Risk II

The Good
Well, the graphics are admittedly nice, and the map looks pretty good. Aside from that, there is so little in this game that distinguishes this from the older versions of risk (not "Risk 1" the prequel to this, but the Risk made by Virgin) that it hardly seems worth the bother. You could probably download a freeware version of risk and aside from the graphics, have it just as good.

The Bad
Ok, here we go. First of all, the combat seems to have devolved since the last game. Instead of the flanking, massed charges, tactics, forts, generals, famines, plagues, storms, prisoners of war, alliances, and revolts, this game has the boring old dice roll. Ho hum. Admittedly, there is a variant in the game called "same time risk", but this is so lackluster compared to the previous Risk one wonders why the creators even bothered to include it. When your turn begins (or ends) you will be assaulted by a wave of dialogue boxes telling you nothing you can't already see yourself i.e. it will tell you that player 2 has captured one of your territories despite the fact you just fought that battle. The "interactive battle sequences" really mean watching gigantic toy soldiers shoot at each other, hitting nothing. When you click the "roll" button, the dice will roll, and then a laser beam will shoot out of the dice, destroying the soldiers on both sides that lost the dice roll. Ohh, Ahh! Then, the dice rolls seem a bit slanted. Sometimes, the computer will defend or win against impossible odds. It's incredibly frustrating playing a game where the outcome of the battle hinges so little on your own actions.

The Bottom Line
I would avoid this. The game itself isn't terrible, but when you compare it to the previous one, it really doesn't have anything.