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00:00As the sun rises on the cobbled market street that ascends from bustling docks on the vibrant
00:06Mediterranean waters to the new forum high on the hill above, Anno 117 Pax Romana fills
00:14me with delight and civic pride.
00:16It took a long time, but I feel like I finally clicked with this series that I've had a
00:21little bit of a rocky relationship with, having come in a bit late and at an awkward time
00:27with 2205.
00:29Its complex economics can still seem to wobble spectacularly off their axis and leave you
00:34in a dire failure spiral sometimes, but resplendent mechanics for trade, naval warfare, and the
00:40blending of cultures offer chances to right the ship.
00:52The basic routine in Anno 117 is familiar and effective if you've played other games in
00:57the series.
00:58They start out building modest residences to house hard-working Liberti, or freed people,
01:05somewhat conspicuously sidestepping the institution of Roman slavery.
01:09They'll soon be trickling into this backwater, Harry.
01:12When their needs are met, they can promote up the social ladder all the way to snobby patricians
01:17who demand all kinds of exotic delicacies from around the world.
01:21Part of what influences these promotions is simply access to goods, which is a city-wide
01:26thing.
01:27But another component is living near high-prestige buildings like theaters and shrines, and far
01:32away from unpleasant or polluting ones like a charcoal burner.
01:36I love the way this naturally creates clusters of higher-class housing on important market
01:42streets, tapering off into working-class neighborhoods in more industrial areas.
01:47It adds to the feel of a real living city, and since paved roads extend the range of those beneficial
01:53buildings, that's an upgrade that lets you immediately see its positive effects.
01:57It's genuinely delightful to zoom in and watch my little toga-clad citizens going about their
02:04business.
02:05Every building, from a stately villa to an idyllic lavender farm, is studded with detail
02:10and character.
02:11You want some stew of meat?
02:14It's fresh!
02:16Even the untouched green fields and peaceful blue waters full of marine life create a strong
02:21sense of place.
02:22The character models for leaders and advisors may be the one thing that didn't wow
02:27me.
02:28They're full of personality, but especially in some of the campaign cutscenes, there were
02:33some significant lip-sync issues that made it look like a much older game or just a badly
02:38dubbed movie.
02:39I understand you are distressed, but...
02:42Juliana awaits.
02:45It's two different worlds, sort of... bound by fate, but divided in belief?
02:52The summery paradise of Latium isn't the only locale to explore and exploit.
02:58Eventually, you unlock the ability to sail to foggy, rocky Albion, that is, Britain, with
03:03its own resources, aesthetic, and population.
03:05I was a bit worried Anno would lean too hard into othering stereotypes about mystical Celts
03:13here based on some of the marketing, but it's actually a pretty grounded and sensible depiction
03:19for this style of game.
03:20The really interesting choice you have mechanically in this region is whether to stay true to Celtic
03:26traditions or fully Romanize your new subjects.
03:30Both have their advantages and disadvantages, and you can eventually mix and match for some
03:35powerful synergies.
03:36Anno 117 really comes alive with its detailed trade system though.
03:41To truly meet the needs of the demanding nobles in the two regions, you'll have to set up
03:45production chains for luxury goods that might pull resources from two or three different
03:51islands, then ship them across the world from one map to another.
03:55Each delivery requires individual ships assigned to the trade routes, so I can see exactly where
04:01my next delivery of cheese is and even reroute it somewhere else.
04:07This is all fairly easy to set up and tweak thanks to the well-organized interface, and
04:11naturally creates incentives to build smaller villages that do one specific thing, as well
04:17as warehouses and waystations to speed things up.
04:20My cheese island is all the way over here, so I noticed my trade ships spent half their
04:25time sailing across Albion.
04:28But if I set up a colony here that's basically just a cheese warehouse and some subsistence
04:33fisheries, I can constantly be moving cheese there with intra-region trade ships to be picked
04:39up at the edge of the map all at once.
04:41I adore this kind of logistics stuff.
04:43Anno 117 is a pretty good RTS too.
04:51I'm especially a fan of its naval combat, which I had to master quickly to protect my
04:55trade routes from increasingly vicious pirates.
04:59Maneuvering ships feels weighty and realistic, with differences in maneuverability based on
05:04whether they rely on sails, oars, or both.
05:07And I eventually got pretty good at maneuvers like trapping a sneaky little pirate ship in
05:12a cove where there would be no escape.
05:18Ground combat is just fine.
05:20It does its job, with a small selection of melee, ranged, and siege units that can fulfill
05:25a handful of different roles.
05:27It's possible to succeed without ever getting into a land battle if you have a good navy,
05:32but in the few cases where I did, I found some interesting tactics to dig into.
05:36It feels like a real RTS at least, as opposed to a half-baked minigame, which I really appreciate.
05:45Diplomacy is pretty basic stuff, with a single interesting wrinkle in that the Emperor works
05:50a bit differently.
05:52You can't really make treaties with him, but he will make demands of you.
05:56And succeeding, failing, or refusing affects your reputation with Rome itself.
06:02When he likes you, you get bonuses.
06:04When he doesn't, you get penalties.
06:06But both ends of the scale culminate in some very powerful rewards.
06:11Either you play nice and get appointed consul, or you defy his authority so effectively that
06:17you grant yourself pro-consular authority, Caesar style.
06:21There is a decent story campaign, but it's really more of an extended tutorial.
06:31It took me less than 10 hours to finish, and only really scratches the surface of the mechanics
06:36you can play with in Endless Mode.
06:38You can play as Marcus or Markia, with the latter being sort of a madcap, weekend at Burnicus
06:45scenario where you're taking on the governor duties of your totally not dead husband.
06:50My name is Marcia Titania, and I am an imposter.
06:56It's hardly Shakespeare, but there's some interesting intrigue going on and a cast of
07:01memorable characters.
07:03The Canaanite Ben Balian was a particularly endearing companion who presented me with an
07:08emotionally satisfying choice at the end.
07:11Your marriage is perfectly legal, and you are not without means.
07:15While you can continue from the ending of the campaign as long as you want, most of my
07:20playtime was in the separate Endless Mode, which lets you start in either Albion or Latium,
07:26and offers a wide range of difficulty options.
07:29You can even pick from a set of rival governors with different personalities and playstyles.
07:34I don't think they necessarily play by the same rules that you do as a player, however.
07:39Looking at some late-game cities they built, I honestly don't know what's going on here.
07:44But they can be compelling adversaries or valuable trade partners nonetheless.
07:48There are still some classic Anno issues kicking around, like the fact that very large economies
07:55can become unwieldy and are prone to death spirals.
07:59If food is disrupted, population drops, which causes food buildings to become underemployed,
08:05leading to even less food and even more population drop.
08:09At one point I had to basically restart because I accidentally changed a large city's patron
08:14god, which made it instantly insolvent and almost irrecoverable due to lost agricultural
08:21bonuses.
08:22But trade is kind of the hero here once again, since setting up buy orders for whatever you're
08:28out of can bail you out of a lot of tricky spots as long as you have cash.
08:33It's a little fiddly setting up a lot of different trades at a lot of different harbors the first
08:38time, but the interface is easy to work with and once things were set, I didn't find I
08:43had to mess with them very often.
08:45Anno 117 Pax Romana is a gorgeous antique city builder that sucked me in for dozens of hours
08:56as I planned out my next district or simply watched the bustle along my aqueduct-accented
09:02boulevards.
09:03I think this series and I were always destined to hit it off, but we kept missing each other
09:08or meeting up at the wrong times.
09:10I really get Anno now and I could hardly be more enthused.
09:14The fantastic deep trade system with a side of exciting naval combat really seals the deal.
09:21I could take or leave the campaign, but I still don't think I've run out of things
09:25to do in the highly customizable endless mode.
09:29It may not be quite fit for a triumph, but it is certainly worthy of a standing ovation.
09:35For more historical strategy, check out my review of Europa Universalis V, or for a very different
09:41kind of building game, our review of Jurassic World Evolution 3.
09:45And for everything else, stick with IGN.
09:51I guess you should come back later.
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