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Sequels are a chance to right past wrongs and hone the gameplay into something that can establish a franchise's identity. Overlord II did not follow this path. Rather than address the major issues with the first game, Triumph Studios tried to cover them up by tossing in some new gameplay features and changing the focus. The result is a game with all of the faults of its predecessor and little of the intriguing adventuring that made it popular in the first place. And that makes Overlord II a game that is more frustrating than it is fun.
Overlord II follows the story of a new wicked being bent on conquering the world. The last Overlord met a rather un-lordly demise and this new one, who looks and acts pretty much exactly like the last one, is groomed to take up where he left off. Ostensibly, he's the baddest mother around and pure evil, but with a Teen rating by the ESRB you can be sure that everything in this game is rather tame. Instead of blood and true carnage, Overlord II offers cartoon violence and some British wit. And though you're supposedly bad, you wind up playing the hero against a greater evil.
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In the overlord's absence, a couple of new factions have arisen that need dealing with. There's the magic-hating empire, modeled after the Romans, which will throw tightly structured legions at your horde. And then there are the stereotypically offensive effeminate elves, modeled after PETA. These guys are out to protect all of the light magic creatures of the world. Together, these factions pose quite the challenge for the new overlord.
The key to the Overlord's success at dominating the land lays in a horde of little critters he controls known as minions. The game begins with just a few of these minions at your beck and call, but by the end you'll have dozens in four flavors, each with its own set of strengths and weaknesses. The browns are the bruisers, perfect for a frontal assault. The reds can toss fireballs that can clear barriers or strike enemies out of your reach. The greens and blues can do stealth attacks and swim, respectively. Each has its own role and will be featured in its own section of the game. These minions are the heart and soul of the game. Watching them tear through towns, grabbing anything within reach to wear as a helmet is quite hilarious. Their mannerisms and animations are what give Overlord II its personality. These guys are the equivalent of having a troupe of gremlins at your beck and call--and there's no Gizmo in sight to ruin all of the fun.
The minions are the life force of Overlord.
The minions also do your dirty work here. The Overlord is a bit of a wimp and can't take much punishment so in order to keep him in one piece you'll have to sweep dozens of little minions out to do the fighting. This is done either by targeting an enemy and sending them out en masse, sweeping them out by using the right thumbstick to directly control your group, or planting a target marker to keep them in one strategic location. The first Overlord game featured a lot of puzzle solving and careful maneuvering of your minions. While that is still present here, the sequel focuses more on simple action and combat.
As you work through Overlord II, you'll find and purchase new upgrades for the Overlord, his tower and his troupe of female companions. A new destruction vs. domination choice structure exists and the game tries to play this up as something bigger than it actually is. There are few real choices to be made in the game--many times the choices are hollow and don't alter the story or your character at all and sometimes the game tells you there is a choice when there really isn't. In the end, the real choice is whether to enslave the local populations or kill them and doing so will change your alignment. This, in turn, can affect your suite of spells and which little ending voiceover you get.
