Egypt: Old Kingdom
- May 24, 2018
- Clarus Victoria
- 8h median play time
Get on SteamJOIN US ON DISCORD About the GameYou are one of the multitudes of incarnations of the great Horus, and side by side with the pharaohs, you are fighting against the mighty Seth, who unleashes numerous disasters upon the lands of Ancient Egypt. Win wars and overcome crises, discover new technologies, worship your gods and conquer neighboring tribes! Are you wise enough to help the ancient kings to…
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Reviews
- The game offers a challenging yet rewarding experience, especially for those who enjoy strategy and resource management.
- It serves as an engaging educational tool, providing insights into ancient Egyptian history without feeling like a lecture.
- The art and sound design create a pleasing atmosphere that enhances the overall gameplay experience.
- The game can become repetitive and punishing, especially on higher difficulties, leading to frustration for some players.
- There are issues with balance and clarity in gameplay mechanics, which can make it difficult for new players to grasp the strategies needed for success.
- Technical problems, such as crashes and UI bugs, detract from the overall experience and can hinder enjoyment.
- gameplay92 mentions
- 37 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a mix of simple mechanics and historical themes, allowing players to engage in management, building, and strategy while learning about ancient Egyptian history. However, many users express frustration with unclear mechanics, poor UI, and a reliance on RNG, which can lead to a tedious experience, especially for those unfamiliar with the genre. While some find the gameplay enjoyable and addictive, others feel it lacks depth and can become repetitive over time.
“The gameplay is easy enough to understand, plus I can learn the history of Egypt.”
“Beautiful graphics and music, satisfying gameplay.”
“The game is not meant to be a granular grand strategy-esque simulation of the historical world of Old Kingdom Egypt, but it manages to accomplish its goal of teaching the player about this period and provides excellent management/strategy gameplay that complements it well.”
“The first game was way better; this one has some pretty broken mechanics, horrible explanation of how anything works, RNG is horrid, and the game is all in all way too long, like a chore.”
“You can lose after seven hours of gameplay just because you may have not made the perfect choices within the first hour.”
“Poor balance, inscrutable game mechanics, and an almost impossible, pointless level of difficulty combine to make it just not very much fun.”
- graphics50 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising the beautiful, thematically appropriate artwork inspired by ancient Egyptian styles, while others criticize the lower-budget, simplistic visuals. Many players appreciate the colorful and stylish graphics that complement the gameplay, although some note that the graphics are not cutting-edge and may appear bland or mobile-like. Overall, the aesthetic is generally well-received, with a focus on creating an engaging atmosphere rather than relying on high-end visuals.
“Beautiful graphics and music, satisfying gameplay.”
“The art style fits the game wonderfully, and is quite unique in itself.”
“The graphics are crisp and interesting, with a well-chosen color palette.”
“The artwork and graphics in this game are absolutely terrible.”
“This is not a game with eye-popping graphics or effects.”
“I ran it on a MacBook Pro with 16GB RAM and an i7 processor, but it got stuck on the display fog of war event on minimal graphic settings.”
- replayability41 mentions
- 34 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with some players praising its extensive options and challenge, particularly with new modes and strategic diversity, while others criticize its limited scope and repetitive gameplay. Many reviews highlight that while there are enjoyable elements and some variability in playthroughs, the overall replay value can feel constrained, especially compared to similar titles. Ultimately, the experience may vary significantly based on individual preferences for challenge and exploration.
“I cherish this game; its difficulty and parameters are incredibly flexible, its art direction is charming, the replayability is extensive and it felt incredibly rewarding to finally figure out the secrets to success within its depiction of ancient Egypt.”
“Built with help from Egyptologists, it is fascinating and immersive with a lot of replay value :)”
“Old Kingdom adds much more randomization, better tech tree, better building options, tripled game length and has much, much more replayability.”
“Predynastic Egypt was not a replayable game; outside of maybe trying it once or twice to beat it, there was no point in returning to it.”
“The game is disgustingly repetitive with little to no replay value.”
“I liked the game until I tried to replay it and I realized that there was no replayability.”
- music18 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 39 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its relaxing and ambient qualities, enhancing the overall gameplay experience. Reviewers appreciate the thematic fit of the soundtrack with the game's aesthetic, noting that it contributes to a soothing atmosphere ideal for casual play. While some suggest that the music could be improved, it is generally considered well-conceived and a significant part of the game's charm.
“Nice soundtrack, relaxing and interesting, perfect to play at the end of a stressful day on a tablet on the couch!”
“On top of this, the art and music are beautiful and wonderfully thematic.”
“And the music they chose to compose for the score fits nicely alongside the game, making it a soothing and calm experience, which is the mindset you’re going to need whether you’re planning on the next big city you want to build or whether you’re plotting the downfalls of your neighbors.”
“When I started the game, it loaded to a blank main screen with intro music playing.”
“As soon as I clicked ultra (in graphics), the game screen turned black but the menu music was still playing.”
“I closed the game and ever since then, I just receive a black screen with background music and a 'not responding' message.”
- story8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The game's story is a blend of engaging historical strategy and frustrating RNG events that can lead to dire consequences for players, such as starvation and population loss. While the atmosphere and decision-making are well-integrated into the narrative, the repetitive nature of quests can become tedious over time. Overall, players appreciate the short, replayable story mode, but some elements may lead to frustration.
“I've never played a turn-based strategy game where the decisions and the general feel of the atmosphere was so well-tuned to a broader story.”
“I had 2 runs and though the map and the main story stay the same, it was fun.”
“At least one achievement is currently impossible as it looks like an update pushed back the quest start trigger for it to be completed.”
“It's about a 10-15 hour single-player story-driven historical strategy game.”
“I saw a majority of reviews had limited hours played (10-30), so I only expected a short, albeit replayable, story mode.”
- atmosphere7 mentions
- 86 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its pleasing art and sound design, effectively immersing players in a historical context, particularly in ancient Egypt. Reviewers note that the atmosphere enhances the turn-based strategy experience, making it feel well-integrated with the broader narrative. Overall, the combination of pretty animations and a captivating ambiance contributes to a compelling and immersive gameplay experience.
“The art and sound design are pleasing and flesh out the atmosphere of the game nicely.”
“I've never played a turn-based strategy game where the decisions and the general feel of the atmosphere was so well-tuned to a broader story.”
“Great immersive atmosphere and art.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game enjoyable and not overly frustrating, contributing to its replayability. However, some users note that the endgame can become tedious, particularly on lower difficulty settings, which may deter them from replaying. A significant update in July 2018 improved the grinding experience, making it more engaging.
“The endgame becomes a bit tedious but there's great fun to be had before you reach that stage.”
“I played through the whole game on beginner and the last hour or two were very tedious and had no challenge, and it was too long for me to want to go back and play it again on the historical settings.”
“This system was tedious at the beginning but was completely changed as of July 6, 2018, and is now great.”
- stability3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's stability is inconsistent; while some users report smooth performance on certain systems, others experience freezing issues when switching maps, indicating potential bugs and design flaws in gameplay.
“I have played this game on a Mac (OS 10.12.6) and it runs great.”
“The game sometimes freezes up when switching maps.”
“Cons: buggy, gameplay isn't well designed.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
The game's optimization mechanics challenge players to refine their resource management strategies, but some users report frustration when previous successes do not translate into consistent performance, particularly when unexpected challenges like famine arise. Despite the complexity of settings, achieving optimal outcomes can feel elusive, leading to a sense of imbalance in gameplay.
“Even on the more complex settings, the choices are never too complex, and the difficulty is entirely based around the game setting you various resource production goals and giving you various handicaps that together demand ever more perfect optimization to overcome.”
“After many trials, I think I understood it, and it's quite okay, but then I start a trial (which I succeeded in previously) and famine kicks in. Despite having a huge population and moving my pawns all over the map to food resources, I still can't fight it. The game kills the pawns, and I still can't keep up when I thought I had maximized - at least optimized - my economy compared to my previous games.”
“The optimization mechanics feel inconsistent. I often find myself struggling to maintain resources even when I believe I've set everything up correctly. It's frustrating to see my efforts go to waste.”
“No matter how much I try to optimize my strategy, the game seems to throw unexpected challenges my way. It feels like the optimization system is flawed, leading to more confusion than success.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's humor is well-received, with developers incorporating amusing elements such as ancient aliens and zombie-mummies, which adds a fun and entertaining layer for the community.
“The developers seem to be humorous enough to add in some fun stuff for the community, like ancient aliens and zombie-mummies!”
“It's really funny.”
