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Developer: Bullfrog Productions
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Genre: Strategy
Region: NTSC
Format:
Release Date: 31 Mar 99
User Rating
9.8 (11 votes) -
Overview
Bullfrog, the relatively small and unheard of games developer smashed it's way into gaming headlines with the introduction of the 'Populous' title and later 'Populous Two' all those years ago. Being a god-sim, the game bears slight similarities to both regular RTS and Sim games, but Bullfrog seem to have gone out on a limb to create a very unique, innovative game which breaks the mould set by both it's prequels and has thusly angered many a Populous veteran.
The missions all centre around a funky little diva called a shaman, who basically represents the player on the battlefield. It is she who has called the tribe to war and it is she who will eventually rise to crush all her enemies and become a God over all men in her own right.
This my friend, is what happens when feminism is allowed to get out of control.
Gameplay
The object of virtually every mission is to grab the enemy tribe by their collective balls and squeeze hard enough so as to leave them singing like an altar boy for the rest of their primitive lives.
Gameplay is not based on resource collection as you would expect from a died-in-the-wool RTS, but rather uses people as currency. The more people you have, the more mana you create, the more spells you get.
A (very) big quibble I have is the number of units available. The shaman is the centre-piece for all the real action and the units just seem to be taken along for the. Special units such as Firethrowers and Priests offer new strategies in attack and defence, but I guarantee you will find yourself repeating the same techniques from battle to battle.
Graphics
The graphics are on the whole, pretty poor. The introduction of a globe rather than a flat battlefield on which to fight makes combat and strategy much more engaging, and allows for some fairly impressive camera action. The units however are stil two-dimensional and animate with a horrific frankenstein-like judder.
The FMV is good, and the introductory speech is quite inspiring. The in-game sound is basic, but acceptable with your simple onomatapoeic 'crash, bang, wallop' and such like which neither detracts from the game nor inspires any real feeling of interaction. The actors employed as the voice overs are surprisingly convincing, adding a certain mystical touch to an otherwise mediocre production.
Fun Factor
The first few levels are fairly simple, but once you begin to get into the game, missions become downright evil. The AI can be ridiculous as warriors stand by watching their village being burnt to the ground, and controlling individual groups of men admist many is literally impossible. Often the only way to deal with an attack is to select everybody you have and just launch them at the enemy - not exactly strategically taxing!
There is also a very noticable lack of a multiplayer option, and only one side to choose from, leaving only one mission at a time accessible to the player.
It got on my tits! What else can I say!
Overall
Not a bad game, by anyone's standards. Populous: The Beginning is an entertaining, stylish and altogether unusual romp for veterans and virgins to the genre alike. I would certainly recommend hiring it out before you buy it as it will not be to the taste of everyone.
- Gameplay
7.0 - Graphics
7.0 - Fun Factor
6.0 - Overall
6.0
