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Product summary
While it may seem overly familiar to fans of Caesar III, it offers enough variety and innovation to keep things interesting.
Specifications: ESRB: Everyone; Genre: Strategy; Elements: General Strategy; See full specs
Price range: $6.42
Gamespot editors' review
- Reviewed on: 11/15/1999
- Updated on:05/02/2000
- Released on: 10/31/1999
Pharaoh takes Impressions' popular Caesar III, relocates it to ancient Egypt, and adds a few welcome features. Like Caesar III, Pharaoh's gameplay falls somewhere between the intensive city-management of Maxis' SimCity series and the combination of city management and combat found in Blue Byte's Settlers games. However, Pharaoh is neither a sequel nor an expansion to Caesar III; although many of the game mechanics are identical to its predecessor, the strategy is noticeably different in order to suit Pharaoh to its setting. Pharaoh is an all-around better game than Caesar III, and while it may seem overly familiar to fans of that game, it offers enough variety and innovation to keep things interesting.
The game begins simply, requiring you to create jobs and homes to attract settlers. Once your population begins growing, you must make sure it has food and water, access to religious facilities, entertainment, and other luxuries to attract a larger and more affluent populace. You must also ensure that your people are protected by a suitably strong militia.
Accomplishing these goals is a complex process. Most goods require natural resources in order to be produced, and many of these resources must be imported. Many of the goods must be imported as well, and you must manage the distribution of these items to make sure everyone is getting enough of what they need to survive and what they want to live happily. Imports can be pricey, so you must also produce items for export.
Unlike in SimCity, management of your city in Pharaoh is a very hands-on experience. With the sole exception of housing, which will upgrade itself based on nearby services, you decide exactly what type of building will be placed where. Storehouses and industrial buildings must be close enough to residences that goods will be easily accessible, but not so close that they lower property value. The same principle applies to markets, which distribute food and luxury items to your people. Those who found themselves frustrated by the inability to manage market workers' distribution routes in Caesar III will be glad to know that a roadblock option has been included in Pharaoh, giving you some control over where patrolling workers will walk. It's not a perfect solution - strict management over their routes would still be welcome - but it certainly helps.
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