iOS Universal, Android, PC/Mac •
If you’re like me, the only thing you know about ancient Egypt is that their gods looked like Gerard Butler and that King Tut had a condo made of stone-a. That’s not entirely true, as classic city-builders like Impressions’ Pharaoh and Tilted Mill’s Children of the Nile are two of my favorite oldies. From them I learned that jugglers will only walk so far down the street and don’t build farms too close to the Nile. In other words, I’m nearly an Egyptologist.
Today a new Egypt simulation landed on the App Store, covering the time period when the pyramids weren’t even gleams in Imhotep’s eye. Predynastic Egypt is the rather dull title, but the game itself looks very promising.
The game starts in the year 5000 B.C., when the Egyptians were loose bands of nomads living along the banks of the life-giving Nile, and continues until the Upper and Lower Kingdoms are united. The game seems to pride itself on historical accuracy which is cool, but can sometimes lead to a sense of railroading when incorporated into games. Haven’t played it yet, so we’ll have to see.
* Simulation of the ancient world
Wars, drought, enemy invasions, epidemics, internal turmoil, migration of the tribes, religious ceremonies, exploration of distant lands, celebrations and more than 100+ other events and trials await you in the game!
* Technological evolution of mankind
48 historically accurate technologies and cultural achievements of Pre-Dynastic Egypt with interesting descriptions, will show the technological evolution of mankind on the example of the Egyptian civilization.
* Mysteries of Egyptian religion and culture
You will see the birth of the unique religion of the Nile civilization, starting with beliefs in spirits and ending with the gods of Pre-Dynastic Egypt and you will learn the secrets known only to archeologists and Egyptologists!
* Reconstructed map of Ancient Egypt
Accurate reconstruction of the geographic map of ancient Egypt 5000-3000 BC, taking into account the climatic changes of that period when the Sahara was a Savannah and not a desert and Wadies were rivers and not roads.
* Reconstructed city of Hierakonpolis
Accurate archaeological reconstruction of the Hierakonpolis – the former center of Pre-Dynastic Egypt. You will build the real houses, temples and tombs, that were excavated by archeologists in XX-XXI century.
As far as I know, there’s no other sim/empire-builder like this for mobile so I’m more than willing to take a gamble on it.
- Predynastic Egypt for iOS Universal, $5
- Predynastic Egypt for Android, $6
- Predynastic Egypt for PC/Mac via Steam, $10
Just finished my first play through, I think it’s a neat game. It’s not as deep as some other 4X games, but also has less micro-management and a more integral theme.
@Neumannium, your “railroading” observation is spot on and the tracks do lead to the same terminus every time, but there is still significant room to make strategic trade-offs that will determine if and when the train gets there, and at least I felt like the conductor rather than a passenger.
It seemed pretty easy on the beginner settings, but I can see how it could be devilishly difficult when those are cranked up to harder levels so I may well try that and see, but I suspect the replay value will peter out after a few tries.
I enjoyed the artwork and learning a few Egyptology tidbits along the way that will probably stick with me longer than if I had read them in a book. Who knew there was a Pharaoh named Ha?
Overall it was well worth the time and money to me, thanks for suggesting this game.