Fires!
1.2 arrives on the 15th.
Ok so I got this game and after 5 hours or so… I don’t like it:
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houses have random shortages for no obvious reasons, despite being on a route where other houses don’t have shortages
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many maps(particularly campaign) are cramped which forces me to prioritize logistics (no room left for warehouses? Tough, no new neighbourhood for you)
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warehouse space is ridiculously low. I’m pretty sure you need about one warehouse for every 4 or 5 houses. Normal ports have access to 2 warehouses, meaning you can only trade with 1 maybe 2 cities, there’s not enough room for the stuff you may want to sell
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production buldings+storage/markets occupy more space on the map than anything else. You end up with the ugliest cities I’ve ever seen in a city builder
In fact… the game is not about building a city, it’s all about logistics. I just wanna build n shit, not sort warehouses, tweak caravan routes etc. Open TTD does logistics much better, why would I want to waste time playing this instead?
Did you play any of the original Impressions games? Everything you described seems to jive with how those games played - that’s just how these games work. Doesn’t mean you have to like it, but I don’t think they are flaws in the game itself. Maybe Grumpus the Elder will show up with some city block designs to make things more aesthetically pleasing though!
Well the developers certainly aren’t slowing down with the gameplay patches just yet. The upcoming 1.3 update will be bringing enhanced religion mechanics in the form of festivals plus improved god and temple interactions. With an expanded range of colour-adjustable decorations thrown in as well, as a cherry on top.
This worth picking up now after a few patches and the 30% off sale?
If you want something that very closely mimics the old Impressions games, I think the is the closest thing you can find. I’m not sure it does anything too new beyond that (beyond the creative mode for building the temple or whatever) but as long as you are okay with the gameplay you’re getting, I think it is pretty solid.
@Daagar is absolutely spot on. If you like this kind of game I doubt you’ll regret spending a measly £11 on it.
I have some questions.
First off, a number of reviews talked about needing to micro-manage market routes. That would be a huge turnoff for me. In the Impressions games I mastered block design so all my little dudes would go where they need to with no micro at all, and I liked that. I’m fine with needing to manage warehouses somewhat (as long as it’s not too fussy) but overall I’m more interested in the “design and build” rather than the “manage every basket” type of gameplay. Where does this game fall on that spectrum, and how do the market walkers work?
Second, I see a future patch is adding festivals. Festivals are a big area of concern for me as the way they were implemented in Impressions Emperor ruined that game for me and that game was otherwise the pinnacle of Impressions. Specifically, I cannot handle being required to periodically remember to fire off a festival. I would be 100% OK with setting up a regularly recurring festival but the requirement to REMEMBER to do it in Emperor killed me. I would routinely forget and screw up my city or to prevent that, would obsessively over-festival and run out of funds. Does anyone know how festivals are planned to work in this game? I would hate to buy it only for an imminent patch to ruin it for me.
Third, in the original release, it seemed like there was no pressure on the city, no military, no disasters, just building. Which is fine, but a tad boring. Then I hear the 1.2 patch added famine and other disasters (but no military to my knowledge). How does that work out? That sort of thing can be a big boost to interest in a game or it can be a huge annoyance. It all depends on the implementation. Have folks played much with the 1.2 patch? What’s the feedback?
I was waiting until their big 1.3 update to dig in :)
Excellent. Glad I held off playing.
Time to jump back in and check out Update v1.3 finally. Just recently been released on Steam, and presumably other platforms (e.g., GOG).
Well that looks great. Time to snag it next time it hits its historic low.
If you’re not fussy about platform choice then that could be right now according to IsThereAnyDeal. Currently on sale at GOG with a 35% discount, matching the current recorded historic low for all stores.
I…am fussy about the platform. ;) Thank you though.
Well with the way sales are I expect it’ll probably go on sale on Steam sometime within the next few weeks, haha. Kind of surprised it didn’t go on sale alongside the release of the 1.3 update but it might be scheduled to be in an upcoming weekly or something.
Anyway, so far so good for the update. Have to see how I feel about it with time but seems like yet another solid addition to the game so far. Certainly can’t fault Nepos Games’ long-term support of Nebuchadnezzar, they keep managing to improve the game each update so far.
Another major update has been announced to be in the pipeline, along with a new DLC campaign. Certainly can’t fault the developers for the amount of post-release support they are giving the game so far.
The latest update (v1.4) and the Adventures of Sargon DLC dropped yesterday on the 7th Feb. The Adventures of Sargon DLC brings with it a new 15 mission long, fully voice acted campaign. Meanwhile, the v1.4 update brings with it the new military system, enhanced map sizes, enhanced diplomacy, colourblind modes, etc.