Risk II

Risk 2! That is right the 1996 Risk video game was such a huge hit that four years later it needed a sequel. While that may have sounded a tad sarcastic, I did mean it. I love Risk and during game nights playing the Star Wars Risk board game is something we love to do at my house. This game though, knew it had to offer more than the standard game of Risk and it does just that.

Taking Over The World!

I would wager that pretty much everyone knows what the deal with Risk is. You play as a general and you want your nation to take over the world. It is very basic in its concept, but the video game, Risk 2 manages to make things more exciting by having some fun cinematics as you play.

There is a single-player mode on offer here and it works really well. You will be going up against many different generals (some of histories finest) and they each have their own kind of style which keeps you on your toes. The cinematics as you play may seem kind of corny by today's standard, but they work and keep you more invested in what is going on.

Same Time Risk

The biggest addition to the gameplay on offer here and the sole reason why this game is worth playing is a brand-new way to play Risk and that is called Same Time Risk. You know how in standard Risk; it is all about taking turns and waiting? Well, Same Time Risk does away with this concept and instead, you can make all of your moves at the same time! It makes for a more fast and frantic game where there is a higher risk and reward thing at play. Yes, you can have more casualties if it goes wrong, but the rewards can be massive.

This new take on Risk can take a little while to get used to, but once you do it is a great deal of fun. I found it to be a clever and novel idea and a huge reason that my family all enjoyed this game back in the day.

Making Moves Is Easy

The core gameplay is very simple. Risk 2 is not trying to reinvent the wheel with how you actually play the game. You use the mouse and you just point and click, that is all there is to it. In some ways, it is better than the actual board game. I say this because there is no physically moving of little pieces, the PC just does it all for you. It is a very easy game to get into and it also serves as a fun way for a new player to learn how to play the game.

I get that for some people Risk 2 may not sound like the most exciting game in the world, but I like this a great deal. It is a fun way to play the classic board game on your computer and if you have no one to play with, the AI is a solid challenge. The new Same Time Risk gameplay is a great deal of fun and that alone makes this worth checking out. I would also say if you have tried to get into the board game, but have struggled, this is a great way to learn the basics.

Pros:

• You cannot go wrong with digital Risk!
• I liked the new Same Time Risk game mode
• The generals each have their own play style
• The AI gives you a decent challenge
• It serves as a fun way for new players to learn the game

Cons:

• At the end of the day, it is still Risk
• Not sure it will win over people who do not like the game

Everyone remembers their first game of Risk. Just like the first brush of a kiss or the initial fumblings at the back of the cinema, once invited to join the fun, you know you're no longer one of the little people. You only have to go to a car boot sale to realise how popular Risk is because, no matter how hard you look, you'll never find one for sale (at least not the classic 70s version with the 'oil drum' and 'Toblerone' pieces).

Even the windswept balding husband selling such classics as Hungry Hippos, Mike Reid's Pop Quiz and Mastermind- at 50p each - will shrug at the mention of Risk. "Me and me boys, we decided to keep that one," the father will say. He could have charged at least a pound. On PC, Risk has never been in quite the same league as its board game counterpart. In this day and age of real-time strategy and Internet gaming, the humble 'game of world domination' has been fighting a losing battle and nowhere better was this highlighted than with Hasbro's previous PC rendition of Risk, where, along with the vanilla version, was something called 'Ultimate Risk' - which although fun, just wasn't... Risk.

Dicing With Death

Risk 2on the other hand is more like it. As well as your 'Classic' Risk where the computer and human players take it in turns to take over the world, there is a new mode called 'Same Time Risk'. Developed primarily for the impatient multiplayer, the 'Same Time' game is something of a minor masterpiece and, although it changes a few rules and requires a slightly different way of thinking, it still feels remarkably familiar.

How it works is, all players plan their attacks simultaneously. Then, once done, the computer resolves each conflict in turn; armies going for each other's territories fight first, followed by invasions on more than one front etc, etc. For the battles themselves, virtual 12-sided dice are used, which may sound a bit too Dungeons & Dragons, but actually works surprisingly well.

A third type of game on offer for those who prefer playing on their own is the Tournament game. Offering a set of 16 scenarios based on both sets of rules (some taking advantage of extra countries and new rule variations), it allows players to take on each of the 16 computer-controlled generals, with each general displaying a range of traits that can adjust to your style of play over time.

Where perhaps Risk 2 is a little disappointing is that it is actually quite tricky to tell the AI players apart, but as a whole the AI is very good once you've had a chance to test each general out. Elsewhere the interface is a breeze and the graphics manage to be both attractive and functional. The way the camera sweeps in to show the battle sequences soon becomes repetitive, but thankfully it can be switched off.

Best of all, however, is that for once, someone - in this case developer Deep Red - has recreated a classic board game successfully to PC and done it well. Risk 2 manages to be both true to its roots and innovative at the same time.