In *Awakening of the Delta*, you can actually interact with the pyramids! Even though they’ve been standing there for millennia.
A city-building game set in ancient Egypt? Of course pyramids will be built! At least, that’s the first assumption many fans make when they hear about a game like this. In the legendary *Pharaoh*, that was definitely the case. Now, *Anno 117: Pax Romana* is getting its very own take on ancient Egypt with its next DLC, *Awakening of the Delta*.
However, there’s a problem here. The game is, of course, focused on the Romans and—unsurprisingly—is set around the year 117. By that time, pyramids had long since ceased to be built in Egypt. At least not the kind of massive burial chambers we know from the Pyramids of Giza. All of that was already over a thousand years in the past when the Romans arrived.
How does Anno 117 solve this problem? After all, players want to interact with the pyramids in some way. A new trailer finally provides a clear answer to this question:
We Repair the Pyramids
It was already hinted at a few months ago in a trailer for the Anno 117 Annual Pass. During your trip to the Nile Delta, you won’t be building completely new pyramids. These massive structures are already standing there when you arrive. However, they’re in a similarly dilapidated state to what you see today with the pyramids in Egypt.
Nevertheless, the pyramids seem to function as a classic monument in Anno 117. Although the pyramids are located at a fixed point, you’ll have to launch a massive construction project around them. The goal is to restore the pyramids to their original condition.
The trailer shows that a multi-stage construction project awaits you. Much like with the amphitheater or the hippodrome. You’ll constantly have to haul new workers to the construction site—and, of course, tons of building materials. But once you’ve successfully repaired the pyramids, there’s talk of major benefits. We don’t know the exact effects yet, but at the very least, the pyramids will likely boost your satisfaction and fame.
Incidentally, the trailer also revealed a few resources that you’ll need to haul to the pyramids for the restoration:
- Clay bricks
- Granite
- Limestone
- Marble (which must be imported from Latium)
Why No New Pyramids?
In Egypt, pyramids stopped being built around 1500 B.C. The last Egyptian royal pyramid was built for Ahmose I. Why the pharaohs stopped building them is, of course, still debated by historians today. The fact is that, starting around 1500 BC, Egyptian rulers were buried in the Valley of the Kings rather than in large pyramids. One possible theory is that the valley was better hidden and better protected from tomb robbers. The economic cost may also have played a role. After all, pyramids had already been getting smaller even before that.
Of course, there were far more impressive buildings in Egypt than just the pyramids. You’ll be able to build quite a few temples in Anno 117: Awakening of the Delta! The DLC is set to release on November 5, but we don’t know all the gameplay details yet. Ubisoft plans to reveal them bit by bit over the next few weeks.
