Anno 117: Pax Romana's Top Secret Reveals Itself as a Breathtaking First-Person Perspective.
Surprisingly — did you realize it's possible to experience the game Anno 117 from a first-person viewpoint? If you're thinking that, you feel equally astonished as my own reaction the moment I learned this hidden feature. Allow me to step away from overseeing my civilization, entrust it to a reliable subordinate, commandere a carriage, and enjoy a ride across the Roman world.
Unlocking the First-Person View
Being a city-building title, Anno 117 Pax Romana is normally experienced from an overhead perspective. But, should you enter a secret combination — including “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” using PC controls or “Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B/Circle, A/X” on console — you gain the ability to walk your domain as a common citizen. Given a comparable hidden feature was included in the previous Anno title, I was eager to try it out in Ubisoft's newest game, though I was uncertain it would work until I found myself stuck in a Celtic building (which probably wasn’t intended — this option is prone to glitches now and then).
Roaming the Roman Cityscape
Upon freeing myself, I wandered the busy roads of my city and toured shops, taverns, blossom gardens, and seafood collectors — the experience was splendid to see the fruits of my labor using an entirely new viewpoint. I noticed numerous fine points I wouldn’t have spotted from above: Doorway embellishments, an ass transporting a floral pail, fowl roaming freely, people relaxing on their verandas… Simply noticing the form of a ledge and the paint layers on a column proves fascinating to someone who doesn’t live in Ancient Rome.
Beyond Simple Strolling
However, there's additional content to the first-person feature in Anno 117 aside from meandering through streets. I felt particularly pleased the moment I learned that not only could I view agricultural plots, but also access them. And although I’d assumed the building models would be off-limits, I was able to enter clay pits, investigate a respected schoolhouse while lessons were in session, and intrude into private gardens. Avoid attempting to open doors (not even the creators planned for that functionality), however, you can definitely meander across a cereal plantation, see citizens working with tools and burdens, and glance into any tiny hut as long as the door is absent.
Visual Quality and Atmosphere
While I was completely ready to observe my settlement depicted with outdated visual quality, excluding a few unpolished motions and sometimes citizens positioned inside seating rather than on a bench, first-person mode looks far superior to anticipations. The meticulously crafted materials (particularly rock faces) shouldn't logically be this impressive for a title that remains primarily overhead. You may not see any individual strands of hair, however, you can observe writings on surfaces, flames emitting from lights, discoloration of masonry, pupils, and conifer needles. The night, featuring dancing flames and distant stellar illumination, creates a particularly moody setting, and proves significantly less intimidating versus the earlier title, now that the citizens don’t look like nightmarish entities anymore.
Experimentation and Customization
Because the game's hidden immersive perspective has no guided tutorial, I decided to experiment a bit, and promptly found the abilities to leap, run, and changing perspective — the last option enabling me to change from first-person to third-person mode and back. I then experimented with some number buttons and found I could alter my avatar's look. Golden robe? Ruby clothing? Azure and violet outfit? Or — potentially preferable — armored suit? You may carry a sword and shield, or, personally chosen, equip a shooter's costume; if you hit the interaction button, you launch incendiary bolts heavenward. In case you’re wondering, harming inhabitants is impossible (though I didn't test this, obviously).
Humor and Citizen Interactions
But I wouldn’t wish to harm my citizens anyway, since they're incredibly amusing. Shortly after I activated first-person mode, I heard a parent advising their offspring that “You cannot keep a fox as a pet and if you feed it one more chicken, your gran will have your head.” Understandable stance, father character. One lovely local Celt then started applauding my excellent cross-cultural strategies by calling it the “Best of both worlds,” while some cranky old lady opted to menace me: “Utter those words again, and your fate will be sealed.”
The Thrill of Transportation
At the moment I believed I’d discovered all there is to discover in Anno 117: Pax Romana’s first-person mode, I experienced the pleasure of driving through classical settlements. Completely unexpectedly, I interacted with a cart and was promptly seated on the box. Cattle, asses, even manually drawn vehicles; you may operate any of them freely. The donkey cart, in particular, travels rather rapidly, but don't anticipate Grand Theft Auto-style mischief — you can’t drive into people or other wagons (again, not saying I’ve tried).
Combat Limitations
The single feature that frustrated me in Anno 117’s first-person mode was discovering my inability to participate in battle encounters. Sporting my soldier fit, I ran up to the enemy in the midst of battle and attempted to attack them, only to be ignored completely. The front-row seat remained quite impressive, and watching the enemy run, their appendages thrashing around, seemed enormously rewarding, but it would’ve been cool to actually hit something via my incendiary bolts.
