Black and White, the debut title from much-hyperbolised developer Lionhead, was something of a mixed-bag in the eyes of many gamers. Whilst some lauded the game as pure innovation, loving every-second of the freedom offered by the unlimited nature of the game, others despised the lack of direction or concrete objectives, stating that the game lacked any ‘game’, and was more of an experiment in artificial-intelligence.

Whichever side of the fiercely fought front-line you fall on, there can be no doubt that for both camps Black and White 2 is of great interest, with being his ever-vocal self regarding the planned innovations in the sequel. Indeed, the top-dog has gone as far as to comment in previous interviews that they already have the path of Black and White mapped up to number five! Which seem quite ridiculous.

Anyway, on to Black and White 2, a game which hopes to appease the critics and satiate the fans, whilst remaining true to its beginnings in Eden. A lofty task.

“The trouble with doing a sequel, if you pick the middle road and appease the person who's slagging you off, then the person who really likes it gets really pissed off - so it flips over. It needs to be really carefully done and we've talked a lot with people who have played Black and White.” Commented Peter Molyneux in a recent interview with Computer and Video Games. Apparently, Black and White 2 aims to progress the series’ super-objective of growing closer and closer to the world as it is today, and with this in mind the technology will have evolved greatly from the original, with villagers growing more complex as individuals too.

Of course, with this growing sophistication will come wars, we’re promised, between different tribes and villages. This will play a key role in giving the player of the sequel a greater sense of purpose, with the game leaning far more towards Molyneux’s previous creation, Populous. As the ruling deiety in the land, you as a God will be able to dissuade or encourage the war-like inclinations of your subjects, and play a hand in the war itself.

Lionhead are paying a great deal of attention to this aspect of the game, and it appears at this stage that this will be one of the most major additions in the sequel. We’re promised massive, epic battles, of a scale similar to Shogun and Medieval, with thousands upon thousands of fighters surging across the land in battle, armed with a variety of weapons and each with differing abilities (each tribe will be able to manufacture different weapons, Japanese swordsman will use katanas while norseman will use broadswords).”The first thing we wanted to do was create armies with weapons. For instance, with bows and arrows and spears. To really get that feel, you need a little bit of technology and the wars to be fought between hundreds and thousands now.” Stated Molyneux, when previously speaking on the subject.