Caesar IV PC Game

Many ages ago, a small village was founded alongside the Tiber river, in an area where seven hills rose from the marshland. This village would grow to become the most important capital of the ancient world -- but only under the guidance of a wise and just governor. By developing infrastructure, managing the economy, and protecting citizens, players can build a Rome of their own in Caesar IV; one mighty enough to rival the great metropolis of history and myth.

Will Wright's SimCity gets credit for establishing the "city-building" genre of computer games, but Impressions Software's original Caesar (along with the many Impressions-brand sequels and spin-offs that followed it) is fondly remembered for placing Wright's municipal-management premise in a fanciful, historical context. The Impressions studios have since disbanded, but some of their artists and programmers went on to found Tilted Mill, the creator of Caesar IV.

Caesar IV boasts a number of improvements over its immediate predecessor, which was originally released eight years earlier, including state-of-the-art graphics, more sophisticated citizen artificial intelligence, and greater control over combat. There are more goods to trade and more structures to build. Longtime fans of the series may relish the return of charismatic features such as the story-lined single-player campaign, the open-ended sandbox mode, and the chatty individual citizens who are more than willing to provide opinion regarding their governor's competence.