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Surprisingly — did you realize it's possible to experience Anno 117: Pax Romana using a first-person camera? If you're thinking that, you’re just as shocked compared to my initial response upon finding out this concealed mode. I must temporarily abandon overseeing my civilization, entrust it to a trusted assistant, commandere a carriage, and go for a joyride around the classical city.

Unlocking the First-Person Feature

In its role as a city-builder, Anno 117: Pax Romana usually operates using a top-down camera. But, should you enter a secret combination — such as “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on keyboard alternatively “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 appeared in the earlier game Anno 1800, I was eager to try it out in the new release, but I wasn’t sure it would function prior to being submerged in a structural glitch (possibly an unexpected bug — this mode tends to be somewhat unstable occasionally).

Exploring the Streets of Rome

Once I crawled out, I wandered the busy roads of my city and explored stalls, alehouses, flower fields, and cockle pickers — the experience was splendid to witness the fruits of my labor from a brand-new perspective. I detected all kinds of details I wouldn’t have spotted from above: Front door decorations, a donkey carrying a flower bucket, fowl roaming freely, folks chilling on their balconies… Simply noticing the shape of a window sill and the coloration on a post becomes engaging to modern individuals unfamiliar with ancient life.

Further Than Mere Wandering

However, there's additional content to the game's immersive perspective aside from meandering through streets. I was especially delighted when I found out that not only could I observe farming fields, but also step into them. And despite my expectation the building models would be off-limits, I was able to enter earthen quarries, tour an esteemed educational structure during active classes, and even trespass into people’s gardens. Avoid attempting to open doors (not even the creators have the budget for that), however, you can definitely stroll around a barley farm, watch folks shoveling and carrying sacks, and glance into any tiny hut provided the entrance is missing.

Graphics and Ambiance

While I was completely ready to see my metropolis represented with outdated visual quality, excluding a few unpolished motions and sometimes citizens positioned in a bench instead of on a bench, the first-person view appears much better than expected. The highly detailed textures (especially stone surfaces) are unexpectedly excellent for a title that remains primarily overhead. You might not observe any individual strands of hair, yet you will notice writings on surfaces, sparks flying from torches, discoloration of masonry, eye details, 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, now that the citizens don’t look like terrifying apparitions now.

Discovery and Modification

Since Anno 117’s super-secret first-person mode has no guided tutorial, I opted to try different commands, and immediately located the abilities to leap, run, and adjusting the view — the zoom function permitting me to switch between first and third-person views and return. I subsequently tried pressing some number buttons and learned I could modify my avatar's look. Yellow toga? Red toga? Blue and purple toga? Or — perhaps even better — full armor? You may carry a sword and shield, or, preferably, wear an archer's uniform; when you press the action key, you shoot flaming projectiles upward. Should you be curious, harming inhabitants is impossible (though I didn't test this, obviously).

Humor and Citizen Interactions

However, I had no desire to injure my people, as they're remarkably entertaining. Shortly after I activated the immersive perspective, I heard a parent advising their offspring that he “Can’t have a pet fox and if you offer additional fowl, your gran will have your head.” Appropriate response, paternal figure. A friendly native Celtic person then started applauding my excellent cross-cultural strategies by calling it the “Best of both worlds,” while some cranky old lady decided to threaten 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 found the joys of joyriding through classical settlements. Entirely by accident, I clicked on a wagon and immediately found myself in the driver's position. Bovines, equines, even people-powered transports; you can control each one as desired. The donkey cart, in particular, moves quite quickly, but don't anticipate Grand Theft Auto-style mischief — colliding with pedestrians or other carts is impossible (reiterating, without confirming testing).

Fighting Restrictions

The single feature that frustrated me in Anno 117’s first-person mode was discovering my inability to participate in any fighting. Equipped in warrior attire, I approached opposing forces in the midst of battle and endeavored to damage them, yet was completely overlooked. The proximate observation was nonetheless magnificent, and watching the enemy run, their appendages thrashing around, proved very satisfying, though it might have been amazing to actually hit something using my fiery projectiles.

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