Heaven & Hell E3 2003 Preshow Report

Heaven & Hell, a strategy game developed by MadCat, will be on display at E3 2003. The game hearkens back to EA's Black & White, as you'll take on the role of an omniscient and all-powerful deity trying to convince as many puny mortals as possible to worship you. Though you won't have a giant beast to serve as a tangible presence in the world, you will have the assistance of seven different prophets, each with specialties and abilities. Some will serve as nothing more than thugs with a divine mandate; others will try to convince the populace of your power by using more subtle means. You'll also be able to unleash angels or demons upon the world to serve you, or simply construct buildings like fast-food restaurants and merry-go-rounds.

The game's characters are rendered in a cartoonlike fashion, imparting a fun and lighthearted nature to Heaven & Hell. You'll be able to choose to play as a good or an evil god, and the game will include two different campaigns to reflect that choice. Heaven & Hell's day-night cycle will affect the game beyond just the graphics. During the daytime, good gods will get bonuses, while at night, evil gods will have the advantage. The humans in the game hail from four different nations, each of which reacts differently toward good and evil acts.

As an all-powerful deity, you'll of course have the ability to awe the populace with a variety of miracles and catastrophes, including rainbows, lightning, earthquakes, floods, and swarms of locusts and frogs. These actions can visibly and permanently change the landscape in the game.

Aside from the included campaigns, Heaven & Hell will also ship with a random mission generator and eight-person multiplayer, where each player in the game competes for worshippers from the world's available population. Currently the game is scheduled for release in the second half of 2003. We'll have more information on Heaven & Hell as it becomes available.