A pleasant surprise to have this on Steam! Fond memories of playing this on a friend's Amiga back in the day. Simple but fun gameplay, with some good variety and lots of replay value.

Quick tip: You're going to want to turn down the game speed, at least in the beginning.

Bullfrog - Molyneux - Lionhead

Despite the updated graphics and attempt at improvement, the original Populous is superior. The game play and UI are a downgrade from the first game. Worth the $2 I paid for it but not worth full price.

This is one of my top favorite games of all time!!! Probably have 500+ hours on it and went through most of the 1000 levels. I played it when it came out originally and this version is the same. You just need to know a couple of settings to get it to run right on newer machines. alt+enter makes the dos emulator go full screen. In the game click the little globe and set game to full screen as well and then on the options menu set the game speed to half way.

This game is a true classic. So glad to see it on Steam.

Populous II: Trials of the Olympian Gods is one of those re-releases that feels more like a lazy cash grab than a nostalgic treat. Yes, it’s a legendary game from 1991, but let’s be honest—charging €5 in 2024 for a game that hasn’t been updated or enhanced in any meaningful way is a tough sell.

If you played it back in the day, sure, there’s a bit of a charm to reliving the old days of god-game strategy, wielding powers and outplaying the Greek gods. But in the context of today’s games, Populous II really struggles to hold up. The graphics are ancient, the interface is clunky, and the gameplay feels repetitive by modern standards. The game relies heavily on DOSBox for emulation, and while it works, it's hardly optimized for current systems, especially given that it’s a paid release on Steam and EA's platform​.

The worst part is that EA didn't even bother to include any quality-of-life updates. No remastered graphics, no UI tweaks to make it less of a hassle on modern resolutions, and the controls are as clumsy as they were 30 years ago. For a company that can afford to update their classic titles properly, it feels like they’re trying to squeeze every last penny out of old IPs without any real effort​,

Unless you're a die-hard fan of classic Bullfrog strategy games, it's hard to justify picking this up in 2024. If you're just looking to experience retro god-game action, there are better, more modern alternatives out there. It feels like EA missed a real opportunity to make Populous II more accessible and enjoyable for a new generation of players.

A classic from the strategy golden era, one of Bullfrog's great games. Here's hoping EA brings more Bullfrog games back, like Magic Carpet!

Nostalgia time. Definitely worth the $2 during this sale. $5 full price is pushing it.

Some things are best left in the past, I used to play this on the Amiga and it was great, but now the graphics are so blocky and outdated with nothing done to update them, that you really would need to buy an Amiga to bring this back to its former glory, avoid and stay with your memories.

For those that want it for collection & good old times, just get it.

"Populous II: Trials of the Olympian Gods is a 1991 strategy video game in the Populous series for the Amiga, Atari ST and MS-DOS-based computers, developed by Bullfrog Productions. Populous II is a direct sequel to Bullfrog's earlier game Populous and is one of the company's most notable games.

Like its predecessor, Populous II is a god game, where the player is guiding his people in battle against the followers of an enemy god. Whereas Populous only generally alluded to undefined deities, Populous II is specifically set under the backdrop of Greek mythology. The player is a demigod, one of Zeus's countless children with mortal women, and has to battle one Greek deity at a time until finally facing his father. Zeus has promised to let the player into the Pantheon on Olympus if he can survive all the battles."

No where near as good as the original. Not nearly as much fun to play. Not compatible with steamdeck. Do not buy even on the sale