Black and White is a god game by Peter Molyneux. Leaving traditional icon based interfaces behind and leaving the usual "good" role based model, this game provides a flexible experience, both in terms of the interface and your interaction with the landscape.

The game's goal is to rule the world, either by the force of good or evil, it's your choice. Your role is shaped by the interactions you have on your worshippers. You can destroy unbelievers or create miracles to convert them to worship you. Besides your direct manifestation you have a creature that you teach and control. As your creature focuses on your actions it learns to mimic you, for example if you show it how to harvest wood eventually it will harvest wood for your worshippers. If you show it how to cast fireballs it will smite the unbeliever. It will help or harm your villagers depening on what it is taught to do. Positive reinforcement, by rubbing his stomach, or negative reinforcement by slapping him silly all help your creature learn.

The interface is controlled by your floating hand, the only physical impression you directly give on the land. Game control is by gestures, to cast spells you can draw an insignia on the ground. Spell power can be increased by instructing your villagers to worship. To take over other villages you can impress or scare them. To increase the population you can build more homes and farms, then set your villagers to breeding.

Peter Molyneux is perhaps the best known creater of god games, starting the whole genre off with Populous. Now he's moved to the next step, stealing what little social life geeks like myself have by giving us something new to keep us awake till 3:00am.

The web site lives at http://www.bwgame.com