Every time a famous game studio or designer manages to create a mediocre game out of something that in theory couldn’t have gone wrong, I can’t do anything but wonder where is the industry going? Are we headed toward EA-like franchises only? A new year, a new version, with some questionable improvements to justify the expenditure of more money? For those who know a little bit more about the game industry, Peter Molyneaux doesn’t need an introduction. The games he helped create (Magic Carpet, Populous, Syndicate Wars, Dungeon Keeper) speak for themselves. Unsurprisingly, he’s considered the father of the God-game genre and Black & White was supposed to be the greatest god game ever made. And while it had certain features to warrant the hype, in the end they weren’t enough. Four years have passed since the release of B&W and Peter Molyneaux decided that it’s time to try again, to correct the mistakes of the first game and make a God game to end all god games. However, the road to Hell is always paved with good intentions and in more than one regard, Black & White 2 is a step backwards from its predecessor.

     One of the major gripes players had with the first B&W was that it lacked focus and at some point you really didn’t know what you were supposed to do in the first place. B&W 2 corrects this right from the start: you are a God, returning to the land you conquered in B&W, because the Greek tribe, who is under your protection, is getting slaughtered by the Aztecs. As a result, you take a bunch of worshippers and head out to greener pastures to rebuild your forces and ultimately conquer the evil Aztecs to teach them a lesson. Simple, right? Well, yeah, but the premise is flawed from square one in my opinion. First of all, since I’m after revenge, that makes me an evil god from the get go. Maybe all I want is to move my people somewhere else, start over and live happily ever after on a distant land. Why should I start a campaign of conquest? Oh yeah, I’m good or evil depending on how I plan to conquer the Aztecs: by either building an impressive city or by conquering them outright. Secondly, since I’m the only god left in this world (you killed the others in the first B&W) why do I have to run from the Aztecs? Can’t I just wave my divine hand and crush them into the dust like the ants they are? What kind of deity am I if I pack my stuff and run at the first sight of a larger army than mine?