Anno 117 Pax Romana's Hidden Gem Is a Breathtaking First-Person View.
Surprisingly — did you realize it's possible to experience the game Anno 117 from a first-person viewpoint? Should that be your response, your surprise matches as I was upon finding out this secret option. Excuse me while step away from managing my empire, entrust it to a capable deputy, borrow a cart, and enjoy a ride through Ancient Rome.
Unlocking the First-Person Feature
As a city-building game, Anno 117: Pax Romana is typically played from an overhead perspective. However, if you press a covert button sequence — such as “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on keyboard or else “Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B/Circle, A/X” with a gamepad — you gain the ability to walk the empire as an ordinary Roman. Given a comparable hidden feature appeared in the previous Anno title, I looked forward to test it in the new release, but I wasn’t sure it would operate before I discovered myself chin-deep in a Celtic floorboard (likely not meant to happen — this mode can be somewhat unstable occasionally).
Exploring the Streets of Rome
Once I crawled out, I wandered the bustling streets through my metropolis and explored shops, taverns, flower fields, and shellfish gatherers — it felt magnificent to see my diligent efforts using an entirely new viewpoint. I detected all kinds of details I wouldn’t have spotted from above: Doorway embellishments, a donkey carrying a flower bucket, poultry scattering about, people relaxing on their verandas… Merely examining the shape of a window sill and the coloration on a post proves fascinating to someone who doesn’t live in Ancient Rome.
Beyond Simple Strolling
But there’s more to Anno 117’s first-person mode beyond simply walking the paths. I was especially delighted when I found out that besides being able to observe agricultural plots, but also access them. And even though I thought the building models would be off-limits, I could walk onto clay pits, investigate a respected schoolhouse during active classes, and even trespass into people’s gardens. Don’t try to open any doors (not even the developers planned for that functionality), however, you can definitely meander across a cereal plantation, observe people digging and transporting bags, and look within any modest shelter provided the entrance is missing.
Appearance and Mood
Even though I expected to see my metropolis represented using primitive rendering, apart from certain rough movements and the occasional civilian resting within a bench as opposed to atop a bench, first-person mode looks far superior to anticipations. The highly detailed textures (notably masonry elements) shouldn't logically be this impressive in what is still, essentially, a top-down game. You might not observe any individual strands of hair, but you will see writings on surfaces, sparks flying from torches, discoloration of masonry, pupils, and conifer needles. Evening, with glowing light sources and celestial bodies twinkling afar, generates a uniquely immersive environment, and feels much less frightening compared to Anno 1800, given that the populace appears unlike nightmarish entities now.
Discovery and Modification
Because the game's hidden immersive perspective doesn’t come with an instruction manual, I opted to try different commands, and promptly found the options to jump, sprint, and adjusting the view — the last option enabling me to change from first-person to third-person mode and back. I then experimented with certain numeric keys and discovered that I could change my representative's visual design. Amber garment? Red toga? Blue and purple toga? 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 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
However, I had no desire to injure my people, because they’re way too funny. Only seconds after I landed first-person mode, I heard a parent advising their offspring that he “Can’t have a pet fox and should you provide another poultry, your grandmother will be furious.” Understandable stance, father character. A pleasant regional Celt then started applauding my brilliant Romano-Celtic policies by describing it as “Ideal combination,” while some cranky old lady chose to intimidate me: “Repeat that statement, and your disappearance will be permanent.”
The Joy of Joyriding
Just when I thought I’d discovered all there is to discover within the game's immersive perspective, I experienced the pleasure of driving through classical settlements. Completely unexpectedly, I interacted with a cart and was promptly seated on the box. Bovines, equines, even human-pulled carts; you may operate any of them freely. The ass-drawn vehicle, specifically, travels rather rapidly, although you shouldn't expect open-world vehicular chaos — you can’t drive into people or other wagons (again, not saying I’ve tried).
Combat Limitations
The sole aspect that let me down in Anno 117’s first-person mode was learning about my exclusion from in any fighting. Equipped in warrior attire, I charged toward adversaries amidst fighting and tried to harm them, yet was completely overlooked. The front-row seat remained quite impressive, and seeing opponents retreat, their arms flailing about, proved very satisfying, though it might have been amazing to successfully impact objects using my fiery projectiles.
