Black and White 2, from Lionhead Studios, is the ever ambitious sequel to the popular PC strategy game, Black and White. Black and White had you taking on the role of God, well a God, while trying to gain worship from different towns and cities. The concept of Black and White came in the form of how you gain a town's worship. Be a nice God and provide a town with nourishment and prosperity, or take my route; beat the living hell out of everyone with your fiery wrath.

The idea behind Black and White 2 is essentially the same. You are once again a God, who's trying to gain the worship of as many towns as possible. It seems that this time around, Lionhead Studios are focusing more on the creature aspect of the game.

When you first don your Godly Cubicle (metaphorically speaking) you are given the opportunity to create a, well, giant monster. The monsters range from behemoth bulls to amazing apes (sounds a little King Kong-ish to anyone else?). Well, you'll soon learn that these creatures will be the generals of your armies.

In Black and White 2, peace isn't as plentiful as it was in its predecessor. In fact, the civilizations have evolved a bit, into war mongers. It is your job as God, and little Tomogotchi-like creature buddy, to either influence different villages towards peace, or join their struggles of war and rein fire down upon the warring cities.

B&W2 will definitely be an epic battle for RTS enthusiasts. With only about 100 soldiers per army on screen at a time, each with individual stats, Lionead boasts the game will be able to handle thousands of warriors, all acting independently.

Is B&W2 one of the first steps towards Next-Gen gaming? Hardly, but Lionhead Studios are looking to expand the Black and White experience to consoles and handhelds. These games, ingeniously titled Black and White Creatures, will focus a lot more on the creature aspect of the game.

Practice your booming voice of God, as Black and White 2 hits shelves October 11th, 2005.

Features:

Will you be an evil or benevolent deity?

The player will have many choices to make in Black & White 2. Once you and your creature have convinced the people that you are a god, you then have to decide if you are going to care for your believers, building them huge cities that are beautiful and safe, or if are you going to rule the land causing death and destruction by leading vast armies into battle.

As players enter this warring world they will have the option to make tribes coexist peacefully, encouraging villages and towns to grow into metropolises, or prompting them to inflict their will upon others by creating and commanding large armies that seek to dominate and conquer.

You have a Creature to do your bidding and train as you will, and you may rule over your people as you wish. This evolved Creature can help you nurture their communities grow into huge, towering cities. Or you may use death, suffering, and fear. The Creature has been massively advanced since the original Black & White, and now has a vital role as a military leader and command unit. He can learn strategies, lead armies into battle, and is the ultimate battlefield weapon himself, armed with many powerful new attacking and shielding Miracles.

The epic world of Black & White is yours for the asking. But remember - if you want peace, prepare for war.

• Wage massive wars, sieges and battles or use your skill and power to keep the peace.
• Discover and use new Epic Miracles, including the ground-ripping Earthquake and volcanoes, which cause rivers of lava.
• Choose and customize the Creature thats right for you from a selection, including old favorites as the Ape, Cow, and Lion, plus many others.
• Research and create new forms of weaponry, from swords to bows to siege machines. Build and design unique defensive gates and walls.
• Control and marshal huge and varied armies.
• Create and control settlements that include housing, farming, and many other buildings like fountains and lush gardens (if youre Good) or stocks and guillotines (if youre Evil).
• Use multiple tools to help train and improve Creatures. As well as using sticks, whips, and feathers, players can create their own unique tools.
• Weather systems such as rain, snow, mists, and fog.
• Journey through 10 lands homing each of the five tribes.