Romopolis - Caesar Believes in You!

Romopolis is a game that combines truly addictive and challenging game play with amazing graphics and immersive atmosphere of ancient Rome. This week has brought us several games that creatively remake the idea of Build-a-lot strategy game play and put it to historic setting. Romopolis is a great example how it can be done to make a perfect game.

The Empire needs your services, citizen! Are you ready to work for your Caesar?

You will take up the part of a new Imperial Architect in ancient Rome and Caesar, the powerful Emperor, will observe your work, give you tasks and direct the development of his Empire with the help of your skills and talent. That's basically all about the story. Let's speak about the game play.

So, be ready to use your strategical thinking and plan everything ahead, as in Romopolis you'll desperately need it to succeed. Each level represents a new city where you have to complete the mission given to you by the Caesar. You'll have goals obligatory to fulfill before your deadline approaches and usually an optional goal fulfilling which will bring you a trophy. The goals are mostly like building a certain number of houses or some service buildings, having some resources in stock or a certain denaries balance (money, that is), or income. You might also be required to reach a definite level of commerce, religion, healthcare or culture in your city or have a minimum number of residents. All these are achieved by building different kinds of constructions and arranging them so that you could use the given area most efficiently. As for me, the most tricky goals are those connected with happiness. It's rather hard to calculate, how many houses and gardens you'll need and the plan how to place your houses and services in order to achive the minimum necessary level. And the larger the house, the more demanding are its residents!

Tip: try to place the gardens so that they were surrounded with houses. And putting a house near several gardens also works well.

In order to build something you'll need a number of resources. Some of them can be bought with money, like wood, stone and workers. Blueprints and concessions, required to unlock new constructions and upgrades, can also be purchased. But, for example, building lots are limited in quantity, tough you may get some more by cutting the forest or mining stones. These activities will also give you some materials.

There is much more about Romopolis, and I must say the game is genuinely challenging, and you do have to think hard and quick at the same time, but the fun is worth the effort. And if you don't want to fulfill missions someone designed for you, you are welcome to select the Sandbox mode and construct your own city as you wish.

Welcome to your new service, citizen!