Uniqueness and originality garnered critical praise. Craig Wessel of GameSpy felt the game is a unique and enjoyable strategy game. Originality was commended by "PC Gamer" reviewer, who also eulogised the "eautiful" graphics, "awesome" interface, and its creativity, and Gamezilla's Alex Karls, who also remarked the game "lives up to its hype". "Edge" reviewer agreed about the originality, and described the game as "a colossal achievement". Keith Pullin of "PC Zone" compared the resource management to "Age of Empires", and complimented the humour and pop culture references and praised the combination of original ideas, remarking that ""B&W" is as captivating as it is ingenious". "Computer Games Magazine" complimented the originality and "amazing" creature AI, but complained about the bugs. Jim Preston of "Next Generation" described the game as "thoughtful and engrossing". Reviewing the Macintosh version, Kit Pierce of Inside Mac Games remarked "Black & White is a gorgeous game", and commended its addictiveness.