Anno 117 Pax Romana's Top Secret Is a Breathtaking First-Person Mode.
Surprisingly — did you realize gamers have the option to enjoy Anno 117: Pax Romana from a first-person viewpoint? If you're thinking that, you’re just as shocked compared to my initial response when I discovered this hidden feature. Allow me to temporarily abandon managing my empire, leave it in a capable deputy, borrow a cart, and go for a joyride across the Roman world.
Activating the First-Person Feature
In its role as a city-builder, Anno 117: Pax Romana usually operates using a top-down camera. However, if you enter a secret combination — for example “Ctrl,” “Shift,” and “R” on keyboard alternatively “Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B/Circle, A/X” on console — you can explore the empire as an ordinary Roman. Because an analogous secret was part of Anno 1800, I looked forward to test it in the new release, yet I had doubts it would work prior to being stuck in a Celtic building (possibly an unexpected bug — this option tends to be a little buggy at times).
Discovering the Streets of Rome
Upon freeing myself, I walked the busy roads across my settlement and explored shops, taverns, floral patches, and cockle pickers — it felt magnificent to witness the fruits of my labor through a fresh lens. I noticed all kinds of details I wouldn’t have spotted from the top-down view: Entryway ornaments, a donkey carrying a flower bucket, chickens running loose, people relaxing on their verandas… Merely examining the shape of a window sill and the coating on a pillar becomes engaging for those not residing in classical times.
Beyond Simple Strolling
Yet, the experience extends to the first-person feature in Anno 117 beyond simply walking the paths. I became extraordinarily excited when I found out that besides being able to view agricultural plots, but also enter them. And even though I thought the building models would be off-limits, I could walk onto earthen quarries, investigate a respected schoolhouse during active classes, and intrude into private gardens. Avoid attempting to open doors (not even the studio have the budget for that), but it’s entirely possible stroll around a barley farm, see citizens working with tools and burdens, and take a peek inside any small shack as long as the door is absent.
Graphics and Ambiance
Even though I expected to observe my settlement depicted using primitive rendering, besides some crude animations and the occasional civilian resting within a bench rather than on a bench, the immersive perspective seems considerably improved over predictions. The intricately designed surfaces (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, however, you can observe engravings on walls, sparks flying from torches, fading on bricks, iris elements, and conifer needles. The night, featuring dancing flames and distant stellar illumination, creates a particularly moody setting, and also a lot less scary compared to Anno 1800, now that the citizens don’t look like sleep paralysis demons these days.
Discovery and Modification
Because the game's hidden immersive perspective lacks official documentation, I opted to try different commands, and promptly found the functions for jumping, dashing, and zoom in or out — the last option enabling me to change from first-person to third-person mode and back. I then decided to hit certain numeric keys and learned I could modify my character’s appearance. Amber garment? Crimson attire? Sapphire and amethyst dress? Or — maybe superior — complete battle gear? You can wield a blade and protection, or, my favorite, don a marksman outfit; when you press the action key, you’ll fire burning arrows into the sky. Should you be curious, harming inhabitants is impossible (not that I attempted, naturally).
Amusement and Inhabitant Dialogues
But I wouldn’t wish to harm my citizens anyway, as they're remarkably entertaining. Moments after I entered first-person mode, I overheard a father telling his child that he “Can’t have a pet fox and if you offer additional fowl, your elder will punish you.” Understandable stance, father character. A pleasant regional Celt then proceeded to praise my outstanding integration methods by labeling it “Perfect fusion,” while some cranky old lady opted to menace me: “Say that one more time, and they’ll never find your body.”
The Thrill of Transportation
Just when I thought I had found everything available in the title's first-person feature, I experienced the pleasure of driving in Ancient Rome. Completely unexpectedly, I clicked on a wagon and was promptly seated on the box. Oxen, donkeys, even human-pulled carts; you can drive them all at your leisure. The donkey cart, in particular, travels rather rapidly, but don't anticipate open-world vehicular chaos — you can’t drive into people or other wagons (reiterating, without confirming testing).
Combat Limitations
The sole aspect that let me down in Anno 117’s first-person mode was finding out I couldn’t partake in combat situations. Equipped in warrior attire, I approached opposing forces amidst fighting and endeavored to damage them, only to be ignored completely. The front-row seat was nonetheless magnificent, and observing foes flee, their appendages thrashing around, proved very satisfying, yet it would have been exciting to successfully impact objects with my burning arrows.
