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CULTURES 2: GATES OF ASGARD
Cultured gamers should take a look...
By VICTORIA KAY
 No,
that is not an error, my name is Victoria and I am a female of the species.
I have had a PC and have been a gamer for as long as I can remember.
So now that you
have had a chance to get over the shock, let's get on with the review!
Welcome to Cultures 2. You
are now a God. That's
what it says. Black & White fans, don't get excited.
Cultures 2 is "just another
chapter of Cultures 1". Since I have never actually played Cultures
1, I wouldn't know, and I suspect that many others wouldn't know either.
Cultures 2 is an RPG with a
difference. While you
don't play any person in particular, you watch over the 'people' (we're
still not quite sure what's under all that body hair!) way down there
in the village.
The main aim in Cultures 2,
as usual, is to save the world. Big deal, I'm sure. Join Bjarni, the Viking
hero, on his quest to save the world from Ragnarok, a.k.a the end of the
world. Bjarni must journey to the faraway island on which sits the Gates
of Asgard, or, more commonly put, the Fortress of the Gods, and face the
terrible serpent which awaits him there.
That was the campaign mission.
Now for the single scenarios: In these scenarios, you have to complete
certain objectives. Each scenario varies; from getting a population of
100, to discovering new items, buildings, and jobs.
If you are a male civilian,
you can be: A farmer, potter, blacksmith, etc. Basically, any job you
have acquired in the village. You can also turn them into warriors (a
good idea, since being attacked by other clans is possible), heroes, and
scouts.
If you are a female civilian,
you can't have a job. You can marry, have children, and watch them grow
up. You can also gather food to put in the house, cook, clean, and basically
take on the position of a maid. (Hmm…a bit of gender bias here…maybe
I should sue them?)
 Mind you, the people
of this village can do quite well on their own. They hold animated conversations,
fall in love etc., when left to their own devices. In other words, they
don't need you to play match maker for them!
Though when alone, the couples
who want to have children seem to always choose girls, so when they do
decide to have children, make sure to decide for them in some cases. Not
that there's any problem with lots of girls.
Now, on to the sound. When
Vikings talk in this game, they tend to talk gibberish. They don't say
"Master, how may we serve you?" - or anything really good like
that, which deflates the ego a bit, and gives you an irrepressible urge
to go on an old-fashioned smiting spree.
In fact, they can be so annoying
that you, like me, may turn off the sound completely to block out their
irritating little voices. However, when something important has to be
said, a scroll appears, and tells you what that character has to say.
The cut scenes look quite nice,
though the faces are misshapen to the point of being ridiculous. The buildings
are very detailed, and the people are cartoony, yet detailed sprites that
walk and talk. They have real faces, although most of the difference lies
in the hair colour -- other then that they look like clones.
Cultures 2 isn't exactly a
hardcore RPG, nor is it the most in-depth RTS ever created, either. The
gameplay that can best be described as a mix between The Settlers and
Diablo, but with a healthy dose of Viking attitude.
Although it won't appease those
of you who have spent many sweaty hours in front of Diablo 2, it makes
a great gift at Christmas time, and it's guaranteed to be a hit with the
younger gamers.S
ORIGINALITY 80%
SOUND/GRAPHICS 75%
PLAYABILITY 85%
ADDICTION 70%
ENJOYMENT 80%
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