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Strategy / Black & White / Page 1
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With all the games that are anticipated for 1999 release, the term "revolutionary" is met with skepticism. Will Black &
White truly live up to this term and define a new genre of games?
by Joe Ewbank
(3/7/99)
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Peter Molyneux. A name, and a man, that while probably not as famous as Sid Meier, the two Johns (Romero and Carmack), or
Roberta Williams, is just as important in the evolution of games. For those of you not familiar with Peter Molyneux or
his works, see if these creations of his get your attention: Populous, Syndicate, Powermonger, Magic Carpet, Theme Park,
and Dungeon Keeper. Credited as "the creator of the God Games" Peter Molyneux has helped to craft some of the big
successes in gaming history, If not pioneering an entire new game genre. So, what's he up to these days? Peter Molyneux
says it best himself: "The name of the game is 'Black & White'. And this will be the best fucking PC game anyone's ever
seen..." Ironically titled, Black & White may just be the most remarkable, revolutionary, and important title of his
impressive career. Sound like a grand claim? It is. It may also be accurate.
The Goods
Quick Peek:
Perhaps the ultimate evolution of the "god game," and perhaps the first of an all new genre of games. An immersive
gameplay experience unlike any other existing game with unique gesture recognition technology and a game environment that
adapts to the personality of the player.
Release Date:
Second Half 1999
Developer:
Lionhead Studios
Publisher:
Electronic Arts
Homepage:
Black & White
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Before I get into the meat of this preview and tell you about this awesome game, let me bore you with a bit of history.
Trust me, it's relevant, and you can impress all your friends with your stunning knowledge of game evolution!
In 1987, Peter Molyneux had this idea for a new type of strategy game for home computers. To bring this idea to reality,
he started a company in Guildford, Surrey, England; this company was Bullfrog Productions. His idea for a new game type
became Populous, sold over 4 million copies, and was ported to console games such as the Sega Genesis where it was as
wildly popular as its original PC version. Fueled by the success of Populous, Molyneux and Bullfrog went on to create the
successful games mentioned above, all selling more than half a million copies (which is what qualifies a game as an "A"
title). Theme Park sold much more than that, 3.5 million copies worldwide and was a huge hit in Japan.
In 1995, Molyneux sold Bullfrog Productions to its publisher, Electronic Arts, for a staggering sum of money. Molyneux
stayed on as Master Designer and saw Dungeon Keeper through to its completion (and wasn't altogether happy with its
somewhat rushed release). Deciding he didn't like working within a large corporation, Peter Molyneux left Bullfrog in
1997 to form a new company: Lionhead Studios. Lionhead Studios' first game would be another revolutionary vision from
Molyneux: Black & White.
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