Call to Power II

Improved menus and controls make it rather less intimidating, and the open-ended nature of the game and the massive range of units, buildings, technologies and strategies on offer means this is one game that you can play time and time again without ever repeating yourself.

An ideal game for the 4X gamer who prefers managing armies over micromanaging cities. It doesn't quite have the panache of "Civilization II" or the drama of "Alpha Centauri," but it's colorful, relatively fast-paced, and it has that "one more turn" addictiveness that will keep you burning the midnight oil.

It may not sport the graphical quality of Microsoft’s "Age Of Empires II," but still has all the elements of a good program, built to be user-friendly.

What the original was intended to be - but it's still no "Alpha Centauri." [Feb 2001, p.78]

It still feels like a "Civilization II" knockoff at times, rather than its own game. As such, it should pacify fans until "Civ III" comes out.

Simply too little, too late... When compared against some of the established leaders in strategy games, Call to Power II falls glaringly short and if you're looking to purchase a new strategy game, your money would probably be better spent elsewhere.

Activision has copied the gameplay of Civilisation, but the designers just aren't good enough to infuse it with the magic. Even if they had done, enough already! Do something new!