Anno 117 Pax Romana's Top Secret Reveals Itself as a Breathtaking First-Person Perspective.
Hold on — were you aware you can play Anno 117: Pax Romana using a first-person camera? If that’s your reaction, your surprise matches compared to my initial response the moment I learned this concealed mode. Excuse me while briefly leave managing my empire, entrust it to a capable deputy, borrow a cart, and enjoy a ride across the Roman world.
Unlocking the First-Person View
In its role as a city-builder, the game Anno 117 is typically played using a top-down camera. However, if you enter a secret combination — for example “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on a keyboard or else “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. Since a similar easter egg was part of the earlier game Anno 1800, I looked forward to experience it in Ubisoft's newest game, though I was uncertain it would function until I found myself stuck in a Celtic building (which probably wasn’t intended — this mode tends to be somewhat unstable occasionally).
Exploring the Roman Cityscape
After extracting myself, I wandered the busy roads through my metropolis and explored markets, breweries, flower fields, and cockle pickers — it was glorious to see the fruits of my labor using an entirely new viewpoint. I detected numerous fine points that would escape notice from above: Entryway ornaments, an ass transporting a floral pail, chickens running loose, citizens lounging on their terraces… Merely examining the shape of a window sill and the coloration on a post proves fascinating for those not residing in classical times.
Further Than Mere Wandering
However, there's additional content to Anno 117’s first-person mode aside from meandering through streets. I was especially delighted the moment I learned that besides being able to look upon agricultural plots, but also enter them. And although I’d assumed the building models would be off-limits, I managed to access mud extraction sites, explore a prestigious Grammaticus building while lessons were in session, and invade personal courtyards. Don’t try to open any doors (not even the creators have the budget for that), but it’s entirely possible stroll around a barley farm, see citizens working with tools and burdens, and take a peek inside any small shack when there's no doorway obstructing.
Appearance and Mood
Even though I expected to observe my settlement depicted in PlayStation 1 graphics, besides some crude animations and the occasional civilian resting within a bench rather than on a bench, the first-person view appears considerably improved over predictions. The intricately designed surfaces (notably masonry elements) really have no business being this good within a game that's fundamentally a city-builder. You may not see separate follicular elements, but you will see wall inscriptions, fiery particles from lamps, discoloration of masonry, eye details, and evergreen foliage. Nighttime, with its flickering fires and stars shining in the distance, is especially atmospheric, and also a lot less scary versus the earlier title, given that the populace appears unlike nightmarish entities now.
Experimentation and Customization
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 changing perspective — the last option enabling me to switch between first and third-person views and back. I then experimented with certain numeric keys and found I could alter my representative's visual design. Amber garment? Crimson attire? Sapphire and amethyst dress? Or — perhaps even better — full armor? You can wield a blade and protection, or, my favorite, don a marksman outfit; when you press the action key, you shoot flaming projectiles upward. Should you be curious, eliminating citizens cannot be done (not that I’ve tried, of course).
Amusement and Inhabitant Dialogues
However, I had no desire to injure my people, because they’re way too funny. Shortly after I activated first-person mode, I heard a parent advising their offspring that “Owning a fox is prohibited and if you feed it one more chicken, your elder will punish you.” Appropriate response, paternal figure. A pleasant regional Celt then began complimenting 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 Fun of Vehicle Use
Just as I assumed I’d discovered all there is to discover in the title's first-person feature, I experienced the pleasure of driving across historical settings. Entirely by accident, I clicked on a wagon and quickly occupied the transport. Cattle, asses, even manually drawn vehicles; you can drive them all at your leisure. The ass-drawn vehicle, specifically, is pretty fast, although you shouldn't expect any GTA-like shenanigans — you can’t drive into people or other wagons (reiterating, without confirming testing).
Combat Limitations
The only thing that disappointed me within the immersive perspective was learning about my exclusion from in any fighting. Equipped in warrior attire, I ran up to the enemy during active combat and tried to harm them, yet was completely overlooked. The front-row seat was nonetheless magnificent, and observing foes flee, their appendages thrashing around, seemed enormously rewarding, yet it would have been exciting to effectively strike targets with my burning arrows.
