I do find warlock 2 to be fun. There are 2 new races to play with and the town management is a little different now but it is essentially a more polished version of the first game. Maybe wait for a sale if you are hesitant?
I haven't played 2, but from what I've read they use the concept of multiple worlds much more actively. Far too often I finish a game in Warlock 1 right as my armies are beginning to explore the first portal they've encountered.
true you can safely ignore the portals. I'm talking about solo games as I cant imagine players having the time to sit through a multiplayer game though I guess those do happen. of course in solo games your playing against the ai which isn't very aggressive and can be easily manipulated though terrain modifications. even so, I enjoy getting at least one or two portal worlds up and running to sweep the map later with a flight of gold dragons. they could make the portal worlds more relevant in 1.0 simply by increasing the amount of mobs that will come out of it and attack you thus requiring you to get them under control before they get too big. and of course, they could easily make clearling them an alternate win/con.
