Critics initially lauded "Black & White" with "universal acclaim" according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. The graphics, gameplay, and artificial intelligence in particular were well received. "Black & White" sold two and a half million copies on the PC by 2006. In the United States, NPD Techworld ranked "Black & White" as the 11th-biggest computer game seller of 2001. Its sales in that region totaled 464,325 units, for revenues of $19.3 million, by the end of the year. It received a "Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom.