Info about Citadelum:

Official game description:
Defy the Gods of the Pantheon or follow their will. Become the master of oh so many lives and destiny of so few in this twist to the genre face to face with the old deities.
**Build your settlement.** Gather and refine resources from forests and quarries, breed animals, grow vegetables, fish and make wine, so you can keep your population healthy and fed. Improve your buildings and ensure water supply with aqueducts. Welcome citizens to your village as artisans, farmers, carpenters... or train them to join your legions in different units. Towers and walls will protect your village from barbarian attacks, while it grows into a magnificent city.
**Expand.** Explore the world map, free villages under siege and experience the power of the most advanced armies of the era: the legion, engaging in tactical auto-battle combat. Once the territory is secured, you can set trade routes, import exotic resources and scale up your economy. Send out your explorers to find a collection of mythological objects that will help you in your expansion and complete missions for the Senate.
**Honour.** Rise to the pantheon and gain the favor of the gods. Build temples, make offerings so they will grant you gifts. But beware, because gods behave in a capricious and ruthless manner; worship one of them and you may suffer the wrath of another. Interaction with deities allows a non linear, replayable narrative, full of mythical encounters. Prepare to be amazed when they come down to earth and help you, or tremble with fear if they punish your people.
**City Building, evolved.** Citadelum presents a unique three layered gameplay, based in city building core mechanics, strategic expansion and commerce, and the role of the gods. You will find different missions, artifacts and challenges in every playthrough.

Release date: 17 Oct, 2024

Categories: City Builder, Resource Management, Strategy, Strategic Combat, Exploration, God Simulation, Single-player Story, Sandbox Creation


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Evokes classic city-builder nostalgia (weight 0.95): The game is frequently compared to classic city builders like Caesar III, Pharaoh, and Zeus, with many reviewers considering it a worthy successor or spiritual successor. It successfully captures the nostalgic feel of these games while incorporating modern graphics and mechanics, making it appealing to both veterans and newcomers of the genre. Some reviewers consider it an improved or modernized version of Caesar III.
- Visually appealing, detailed graphics (weight 0.52): The game features visually appealing graphics with detailed building designs, animations, and a level of detail that allows players to see the interior of buildings. The updated graphics and attention to detail enhance the overall visual experience, making the game more immersive and enjoyable.
- Simple but enjoyable combat (weight 0.31): The game features a simplified combat system where players build armies and deploy troops in an overhead view before battles unfold automatically. While simplistic, the combat is enjoyable to watch and adds a fun element to the gameplay, requiring players to prepare their armies and defend their cities.
- Engaging god and religion system (weight 0.26): The game incorporates a unique Pantheon system where players can build temples for various gods and gain blessings and war advantages through sacrifices and activities. The God system is well-implemented and engaging, adding fun and originality to the game.
- Detailed and diverse city-building (weight 0.24): The game features a variety of resources and well-planned relationships between buildings and the terrain, allowing for creative freedom in city design. The city-building aspect is detailed, allowing for diverse construction and customization, with buildings generally looking good no matter where you place them.
- Extensive sandbox and editor modes (weight 0.18): The game includes a Sandbox mode and a map/mission editor, allowing players to create custom scenarios and share them on Steam Workshop. This feature significantly increases the game's replayability and provides additional hours of enjoyment, with many user-created maps offering original challenges and historical recreations.
- Accessible and intuitive mechanics (weight 0.09): The game features accessible and entertaining mechanics, with actions feeling natural and not requiring complex memorization. The tutorial explains everything in detail while allowing players to progress at their own pace, and the core gameplay mechanics work well overall.
- Immersive Roman-themed soundtrack (weight 0.04): The game features a musical score that perfectly complements the ancient Roman setting, enhancing immersion. The music is well-done and delightful, with original passages inspired by the Caesar III soundtrack.
- Polished and intuitive interface (weight 0.04): The game features a polished, clean, and modern interface with quality-of-life improvements. The user interface is clear, easy to understand, and ergonomic, highlighting the range when building similar structures.

Common complaints:
- Lacks depth, challenge, complexity (weight 0.82): The game lacks depth, challenge, and complexity, leading to repetitive gameplay and a lack of replayability. Many reviewers compared the game unfavorably to older titles in the genre, such as Caesar III, citing a lack of meaningful choices and strategic depth. The game quickly becomes too easy, with resources readily available and little need for complex management.
- Repetitive campaign and scenarios (weight 0.59): Many reviewers found the campaign and scenarios repetitive due to identical maps, resources, and objectives. Missions often involve starting from scratch and repeating the same steps, leading to boredom. The lack of variety diminishes the sense of progression and long-term engagement.
- Shallow economic/trade systems (weight 0.23): The game's economic and trade systems are underdeveloped, with limited interaction with other cities and a lack of strategic depth. Many reviewers noted that resources are too easy to obtain, and trade feels like a side piece. There is a lack of specialization and complex trade systems.
- Underdeveloped god mechanics (weight 0.19): The god mechanics are underwhelming and have minimal impact on gameplay. Many reviewers noted that the gods are easily appeased with simple sacrifices, and their actions don't align with their mythological roles. The 'Olympus' view and god buffs feel sidelined.
- Poor city defense implementation (weight 0.06): City defense is poorly implemented, with ineffective guard units and simplistic enemy encounters. The player cannot use their army to defend the city, and city attacks are easily defeated or cause minimal damage. Many reviewers noted that the game design requires players to place numerous guard posts around the map for defense, which is considered a poor design choice.
- Maps too large, underutilized (weight 0.05): Maps are too large with too many resources, removing the challenge of space management and resource placement. Some reviewers noted that the large map size is underutilized, with only a small portion being practically useful. There are only limited maps available unless created in the in-game editor.
- Demanding population, limited growth (weight 0.04): The game's population is much more demanding, requiring several different types of food, which often translates to building another farm to maintain balance. The game has a population cap, preventing further growth and worker assignment, which diminishes the game's purpose. The game's performance is more demanding than Anno 1800 in its late stages.

Gameplay feedback:
- Combines city-building with combat/exploration (weight 0.4): The game blends city-building with elements of combat, exploration, and trade, drawing comparisons to Caesar, Anno, and Total War. However, some reviewers find the combat to be simpler and less tactically deep than these other titles, suggesting a greater emphasis on city management.
- Core: build, manage, upgrade cities (weight 0.26): The core gameplay loop involves constructing and upgrading cities by managing resources, meeting citizen needs, and providing essential services. Buildings require road connections and specific conditions to function and upgrade, emphasizing strategic placement and resource allocation.
- Engaging resource management system (weight 0.25): The game features resource management through production chains, where raw materials are transformed into finished goods. The complexity increases as citizens demand more sophisticated goods, but overall the system is considered fairly comprehensive without being overly complex, making it accessible for newcomers.
- Rock-paper-scissors combat system (weight 0.16): The game features a military system with different unit types (infantry, archers, cavalry) that follow a rock-paper-scissors dynamic. Battles involve pre-battle deployment and automatic combat, with limited player control during the fight itself.
- Appease gods for bonuses/avoid penalties (weight 0.12): Players must appease a pantheon of gods by constructing temples, offering sacrifices, and holding festivals. Satisfying the gods grants blessings and economic boosts, while neglecting them can lead to divine wrath and destruction of buildings.
- Simple and easy to understand (weight 0.06): The game mechanics are straightforward and easy to understand, allowing players to quickly grasp the core gameplay. The city-building aspects are considered simple and accessible, particularly for newcomers to the genre.
- Trade requires exploration, route establishment (weight 0.06): Trade is essential for acquiring resources not locally available and selling surpluses, requiring players to explore the world map and establish trade routes with other cities. The world map also features enemy forces and strategic elements.
- Campaign, sandbox, and editor modes (weight 0.05): The game offers a campaign mode with a series of missions that gradually increase in difficulty, as well as a sandbox mode for free play. An editor is available for creating and sharing custom scenarios.
- Similar to Caesar games (weight 0.02): This point is a direct comparison to another game and doesn't provide specific feedback on the game's features or mechanics. Therefore, it receives a low importance score.

Performance notes:
- Animation quality could improve. (weight 0.01): A small number of reviews mention that the animation quality could be improved. This is a minor point, but it does suggest an area where the game's visual presentation could be enhanced.
- Incomplete depiction of Dii Consentes. (weight 0.01): One review mentions that the rendering of the Dii Consentes (Roman gods) is reasonably well done, but only four of the twelve major gods are depicted. This is a very specific detail that may be relevant to players interested in the game's historical accuracy.

Recommendations:
- Enjoyable and Recommended (weight 0.73): Many reviewers find the game enjoyable and recommend it, praising its engaging gameplay and potential. Some highlight its relaxing nature and suitability for casual play, while others appreciate its depth and complexity. The game is considered a worthwhile experience for fans of the city-building genre.
- Buy on Discount (weight 0.46): Many reviewers suggest purchasing the game at a discount due to concerns about its content, optimization, or overall value at full price. Some feel it's a bare-bones product or that there are better alternatives available, making it more appealing when on sale. This point reflects concerns about the game's value proposition at its regular price.
- More Content Needed (weight 0.46): Many reviewers express a desire for more content, updates, and features to enhance the game's replayability and depth. This includes additional missions, maps, building types, and gameplay mechanics. The sentiment reflects a belief in the game's potential and a hope for continued development and expansion.
- Optimization Needed (weight 0.42): Some reviewers mention performance issues and optimization concerns, hoping for improvements in future updates. This includes addressing loading problems and providing more granular graphics settings for a better player experience. Addressing these issues would improve the overall player experience.
- Specific Gameplay Adjustments (weight 0.39): Some reviewers suggest specific gameplay adjustments, such as disabling fires in sandbox mode, to improve the overall experience. This indicates that certain mechanics may be frustrating or unbalanced. These suggestions aim to tailor the game to individual preferences and address potential pain points.
- Follow the Tutorial (weight 0.01): One reviewer emphasizes the importance of following the tutorial to avoid problems and potential restarts. This suggests that the game's mechanics may not be immediately intuitive or that the tutorial is essential for understanding core gameplay elements. This point highlights the need for a clear and effective onboarding process.
- Balance Triggered Events (weight 0.01): One reviewer specifically mentions the need for balancing triggered events. This suggests that these events may be too frequent, too disruptive, or not well-integrated into the gameplay. Balancing these events would contribute to a more consistent and enjoyable experience.
- Good Fit for Steam Deck (weight 0.01): One reviewer suggests that the game would be a great fit for the Steam Deck. This implies that the game's controls, graphics, and performance are well-suited for handheld play. This point highlights the game's potential appeal to players who enjoy gaming on the go.
- Limited Maps, Visual Upgrades (weight 0.01): One reviewer deducted points for the limited number of maps and lack of visual changes to upgraded buildings. This suggests that these aspects could be improved to enhance the game's variety and visual appeal. Addressing these issues would contribute to a more engaging and rewarding experience.
- Not a Serious Simulation (weight 0.01): One reviewer suggests that players looking for a serious simulation should consider Grand Ages Rome or wait for Pax Augusta. This implies that the game may not offer the depth and complexity that some simulation enthusiasts desire. This point helps to set expectations and guide players towards alternative options.

Other player notes:
- Needs more development, potential (weight 0.05): The game shows promise but needs further development. Reviewers appreciate the developer's commitment to post-launch support and community feedback, but some feel the game could have benefited from Early Access to refine its features and content before the full release. There is concern that the game may be abandoned before its potential is realized.
- Multiple game modes, workshop (weight 0.04): The game includes Campaign and Sandbox modes, plus a Map Editor and Steam Workshop support. The campaign offers around 10 missions, and players can access user-generated content through the Steam Workshop. Upcoming free DLC aims to address content limitations after the main campaign.
- Roman city-builder, detailed setting (weight 0.03): The game is a grid-based Roman city builder featuring resource management, trading, and battles, set in ancient Rome. The setting provides rich storylines and challenges based on the political system of the time, including the Senate, consuls, and emperors.
- Decent graphics, retro aesthetic (weight 0.03): The game uses decent 3D graphics with a 45° angle view reminiscent of older RTS and SIM games. The music is acceptable but unremarkable, and the overall aesthetic appeals to fans of older Sierra games.
- House desirability impacts economy (weight 0.02): House desirability, increased by statues, hedges, and fountains, impacts worker count and tax revenue. Higher-level houses require entertainment, religious buildings, doctors, and varied food, adding depth to city management.
- Resource proximity, exploration elements (weight 0.02): Building placement requires consideration of proximity to resources like water, fertile soil, rocks, and ore. Explorers on the campaign map uncover new lands, trade cities, relics, or barbarian armies, adding an element of exploration and risk.
- Olive oil production unclear (weight 0.01): The reviewer is asking how to produce olive oil in the game. This point highlights a potential lack of clarity or intuitiveness in the game's resource production mechanics.
- Easy economy, tax dollars (weight 0.01): Money isn't an issue because tax dollars easily fill the coffers. This point suggests a potential imbalance in the game's economy, but lacks specific details or suggestions for improvement.
- Can look inside buildings (weight 0.01): The game allows you to look inside buildings and watch people work. This is a nice detail that adds to the immersion, but it's not a core gameplay mechanic.
- Flippant Olympic Gods (weight 0.01): The depiction of the Olympic Gods is flippant. This point is subjective and lacks specific details, so it receives a lower importance score.

Emotions:
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