Populous™: The Beginning

First of all, I want to address all the things that people say about the game not working. The game works perfectly but you have to make some tweaks which are EASY: 1. Game will crash upon launch on almost all occasions because it tries to launch the Direct3D version of it which has issues. You can bypass that by changing D3DPopTB.exe in the shortcut target to popTB.exe. 2. Software renderer works, as is the Direct3D IF you do those small tweaks (check below) 3. While played in software renderer saves the resolution, when played via Direct3D does not and you have to manually set it every time. There is a fix for that too. 4. Game can go above 800x600 if you go to its shortcut properties and right after the last " of its target you type -allres (So it looks like this: "E:GoGPopulous - The BeginningD3DPopTB.exe" -allres) The fixes: 1. Go to the Compatibility settings of your shortcut, click "Change settings for all users" and uncheck everything 2. While in the Compatibility settings tab, check Compatibility mode and choose Windows XP SP2 and "Run this program as an as admin" - Those steps ensure that software renderer runs OK. (that is the PopTB.exe). If you want to use the Direct3D version (D3DPopTB.exe) you have to do some additional tweaks. 3. Download dgVoodoo v2.53 or newer from http://dege.freeweb.hu/dgVoodoo2/dgVoodoo2.html (it is a safe site and needed for lots of older games) - Unzip the file and copy everything from its MS folder into the game's main folder. Also copy dgVoodooSetup.exe there and run it - Click on the . button at the top right. Then on the General tab select your adapter from the list of "adapters to use". In the DirectX tab, select GeForce4 Ti 4800 and click Apply. Run the D3DPopTB.exe and check if it works. - To set a fixed resolution without needing to re-apply it in every launch, download and run Resolution Changer from https://www.popre.net/downloads.php. Best res so far for me is 1280x720 on a 24" monitor

For a more in-depth video review, check here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz8rQRGbvSU This game was one of the must-haves of the late 90s and early 2000s, it was that good. It boasts a surprisingly slim game design for its era, but it's so, so damn good. Add to that a gorgeous art design and one of the most memorable soundtracks ever conceived, and you've got yourself a title that quite literally puts you under a spell. Can't recommend this highly enough. Word of advice: in order to get a good experience with modern machines, don't hesitate to check out Populous: Reincarnated and the Multiverse Launcher. That way you can play this at modern resolutions and even be able to run its Direct3D mode for some prettier visuals.

I got it to work with Windows 10 and on my 1080p monitor with game resolution set to 1600x900. Simply create a shortcut of D3DPopTB.exe and click properties of the shortcut. In the target line, after the game path, simply add " /allres" but without the quotes. Be sure to add the space, too. Run the game, and set the resolution to highest. Bonus: if you have AMD GPU, enable "GPU scaling", as it makes the graphics noticeably better. Nvidia's equivalent is "Perform scaling". Only 4 stars, as it'd be nice if GOG could work out the resolution problems, as well as only a tiny portion of the game being visible at times. To fix that, hit Escape in game and do you best to scroll to "options". Once you click options, the entire screen becomes visible. Phewf! Overall, the game itself works and works well! Well worth the money, despite the hassle.

This was one of my first PC loves - only Age of Empires was better in the days of my youth :) It had everything: - great play; - great campaign missions; - great spells (give me a volcano! - there are some cheats that unlock all the spells and after finishing the game it was so fun to replay the early levels using a few volcanoes; - only a few types of troops, but you'll discover you don't feel the need for more; - 3D acceleration (even considering I've played it in software mode :p); - and most of all a super-awesome world; it was 3D - being a round globe; it had a fully alterable terrain - with enough patience, spells and a balloon you could transform it all in an underwater world! On the minus side, the AI was not the greatest - enemy troops and/or shamans always following the same path (so easy to strategically place a swamp). But that didn't stopped the fun. Somewhere out there there is an unofficial mod that is harder to play and I would recommend it.

This game is what Black and White (1+2!) promised, but NEVER delivered. You literally can raise vulcanos or lower the land into the ocean, however you feel like! You can summon anything from fireballs to tornados or the angle of DEATH!! (swamp was my favorite^^) Simple RTS Elements keep a good pace and add more variety. Levels are challenging but fair and overall the game is epic. From the sounds, the graphics (and cgi!) to the simple but straightforward story. You start a shaman and become a GOD!!!! Damn it. Why cant we have those kinda games anymore!?