poor AI, computer cheatings (but you can’t), confusing tips and wrong hints given to the players, tones of bugs, and most of all, the producers, Lionhead and EA, are very, very irresponsible. When Lionhead promised to release a patch to fix some of the game bugs, it lied to all the customers at least THREE times in a row! The company keeps pushing the releasing deadlines for the patch. I personally have no such experiences before when I purchase other games. What kind of company will sell an “un-finish” product to the customers with high prices and lying to customers that they will “eventually” fix it!!! This producer of the game is absolutely ridiculous! It just wants to make a huge profile out of this game and keep lying to customers. If you are buying this game to please your children or friends or yourself, please think twice before buying. Do not buy this game just because the reviewers gave a 9.3/10 rating. Visit the official site and see how many customers are complaining about this game. This still in progress, unfinished game does not worth [....]!

A true masterpiece!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 18 / 24
Date: April 11, 2001
Author: Amazon User

When I started playing Black and White, I was slightly disappointed. That is, until I managed to get used to the interface (and selected my creature). As soon as that happened, I became immersed with amazing and unique concepts. What's more important, however, is that I had FUN doing them!

Consider who I am, for just one moment. I am a gamer, yes, but a dishonorable one at that. I refuse to play any game that doesn't have some form of cheating. This trait leads to a dislike to do anything involving extensive time, like the leveling in many RPGs, or constructing a successful city in SimCity, unless there's an "easy way" of doing it. I can safely say that after playing Black and White, I changed for good. For example, raising my creature is proving to be a delightful event for me, not because I'm all-powerful, but because I'm having fun doing it! Consider developing your creature to be a cutting-edge Tamagotchi. You'd be amazed at how much you can teach it. It will take 20 hours (according to the Prima strategy guide) for my ape to reach maximum power, and I'll enjoy every single minute of it! If you like this option, that's reason enough to buy it! Isn't that strange for someone who'd rather use a Gameshark instead of play the game fairly?

Anyway, I would definitely recommend Black and White to anyone who plays video/computer games to have fun. If you prefer sharp, brilliant, and downright spectacular graphics and audio, this may disappoint you if you don't have at least the recommended (not the minimum, the recommended) system requirements. But as long as you have the minimum, this game will never fail to amuse you! You may think I'm just another "Quit picking on the game" person who gives 5 star ratings to everything to defend them from criticizing individuals, but please mark my words. You may not like it as much as I do, but at least try it first!

Not a revolution - disappointing and boring

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 24 / 36
Date: April 30, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I know Peter Molyneux and his games from the very start, and I more or less liked them all - especially the Populous series, from which Black & White's concept was obviously taken. But nonetheless, Black & White was a very big disappointement.

First, one's amazed by the graphics, the freedom to look everywhere in the world, the details. The game's not that original for anyone who played Populous or Dungeon Keeper, but some sides of the game do catch your attention (the lovable creature, the magic gestures) and were probably feats to code.

Then, the game appears to have plenty of bugs that make the game irritating. Arrived to level five, you discover that it's all over (yes, only FIVE levels, and they're not that long). Even more surprising, all the levels look the same - there's no different environments like deserts or icy landscapes, all levels are the same-looking green valleys, grey cliffs, and the same four tree species.

"Oh well", you think, "I'll go for skirmish or multiplayer". This is where this 'game' appears to be a big joke. You have ONE level for two players, ONE for three players, and ONE for four players. That's all, and they're the same in skirmish and multiplayer...

... and if only what we had were FUN to play - but it's incredibly dull and boring. First you take care of the villagers, but they don't do anything interesting. Watch them for twenty minutes, and you've seen all their attitudes and actions. So you train your creature. But you soon realize that it's not that clever - it's even some hard work to make it sleep and eat so that it doesn't collapse. The AI isn't that great, I spent some long time trying to get it doing unusual things (expand forests for example), but it does it once or twice and stops. In fact, it can't do anything without you.

And last but not least, why would we train our creature ? The AI of other Gods is totally uninteresting, and in multiplayer, it can be hours before you actually interact with the other Gods. The game is so sloooooooow to have anything done - you have to make the same repetitive actions again and again for hours before something actually happens. So there's hardly any reason to waste time making your pet smart or competitive.

I mean, in the old Populous II for example, the players had PLENTY of FUN *spectacular* powers, like volcano or earthquakes, floods or diseases... one was able to shape the land, to start wars, to create heros. Here you can't change the land - and it's the same in every god-damn (pardon the pun) level !

I'm sorry Peter, but I don't have two hours to spend in front of my computer moving trees and rocks before having any actual interaction with my opponent. There isn't even any real strategy at all in your 'game', and it's boring to look at - so why should I play it again ?

I just can't believe the 1989 Populous on my Amiga was funnier and more interesting to play. What a waste.

Only for the hardcore gamer

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 14 / 17
Date: June 19, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game is pretty good. The graphics were fine (never a big thing for me) on my P3 550, 128 ram, TNT2 Ultra. The gameplay is just lacking.....something. Micromanaging is not fun. You hear from a lot of people and reviewers that evil gods don't micromanage.....but that still doesn't keep you villagers from dying. There's so much stuff to micromanaging and getting the villages to *work*, but the lackluster tutorials don't help. Training the creature is also not fun. It takes it too long to learn (granted, it's the Tiger), and there's too much stuff to teach it. For example, I'm trying to take over a village out of my realm, but the opposing god keeps casting lightning on my Tiger. So I'm thinking "I've gotta teach him to cast heal, cast rain, and cast fireball correctly.......even though I did teach him to use it to 100%, he still won't use it. Then I've gotta feed him, and..........awe hell, I'll just play Unreal Tourney." Overall, it's a good game, but really only for the hardcore gamer who can put in some serious time to enjoy this game and all it's complexities. That's what I suspect most game-site reviewers are, and that's why you are seeing all the high scores and good reviews from those people.

To buy or not to buy? Are you crazy? Pick it up!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 14 / 18
Date: April 11, 2001
Author: Amazon User

If you're like me then you're reading through everyone's review in an attempt to determine if Black & White is worth your hard-earned cash. I definitely think it is! To be honest, I'm more of a sports and action gamer which makes me even more impressed that a game from the fantasy/role playing genre could be so fun and addictive. I had heard of Black & White before its release but wasn't quite certain what the game would be like. In case you are a bit uncertain you play the role of a God who is created by a single prayer. From there you rule over tribes, spanning 5 amazingly detailed landscapes, and battle other Gods in an attempt to become the ultimate, and only, God. To help you along the way you will have allies, but the most important help comes in the form of the Creature (cow, ape, or tiger) you choose in the first land. Your creature can be taught to do things that you do, such as supply villagers with wood and food and cast miracles. After he learns things, you can focus your attention on more important issues, although I do suggest checking on your Creature every so often to make sure he isn't eating your villagers or throwing boulders at their homes. Your Creature will grow in size, as long as he is fed, and will slowly morph to match his characteristics. If he is a troublemaker then he will acquire a more demonic look as opposed to a "fairy tale" appearance for a more caring and helpful Creature. Cinematics help to move the story along and are very entertaining! So are your spiritual advisors who pop up to inform you of their views (good and evil) and advise you on what you should do. But you should remember that this description is just a brief one and only scratches the surface of what Black & White has to offer.

What makes Black & White so incredible is that it is the first game from Lionhead Studios. This means Lionhead created all their programs and game codes from scratch with this game in mind, which is probably one of the reasons it was 4 years in the making! Black & White is also amazing because the depth of play is unbelievable. There are so many different styles of playing and ways to complete tasks that replay value is extremely high! The voiceovers are perfect! Nothing is better than a great story combined with great acting. The graphics and animations are amazing. Landscapes are highly detailed, complete with animations of things such as trees swaying if you brush by them and fish swimming away if you or your Creature touch the water. Of course one area that can make or break a game is the Artificial Intelligence. Luckily Lionhead Studios hired Richard Evans for this task. Believe it or not this guy has a Masters degree in A.I. The villagers are very bright people and if something needs to be done, like building a house, then most villagers will help. Of course, there are lazy villagers who just sit around. I usually turn these slackers into disciples, meaning you pick one task for them to do for the rest of their life, such as builder, farmer, forester, breeder, fisher, etc. Your creature is also very intelligent. He can take care of himself and will usually stay busy, but the fact that he can actually learn from your actions is great! He also learns by watching the villagers. For example, if he watches the villagers take grain from the field and place it in the village store he will start to do the same and the villagers love him for it, and of course this means they love you for it and in turn this makes you more powerful! Another positive note about the game is the camera angle. Most games are limited to a handful of options or just the default. Not Black & White! You are in control of a camera that can circle 360 degrees around the landscape and tilt from ground level to bird's eye view with unbelievable zoom capabilities! Just how good is the zoom? Well, you can start with a close-up of an apple (complete with wiggling worm) that is sitting on a barrel and zoom out until you have a complete view of the land from above the clouds! This means there are no restrictions on how you view your world. Combine all these features with a great website at bwgame.com and great fan sites that offer unlocked Creatures, tips, and unofficial extras and you have one of the best games of all time!

Of course, no game is perfect! But the drawbacks are really nothing that take away from the actual game. First are the controls. The default setting has you use the mouse to navigate the landscape with a grab and pull/push method. This can easily be changed though by visiting the options menu. Second are the load and save times. These are rather lengthy but are well worth it when you see the game. Third is the fact that this game was designed for higher end systems and could lag on an older computer. But I guess this could be a positive for those of you with blazing fast systems. Finally the most annoying part of any game like this is the fact that it is ADDICTIVE! The reason this makes it into the drawbacks is because I have stayed up way too late playing it and have therefore lost precious sleeping time!

I see that I have written an awful lot! I hope I was helpful if you are contemplating the purchase of Black & White. I definitely recommend it! Well, I'm gonna go play it now and probably won't get to sleep until some time tomorrow morning. That damn game!

Nice to look at at first, but tires quickly

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 10 / 11
Date: May 28, 2001
Author: Amazon User

At first, I loved this game. The graphics great for such a game. The town in the first land was easy to deal with. I progressed through the first land rather quickly and moved on to the second land. At the second land I realized that I had not trained my creature well and started to get some hints that this game had a lot of micromanagement. At first I thought that I could train my creature to deal with the micromanagement but that is false. I restarted and trained my creature for over 4 hours to help me take care of my towns only to find that there was little improvement in how my creature "thinks".

In this game you are constantly taking care of both your creature and your town. This can get overwhelming. When you get to the second land you also have to deal with the other gods. While at the same time take care of your creature and your towns. I was spending around 75% of my time taking care of my towns such as feeding them, making forests for them to chop down, making buildings for them, etc. This game is like playing simcity, tomagochi (is that how you spell it?), and warcraft all at the same time. If that is your idea of a great game then go for it. I personally don't think that this sort of combination works well.

If I am God, why am I forced into a Script?

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 11 / 13
Date: May 22, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This game is beautiful to look at but frustrating to play. I'm currently in level 2 and have lost all intentions of playing it anymore due to the sheer difficulty in getting anywhere, moving around, having to micro-micro manage everything and everyone (including the creature) and not doing what I REALLY want to do instead of having to follow the script. This the the biggest flaw of this game...instead of actually being able to influence my world and surroundings (like The Sims, which I also played for a while then got terribly bored with), I am actually at the mercy of a script that wants me to do certain things in a certain timeframe. Things go wrong and you can't figure out how to fix: My poor tiger creature is always overheated, but I don't know why (despite it drinking water). The graphics are lovely. I like the touches of night and day, and the changing 'scenery' but simple things like being able to exit or save require so much maneovering and back bending it just does not make for a very elegant game. Getting anywhere or even getting used to it requires so much of my too little precious time that it is not worth it. Maybe I'm biased against true RTS (Age of Empires/Age of Kings is the best thing since sliced bread, IMO...its executional elegance makes you appreciate it more) but things don't have to be this overly structured, overly constrained and overly difficult for gaming. If you have tons of time to waste and/or like to look at pretty pictures, then get the game; if you want truly want to be in control and be God, then run away from this game as fast as you can.

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