E3: Black & White 2 peek makes me want to play god (again)

A lot of us have been looking forward to
Black & White 2 for a long time. The original was a love-it-or-hate-it affair. Lovers loved the open-endedness and sandbox feeling. Haters hated the open-endedness and sandbox feeling. Around 2 years ago, a truce was drafted between the two camps. It's held since.

Black & White 2 looks to be an improvement in every way, so the peace may last. Yes, it looks better. It probably sounds better too, but I haven't heard a damn thing for three days straight on that expo floor. Most importanly, BW2 plays better. There's no question about it. The original control scheme was known for being elegant, simple. All you needed was the hand and some glowing symbols and you were set to play. This time around that simplicity has been preserved, but with additional feedback.

Which is necessary because there?s a hell of a lot more happening in BW2 than the first title. This time around you aren?t only converting, you?re also building and warring with soldiers and the old, faithful beast at your side. But with more power comes more repsonsibility, and the interface provides detailed breakdowns of game data. The one touch that impressed me most was the resource map that pops up when you roll over, say, a farm house. You see a number of windows appear. They show you every detail of the farm, and how those details break down ? resources, cost, yield ?
it?s all there in a way the original didn?t provide. You also get more direct feedback from the beast in the shape of a word balloon. ?I?m scared? or ?I?m hungry? are now clearly stated.

But the clincher was a battle I saw play out. Picture one large lion, a few hundred detailed soldiers and a massive landscape. The player threw a slew of tricks at the battle scene. Lightning bolts flew from man to man. Meteor showers rained down. Earthquakes shook everyone to the ground. Yes, even his own soldiers. In the meantime, the beast, loyal to you as always dropped in when it was safe and made pizza out of some opponents. The battle was a hell of a lot of fun to watch, especially when we zoomed in for a closer look.

The only concern I have with the game is its choppiness. When the action gets fierce, the image suffers. This means there?s more work to do on the graphics front, which means that more compromises on visual quality will probably be made. I wouldn?t expect to see a game that looks as pretty as the first
batch of screenshots, but it would be nice if we came close?or if we didn?t care because the game is so fun. That would be okay, too.