Children of the Nile

Immortal Cities: Children of the Nile is something of a departure from Sega's usual offerings. As a real-time strategy game, it couldn't be further removed from the fast-paced arcade titles (Crazy Taxi and Daytona USA) that helped cement the company's success.

Fortunately, any fears of a misguided change of direction on Sega's part are quickly allayed. Rather than the usual world war-based strategy games that dominate the genre, this takes a path less trodden. Players assume the role of a series of Pharaohs who are responsible for leading Egypt through times of war and peace.

Whereas most games of this type focus almost exclusively on the management of physical assets, Children of the Nile places great emphasis on the inhabitants of your virtual cities. You'll need to carry out the usual task of building an efficient economy, but as each member of your society belongs to a household with specific needs, you'll often have to sacrifice grand aspirations in favour of ensuring their happiness.

You'll also have to ensure that the right types of citizens are in place, or the entire city will be doomed to failure. Farmers are required to tend crops, and nobles to oversee large farming estates. Your ultimate aim, though, is to acquire enough prestige points to ensure that your legacy is not forgotten.

There are several ways of doing this, including erecting statues and pyramids to commemorate victories in battle. The constant (and often unreasonable) desires of your city's inhabitants make the game something of a challenge, albeit an enjoyable one.

Ultimately, the game is one of the most enjoyable city-building strategy games we've seen in some time, and the hands-on approach required to pacify its virtual inhabitants only serves to reinforce its appeal.

Contact:
Sega
www.sega.co.uk

System requirements:

• Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
• Pentium III 800MHz or AMD Athlon equivalent
• 128MB of Ram
• 1.1GB hard disk space
• 32MB DirectX 9.0b compatible graphics card
• DirectX 9 compatible soundcard
• CD-Rom drive