Anno 117 Pax Romana's Top Secret Reveals Itself as a Impressive First-Person Mode.
Wait — did you know it's possible to experience Anno 117 Pax Romana from a first-person viewpoint? Should that be your response, your surprise matches as my own reaction upon finding out this secret option. Excuse me while briefly leave overseeing my civilization, leave it in a reliable subordinate, take a wagon, and enjoy a ride through Ancient Rome.
Unlocking the First-Person Feature
As a city-building game, Anno 117 Pax Romana is typically played using a top-down camera. Yet, when you input a hidden code — including “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on keyboard or else “Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B/Circle, A/X” with a gamepad — it becomes possible to roam the realm as a regular inhabitant. Because an analogous secret was part of the earlier game Anno 1800, I looked forward to test it in the new release, yet I had doubts it would operate prior to being stuck in a Celtic building (possibly an unexpected bug — this mode is prone to glitches now and then).
Exploring the Roman Cityscape
Upon freeing myself, I strolled the lively avenues of my city and explored stalls, alehouses, floral patches, and shellfish gatherers — the experience was splendid to witness all my hard work through a fresh lens. I observed numerous fine points that would escape notice from above: Doorway embellishments, a beast of burden holding a blossom container, chickens running loose, citizens lounging on their terraces… Even just observing the design of a windowsill and the coating on a pillar becomes engaging to someone who doesn’t live in Ancient Rome.
Beyond Simple Strolling
Yet, the experience extends to the first-person feature in Anno 117 than strolling along the road. I felt particularly pleased upon discovering that not only could I observe farming fields, but also access them. And despite my expectation structures would be inaccessible, I could walk onto earthen quarries, tour an esteemed educational structure while lessons were in session, and intrude into private gardens. Don’t try to open any doors (not even the studio allocated resources for that), yet it's completely feasible meander across a cereal plantation, see citizens working with tools and burdens, and look within any modest shelter provided the entrance is missing.
Graphics and Ambiance
While I was completely ready to witness my city rendered in PlayStation 1 graphics, excluding a few unpolished motions and periodic inhabitants sitting in a bench as opposed to atop a bench, first-person mode looks considerably improved over predictions. The highly detailed textures (notably masonry elements) are unexpectedly excellent within a game that's fundamentally a city-builder. You might not observe separate follicular elements, however, you can observe writings on surfaces, flames emitting from lights, fading on bricks, eye details, and conifer needles. Nighttime, with its flickering fires and celestial bodies twinkling afar, generates a uniquely immersive environment, and feels much less frightening relative to the previous game, now that the citizens don’t look like nightmarish entities anymore.
Testing and Personalization
Given the covert first-person feature doesn’t come with an instruction manual, I opted to try different commands, and quickly discovered the abilities to leap, run, and adjusting the view — with the latter allowing me to alternate between immersive and external perspectives and revert. I then experimented with some number buttons and learned I could modify my representative's visual design. Yellow toga? Ruby clothing? Azure and violet outfit? Or — potentially preferable — armored suit? You may carry a sword and shield, or, my favorite, don a marksman outfit; if you activate the engage command, you shoot flaming projectiles upward. In case you’re wondering, it’s not possible to kill civilians (though I didn't test this, obviously).
Comedy and Population Encounters
Yet, I didn't want to damage my population, because they’re way too funny. Shortly after I activated first-person mode, I overheard a father telling his child that “Owning a fox is prohibited and if you feed it one more chicken, your gran will have your head.” Rightly so, Roman dad. A pleasant regional Celt then started applauding my brilliant Romano-Celtic policies by labeling it “Perfect fusion,” while some cranky old lady chose to intimidate me: “Utter those words again, and your fate will be sealed.”
The Joy of Joyriding
At the moment I believed I’d discovered all there is to discover within the game's immersive perspective, I encountered the delight of riding across historical settings. Entirely by accident, I interacted with a cart and quickly occupied the transport. Oxen, donkeys, even manually drawn vehicles; you can control each one as desired. The ass-drawn vehicle, specifically, travels rather rapidly, though you shouldn’t imagine open-world vehicular chaos — you can’t drive into people or other wagons (once more, not admitting any attempts).
Combat Limitations
The only thing that disappointed me within the immersive perspective was finding out I couldn’t partake in combat situations. Equipped in warrior attire, I charged toward adversaries during active combat and tried to harm them, but was entirely disregarded. The proximate observation remained quite impressive, and watching the enemy run, their appendages thrashing around, seemed enormously rewarding, but it would’ve been cool to actually hit something with my burning arrows.
