Call to Power 2 Review

The monuments with which the people paid homage have been thrown out, and there is still no panorama of the city. As for the tech tree, it has been simplified thanks to the inventive suggestion system. I must mention the well-improved diplomatic options, featuring more subtle agreements and demands, and the laconic computer answers remain the only problem there.

If we come to compare the numbers of technologies, buildings and units, we would reach a conclusion that CTP2 is richer than its predecessor, but not very much so.

Call to Power features:

• 69 units (65 before). Some old units had been thrown out, and some new have been added.
• 52 buildings (43 before). Most of them are already familiar. Many have new names, but same old roles and characteristics.
• 30 world wonders (35 before). There are fewer wonders, but each is still followed by great animations that (even though some are absolutely the same as in the original game) still present the most beautiful part of the game, and a motive to finish it (Yeah, some motive - Ed).
• 41 nations. This number remained the same, and I just hate the idea that all nations start off the same, rather than having specific bonuses and units. This way it doesn't matter what nation you choose.
• Development of 106 technologies (101 before). This number will obviously mean that a lot of money will have to go to R&D labs, but you simply cannot beat the feeling of being technologically superior to your enemies.
• There are still only 12 types of social systems, but now you have limitations to number of cities you can control in a particular system.

The scenario generator has been much improved. You can set just about anything, and easily simulate any historical event. The game ships with three interesting scenarios and a world map. The scenarios are brilliant, and feature units not present in the generic campaign. They are a perfect display of power of the generator (Alexander the Great is a unit and his characteristics and appearance change as he ages). Still, as I did not manage to script many of the things I saw I guess the programmers left a couple of features locked to the public.

Multiplayer supports play over Internet (Activision's servers), IPX and TCP/IP LAN. It is quite functional, and you won't need any patches in order for the fun to start. Creating multiplayer games is easy, and you can set the rules and conditions any way you like. The authors recommend no more than four players per game, as any additional players would probably slow the game down too much, and spoil the atmosphere. Ok, so the dynamics are nothing compared to Quake, but there still are a lot of us who like to spend hours on the net patiently building our empires and lurking the opportunity to seize control of our neighbors' cities (You poor souls - Ed).

If you liked the first part, you'll love Call to Power 2. Some might object that the game suffered only minor changes, and they would be right. This sequel doesn't bring anything revolutionary, but it certainly leaves an impression of a completed project. I believe that the authors meant to make the first part look like this. If Call to Power 2 had appeared earlier, it might have left some marks on the gaming industry; this way, it's just something to play until the official Civilization 3 appears.