“A Deity’s Work is never done...”

In spring 1989 Bullfrog, an up to that time relatively unknown video game developer, released a new production with the fateful title “Populous”. Up to that point, the company’s portfolio contained only two programs, namely a more or less successful Amiga port of the 8-bit classic “Druid II: Enlightenment” and a somehow strange multi-scrolling shooter called “Fusion” (please note the super smooth colour gradients of the background graphics, which create the impression that your monitor is damaged). But with the release of “Populous”, Bullfrog’s level of awareness increased dramatically, and it became one of the top-selling games of the year! Besides, Peter Molyneux and Les Edgar – founders of Bullfrog – created an entirely new genre; the “god game”…

So, it’s no wonder that many of the company’s following programs, such as “PowerMonger”, “Syndicate”, “Magic Carpet” and of course the two sequels “Populous II” as well as “Populous: The Beginning”, are based on a similar concept (without becoming just pale imitations of the original, the contrary is the case). However, with the release of “Flood”, “Theme Park/Hospital” and “Hi-Octane”, Bullfrog proved, that they are able to produce games apart from being “god games”, too.


Weltschmerz…
“Populous” is an absolute evergreen and can be mentioned in the same breath as classics such as Will Wright’s “Sim City”, DMA Design’s “Lemmings” or Westwood’s “Dune II: The Battle for Arrakis”. So, I’m quite sure, that most people out there are familiar with this strategy gem - therefore at this point just a rough description:

• You slip into the role of an almighty god, who guides the fate of his tribe.
• Unfortunately, there’s an opponent godhead, which has to take care of its followers, too.
• To conquer the world, you have to create space, so your people can settle and reproduce themselves.
• Because you’re a powerful god, you can unleash natural disasters, like e.g. earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods and even Armageddon!
• A world is considered conquered once the enemy tribe is destroyed.

If you want a more detailed explanation of the program, please read my review of the main campaign…


“(I never promised you a) Rose Garden”
Certainly, such an extremely successful title needs a successor, and fast! Actually, it was the very same situation as with Hideo Kojima’s pioneering “Tactical Espionage Action” classic “Metal Gear Solid”, released almost a decade later: That game was a top seller, too, and right from the start the fandom wanted more of Solid Snake. But “MGS2” has been three years in the making. So, Konami brought out the add-on “MGS: VR Missions” (aka “MGS: Special Missions”) to bridge the time gap between “MGS” and “Sons of Liberty” – and lo and behold, this mission pack also sold well…

Back in ’89, Bullfrog used the same strategy to please the many fans: In fall of the very same year Peter Molyneux and his team released “Populous: The Promised Lands”. This data disk contains five new worlds, namely:

• “Révolution Française”
• “Block Land”
• “Silly Land”
• “Wild West”
• “The Bit Plains”

While the gameplay remains the same as in the original campaign, the several landscapes have changed dramatically! Instead of the familiar buildings, like e.g. log cabins, stone houses and castles, you’ll catch sight of forts, tipis, Lego bricks, typewriters, strange-looking spherical housings, coffee cups (!), piles of floppy disks (!!), grounds covered with continuous form paper (!!!) and even the Arc de Triomphe! Moreover, the “papal magnet” received a complete facelift: It now appears as a scarecrow, whereas the opponent god’s one is a guillotine (in the “Révolution Française” setting), a computer mouse (“The Bit Plains”), or a totem pole (“Wild West”)…

…and the inhabitants of the worlds? Well, in terms of the human race, there are Frenchmen (“Révolution Française”) as well as cowboys and Indians (“Wild West”), whereas the Indians represent the good people. The remaining three settings come up with Lego minifigures ("Block Land”), some strange Commodore and Atari creatures (“The Bit Plains”) and, last but not least, green and red aliens (“Silly World”).

So, in the end "The Promised Lands" is the same game as the original just with a graphical improvement, isn't it? Yes and no: On the one hand, you can rely on the same tactics, you have used previously in "Populous" - even the worlds' names haven't change! But on the other hand, particularly in "Silly Land" as well as in "The Bit Plains" the usual strategies don't work anymore, because there, the CPU plays quite aggressive... just one word: "Armageddon"! Willy-nilly, you have to work out a new strategy to defeat the opponent god...


God’s Judgment…
Now, is “The Promised Lands” a worthy expansion pack to “Populous”? I think the answer is absolutely yes, because even if you classify the data disk as purely cosmetic improvement, it’s nevertheless an essential must-have for fans of the original program!

A divine revelation indeed…