Civ City: Rome (PC DVD)

In a nutshell:
Take control of the whole of ancient Rome as you build and defend your own towns and cities and finally take on responsibility for the capital itself. Just beware of the marauding lions and barbarian hordes.

The lowdown:
Despite what the name implies this has relatively little to do with Civilization, beyond a similar interface and a number of wonders of the world to build. That’s not necessarily a criticism though as your start practising your city planning skills, creating homes and work for your citizens and guard towers to make sure they’re protected. Interestingly the primary focus of the game is on increasing the quality of your housing and therefore the social status of your citizens – which in turn brings in more taxes. There are some annoying bugs, and the concept is hardly a new one, but if you prefer your video games a little slower paced then this offers plenty of entertainment.

Most exciting moment:
There are a number of missions where you have to build your city against the clock, either to combat natural disasters such as brush fires or to make sure you’re ready when an enemy army comes knocking at the town gates.

Since you ask:
The developers of CivCity: Rome are British studio Firefly who were responsible for the Stronghold series of castle building simulators. The CivCity name is expected to become a whole new series of games.

The bottom line:
Unoriginal but fun historical city builder.
HARRISON DENT

Look inside the buildings
For the first time in a city builder you can look inside the Villas, the forums, and even the Roman baths! Discover, in much greater detail, how Romans went about their daily lives.

Civilize your city
More than 70 technologies can be developed over time to give your city a strategic advantage. Use the rich research tree to improve many aspects of your city and its relation to the wider empire.

Follow the life of a Roman family
Do they thrive and prosper from humble hut to noble palace as they move through the generations... or not? Well, that's your call.

Ease of play
Driven purely by building placement and strong visual feedback, the game lets you create your own living community simply by choosing and placing the wide variety of buildings.

Real Romans
An intriguing array of characters will interact with you and bring high drama to your city with their emotions, state of health, and candid feelings about the city. There will even be famous Romans in the city who will comment on and present new challenges for you.

Build mighty wonders
Influence the direction of your city by building spectacular monuments. Production of these trophy buildings will give your city big advantages and look great too.

This is not your Father's Rome
This is your Rome, so customize your city the way you see fit! With hundreds of buildings to place, this game offers more options than any other city building game.

Learn a little history and have loads of fun doing it
A wealth of humorous, scary and downright disgusting facts await the curious mind in the instructive and factual 'CityPedia', that can be easily accessed within the gameplay experience. It's a virtual encyclopedia of facts about life in Roman times at your finger tips.

Never a Dull Moment
Gladiatorial combat, debates in the senate, chariot races, temple ceremonies...just a few of the many riveting scenes that will engage and entertain players throughout the game.