Ancient Worlds: Pharaoh + Caesar III (bundle) - PC Games

Caesar III's historical civilisation-building simulation gives you the opportunity to progressively develop a settlement in a different atmosphere from the plethora of modern sim games. Caesar III is strikingly similar to Pharaoh, with the gameplay and controls being basically the same.

With a useful tutorial, it doesn't take long to master the controls of Caesar III. As your settlement grows and you complete the tasks set by Rome, more options become available to you, such as building a colosseum and other Roman treasures. The little historical quirks are what make this game so addictive--you never really know what is going to happen next.

Fiscal management and town planning are crucial to success in the strategy sim; you must plan your water supplies and protect your houses from fire risks and structural failure. Once seated in your senate, and consulting your advisors, you control all aspects of life in your growing population, whilst winning the favour of Rome.

Caesar III only requires minimal processing power, which offers a distinct advantage to those of us running older machines. The downside of this is that it cannot compete with more modern sim games, but the game is still highly playable and strangely addictive. Caesar III is an interesting twist on the sim market--the simple controls and the theme will be especially suitable to younger gamers.

Pharaoh, on the other hand, offers us the chance to build an Ancient Egyptian civilisation and use your diplomatic prowess to develop a expanding metropolis. Pharaoh is basically the Egyptian version of Caesar III, but Pharaoh does seem to have the advantage over its Roman contemporary, offering slightly improved gameplay and graphics.

The tutorial proves an ideal way to familiarize yourself with the controls before beginning your domination in earnest. The aim is to develop a civilisation in the Egyptian deserts by fulfilling all the tasks required to run a successful community. You are responsible for all aspects to your civilisation's developments, from their housing to their entertainment and general well-being.

The game allows you to build everything you would expect from an Egypt sim--pyramids and the sphinx being a few of the possible options. The real novelty in this sim is being able to see individual characters going about their daily chores and watching the hustle and bustle grow with the development of your city.

The extensive gaming manual serves partially as a history of Ancient Egypt and a useful chart guides you around the different building possibilities and introduces you to the characters who will inhabit the paradise you build for them. Pharaoh is an amusing and entertaining sim, providing an attractive manipulation of the usual building sim game. The historical aspect provides originality and will certainly be of interest to younger gamers. --Chris Hall