Anno 117: Pax Romana's Top Secret Reveals Itself as a Impressive First-Person Mode.
Surprisingly — did you realize you can play Anno 117: Pax Romana in first-person? If you're thinking that, your surprise matches as my own reaction upon finding out this hidden feature. Allow me to briefly leave overseeing my civilization, leave it in a capable deputy, borrow a cart, and enjoy a ride through Ancient Rome.
How to Access the First-Person Mode
Being a city-building title, Anno 117 Pax Romana is typically played from an overhead perspective. But, should you input a hidden code — for example “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on keyboard or “Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B/Circle, A/X” on console — it becomes possible to roam the empire as an ordinary Roman. Given a comparable hidden feature was included in the previous Anno title, I was eager to test it in the new release, though I was uncertain it would function before I discovered myself stuck in a Celtic building (possibly an unexpected bug — this option can be a little buggy at times).
Roaming the Ancient Streets
Upon freeing myself, I walked the lively avenues across my settlement and toured markets, breweries, floral patches, and cockle pickers — it felt magnificent to observe all my hard work from a brand-new perspective. I noticed numerous fine points that would escape notice from the top-down view: Front door decorations, an ass transporting a floral pail, chickens running loose, folks chilling on their balconies… Merely examining the form of a ledge and the paint layers on a column is quite interesting for those not residing in classical times.
More Than Just Walking
But there’s more to the game's immersive perspective aside from meandering through streets. I was especially delighted upon discovering that besides being able to look upon agricultural plots, but also enter them. And despite my expectation the building models would be off-limits, I could walk onto mud extraction sites, explore a prestigious Grammaticus building as teaching was underway, and even trespass into people’s gardens. Don’t try to open any doors (not even the developers have the budget for that), however, you can definitely meander across a cereal plantation, watch folks shoveling and carrying sacks, and glance into any tiny hut when there's no doorway obstructing.
Appearance and Mood
Even though I expected to see my metropolis represented in PlayStation 1 graphics, apart from certain rough movements and the occasional civilian resting within a bench rather than on a bench, the immersive perspective seems much better than expected. The meticulously crafted materials (especially stone surfaces) shouldn't logically be this impressive in what is still, essentially, a top-down game. You won't necessarily notice separate follicular elements, but you will see wall inscriptions, flames emitting from lights, discoloration of masonry, pupils, and evergreen foliage. The night, featuring dancing flames and distant stellar illumination, is especially atmospheric, and also a lot less scary compared to Anno 1800, given that the populace appears unlike sleep paralysis demons these days.
Experimentation and Customization
Because the game's hidden immersive perspective lacks official documentation, I decided to experiment a bit, and quickly discovered the abilities to leap, run, and changing perspective — the zoom function permitting me to switch between first and third-person views and back. I then decided to hit some number buttons and found I could alter my character’s appearance. Amber garment? Red toga? Azure and violet outfit? Or — maybe superior — complete battle gear? You might hold a weapon and defense, or, personally chosen, equip a shooter's costume; if you activate the engage command, you launch incendiary bolts heavenward. In case you’re wondering, eliminating citizens cannot be done (though I didn't test this, obviously).
Comedy and Population Encounters
However, I had no desire to injure my people, since they're incredibly amusing. Shortly after I activated the first-person view, I overheard a father telling his child that “Owning a fox is prohibited and if you feed it one more chicken, your elder will punish you.” Understandable stance, father character. A pleasant regional Celt then started applauding my outstanding integration methods by describing it as “Ideal combination,” meanwhile a grumpy senior female chose to intimidate me: “Utter those words again, and your fate will be sealed.”
The Thrill of Transportation
Just when I thought I uncovered all possible content in the title's first-person feature, I experienced the pleasure of driving through classical settlements. Entirely by accident, I interacted with a cart and immediately found myself in the driver's position. Oxen, donkeys, even manually drawn vehicles; you can control each one as desired. The donkey-powered transport, notably, travels rather rapidly, although you shouldn't expect Grand Theft Auto-style mischief — impacting citizens or additional vehicles cannot occur (reiterating, without confirming testing).
Combat Limitations
The sole aspect that let me down regarding the first-person view was learning about my exclusion from in any fighting. Wearing my military outfit, I approached opposing forces during active combat and attempted to attack them, yet was completely overlooked. The proximate observation was nonetheless magnificent, and seeing opponents retreat, their arms flailing about, seemed enormously rewarding, though it might have been amazing to actually hit something using my fiery projectiles.
