TheRetroArcade
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Joined: Feb 2026
Joined: Feb 2026
In city builder Nova Roma, the gods can make life easier for you—just don't turn your back on them.
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If there's one thing that can ruin a beautiful and efficient city, it's the people who insist on living in it. Build them shelter (well, command them to build themselves shelter), and they'll want a convenient marketplace to buy food. Make food available to them and they'll start complaining that they want more than one type of food. Let their neighborhood flood and next thing you know they'll be asking for ways to respectfully dispose of the bloated corpses of the dead. There's just no way to please them!
Strap in, governors, because demanding citizens are just a small challenge compared with the crowd of needy gods you need to keep happy. In city builder Nova Roma, the Roman Empire has fallen and you and a handful of villagers slink away to start a new civilization in a pristine land. The gods are coming with you.
I began my new civilization on a lovely island split in two by a massive waterfall and river, a perfectly picturesque spot for a hopeful little city. I gave my earnest little villagers their first in a long series of chores like chopping trees and gathering stone to construct our first buildings: hovels, farms, wells, and quarries.
But there's another important starter building: the temple. Placing your first temple leaves with a choice: which god will this temple be devoted to? There's plenty of competition, because the moment it's built the various Roman gods will be crowded around it, shoulder to shoulder, each offering a bonus if you pick them.
If it's a temple devoted to Vulcan, nearby industrial buildings will get a production boost. If it's near the water, you might want to pick Neptune to improve your fishing yield. I went with Ceres, god of agriculture, because I was starting to farm and her temple being nearby would help my harvests.
But the gods aren't just about buffing your ass, no strings attached. They want stuff. A lot of stuff. Ceres immediately demanded I have five farms, and in exchange she offered me a reward of three favor points, which can be used to unlock new buildings on the technology tree.
Progress a bit more and the gods will also want bribes, or as they call them "offerings," which can net you more favor. Ceres suggested I might want to build some grapevines. OK, farming grapes sounds like a good idea ...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
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Every Friday
GamesRadar+
Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.
Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
Knowledge
From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
Every Wednesday
Switch 2 Spotlight
Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.
Every Saturday
The Watchlist
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.
Once a month
SFX
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
If there's one thing that can ruin a beautiful and efficient city, it's the people who insist on living in it. Build them shelter (well, command them to build themselves shelter), and they'll want a convenient marketplace to buy food. Make food available to them and they'll start complaining that they want more than one type of food. Let their neighborhood flood and next thing you know they'll be asking for ways to respectfully dispose of the bloated corpses of the dead. There's just no way to please them!
Strap in, governors, because demanding citizens are just a small challenge compared with the crowd of needy gods you need to keep happy. In city builder Nova Roma, the Roman Empire has fallen and you and a handful of villagers slink away to start a new civilization in a pristine land. The gods are coming with you.
I began my new civilization on a lovely island split in two by a massive waterfall and river, a perfectly picturesque spot for a hopeful little city. I gave my earnest little villagers their first in a long series of chores like chopping trees and gathering stone to construct our first buildings: hovels, farms, wells, and quarries.
But there's another important starter building: the temple. Placing your first temple leaves with a choice: which god will this temple be devoted to? There's plenty of competition, because the moment it's built the various Roman gods will be crowded around it, shoulder to shoulder, each offering a bonus if you pick them.
If it's a temple devoted to Vulcan, nearby industrial buildings will get a production boost. If it's near the water, you might want to pick Neptune to improve your fishing yield. I went with Ceres, god of agriculture, because I was starting to farm and her temple being nearby would help my harvests.
But the gods aren't just about buffing your ass, no strings attached. They want stuff. A lot of stuff. Ceres immediately demanded I have five farms, and in exchange she offered me a reward of three favor points, which can be used to unlock new buildings on the technology tree.
Progress a bit more and the gods will also want bribes, or as they call them "offerings," which can net you more favor. Ceres suggested I might want to build some grapevines. OK, farming grapes sounds like a good idea ...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?