Anno 117: Pax Romana's Hidden Gem Is a Breathtaking First-Person View.

Surprisingly — did you realize it's possible to experience Anno 117 Pax Romana in first-person? Should that be your response, your surprise matches as I was when I discovered this concealed mode. I must temporarily abandon managing my empire, entrust it to a capable deputy, take a wagon, and go for a joyride through Ancient Rome.

Unlocking the First-Person Feature

Being a city-building title, Anno 117: Pax Romana usually operates from an overhead perspective. However, if you press a covert button sequence — for example “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on keyboard alternatively “Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B/Circle, A/X” with a gamepad — it becomes possible to roam your domain as a common citizen. Because an analogous secret was part of Anno 1800, I was eager to test it in the latest installment, yet I had doubts it would work before I discovered myself submerged in a structural glitch (which probably wasn’t intended — this feature tends to be prone to glitches now and then).

Exploring the Streets of Rome

After extracting myself, I wandered the bustling streets through my metropolis and toured shops, taverns, blossom gardens, and shellfish gatherers — it felt magnificent to witness all my hard work using an entirely new viewpoint. I noticed numerous fine points I wouldn’t have spotted when viewing from overhead: Entryway ornaments, an ass transporting a floral pail, fowl roaming freely, citizens lounging on their terraces… Merely examining the form of a ledge and the coating on a pillar becomes engaging to someone who doesn’t live in Ancient Rome.

Beyond Simple Strolling

But there’s more to the game's immersive perspective than strolling along the road. I felt particularly pleased the moment I learned that besides being able to look upon crop lands, but also enter them. And even though I thought the building models would be off-limits, I was able to enter clay pits, investigate a respected schoolhouse while lessons were in session, and invade personal courtyards. Don’t try to open any doors (not even the developers allocated resources for that), but it’s entirely possible stroll around a barley farm, watch folks shoveling and carrying sacks, and look within any modest shelter as long as the door is absent.

Graphics and Ambiance

Although I was fully prepared to observe my settlement depicted in PlayStation 1 graphics, excluding a few unpolished motions and the occasional civilian resting in a bench instead of on a bench, first-person mode looks far superior to anticipations. The intricately designed surfaces (notably masonry elements) are unexpectedly excellent for a title that remains primarily overhead. You won't necessarily notice specific hair details, yet you will notice writings on surfaces, flames emitting from lights, brick decoloration, pupils, and evergreen foliage. Evening, with glowing light sources and distant stellar illumination, generates a uniquely immersive environment, and also a lot less scary compared to Anno 1800, given that the populace appears unlike nightmarish entities anymore.

Testing and Personalization

Given the covert first-person feature has no guided tutorial, I decided to experiment a bit, and promptly found the options to jump, sprint, and adjusting the view — with the latter allowing me to change from first-person to third-person mode and revert. I subsequently tried pressing certain numeric keys and learned I could modify my character’s appearance. Golden robe? Ruby clothing? Sapphire and amethyst dress? Or — maybe superior — complete battle gear? You might hold a weapon and defense, or, preferably, wear an archer's uniform; when you press the action key, you’ll fire burning arrows into the sky. In case you’re wondering, eliminating citizens cannot be done (not that I attempted, naturally).

Amusement and Inhabitant Dialogues

However, I had no desire to injure my people, since they're incredibly amusing. Moments after I entered first-person mode, I overheard a father telling his child that “You cannot keep a fox as a pet and should you provide another poultry, your gran will have your head.” Rightly so, Roman dad. A pleasant regional Celt then proceeded to praise my excellent cross-cultural strategies by calling it the “Best of both worlds,” whereas an irritable elderly woman decided to threaten me: “Utter those words again, and your fate will be sealed.”

The Thrill of Transportation

At the moment I believed I had found everything available within the game's immersive perspective, I encountered the delight of riding through classical settlements. Entirely by accident, I interacted with a cart and quickly occupied the transport. Oxen, donkeys, even human-pulled carts; you can control each one as desired. The donkey cart, in particular, is pretty fast, but don't anticipate Grand Theft Auto-style mischief — colliding with pedestrians or other carts is impossible (reiterating, without confirming testing).

Battle Constraints

The single feature that frustrated me in Anno 117’s first-person mode was learning about my exclusion from in combat situations. Equipped in warrior attire, I ran up to the enemy in the midst of battle and attempted to attack them, only to be ignored completely. The close-up view was still rather spectacular, and watching the enemy run, their limbs waving wildly, seemed enormously rewarding, yet it would have been exciting to successfully impact objects using my fiery projectiles.

{Conclusion: More to Discover|Final Thoughts: Additional Exploration