Pompeii: The Legacy

About

Pompeii: The Legacy is a single player strategy game. It was developed by Siscia Games and was released on September 23, 2025. It received very positive reviews from players.

Rebuild the city of Pompeii and climb the social ladder. Roman society is full of intrigues that you have to solve in order to become a powerful ruler.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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94%

Audience ScoreBased on 82 reviews

story7 positive mentions

Pompeii: The Legacy is a beautifully crafted city builder that captures the essence of Roman history with stunning graphics and a rich narrative.
The game offers a deep and engaging gameplay experience, blending city management, social interaction, and survival mechanics, making it both challenging and rewarding.
The developer is highly responsive to player feedback, showing dedication to improving the game and ensuring a positive player experience.

The game can be quite challenging for new players, with a steep learning curve that may deter those who lack the time to invest in understanding its mechanics.
Balancing issues, particularly in mid-game, can lead to frustrating gameplay experiences, such as the need for constant resource management and ineffective trade systems.
As an early access title, the game still has technical imperfections and optimization issues that need to be addressed, including performance problems on certain systems.

story
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
41%
18%
The game's story is praised for its emotional depth and historical realism, effectively blending narrative with strategic gameplay. Players appreciate the guided campaign mode, complete with voiceovers and a compelling plot that enhances the overall experience, while also enjoying the option of sandbox modes for more freeform play. Overall, the storytelling adds significant value, making it a standout feature among city-building games.
- “This transition from simulation to survival storytelling is one of the game’s most powerful moments, creating emotional weight rarely seen in strategy titles.”
- “[b]Pompeii: The Legacy[/b] is a rare and compelling mix of historical realism, emotional storytelling, and strategic gameplay.”
- “There is a campaign with a fleshed-out story, and so far all the characters have voiceovers.”
- “The plot thickened when the snarky you-know-who showed up suddenly.”
- “Pompeii campaign - the campaign that is story driven and teaches you how to play, highly recommended when you first get the game.”
- “There is even a story that guides you through the game, so the player always knows what the next step is.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
37%
27%
"Pompeii: The Legacy" offers a compelling blend of city management, social interaction, and survival mechanics, reminiscent of classic titles like "Caesar" and "Pharaoh." The gameplay features a well-structured tutorial, balanced resource management, and a forgiving approach to mistakes, though some mechanics could benefit from further refinement. Overall, it delivers a rich historical experience with engaging strategic depth and a captivating atmosphere.
- “Pompeii: The Legacy blends city management, social interaction, and survival mechanics.”
- “The main gameplay loop works really well, with meaningful and balanced resource management.”
- “The atmosphere is beautiful and the gameplay has that perfect city builder flow.”
- “After about 10 hours of gameplay (about 1 hour battling with my aqueduct, only to discover that I had missed that important patch probably solving my perfectionism streak), I'm still happily reminded of my beloved Caesar/Pharaoh times.”
- “One of which I am sure will come, is to make it easier to locate buildings once you have built them, maybe a hover mechanic.”
- “On the gameplay side, it really is just Anno, but with the Roman Empire.”
graphics
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
9%
27%
The graphics in *Pompeii: The Legacy* are widely praised for their breathtaking visuals, particularly during the eruption scenes, which create a hauntingly beautiful atmosphere. While some users note that the graphics may not be cutting-edge, they appreciate the overall aesthetic, depth, and clarity, with a desire for more detail in certain areas. Overall, the game delivers impressive visuals that enhance the storytelling experience.
- “Graphically, Pompeii: The Legacy is breathtaking.”
- “As the eruption progresses, the visuals become hauntingly beautiful — ash clouds roll across the sky, lava illuminates the ruins, and panic fills the streets.”
- “Beautiful graphics with changing seasons.”
- “Maybe a little bit of flickering in the graphics, but even that could be on my end.”
- “Graphics are not the newest, but I really like the look and the crispness of non-unreal games.”
- “I think graphics-wise it doesn't look too bad, especially the buildings. I'm hoping eventually citizens will have more detail, and upgraded buildings will look different per upgrade.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game shows potential with great content and visuals, but it suffers from significant optimization issues, particularly on Linux, where users report poor performance, low frame rates, and stuttering. Many players express a strong desire for optimization fixes to enhance the overall experience.
- “The game looks great, runs smoothly, and has plenty of content from the three modes.”
- “I want to play the game; it seems great, but my god, does it need optimization fixes.”
- “On Linux, the game's performance is utterly trash.”
- “I get worse performance than in Cyberpunk on high settings.”
- “The game is running under 30 FPS when at higher speeds, and the camera is very stuttery with lots of frame drops.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game effectively blends historical realism with emotional storytelling, particularly highlighted during its impactful transition from simulation to survival, which adds significant emotional weight uncommon in strategy titles.
- “This transition from simulation to survival storytelling is one of the game’s most powerful moments, creating emotional weight rarely seen in strategy titles.”
- “[b]Pompeii: The Legacy[/b] is a rare and compelling mix of historical realism, emotional storytelling, and strategic gameplay.”
music
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game is praised for its authentic Latin-inspired compositions and effective sound design, which enhances the atmosphere by blending ambient noise and chilling effects that reflect the setting's beauty and danger. Overall, players appreciate the music's role in enriching the gaming experience.
- “The sound design complements this perfectly, with authentic ambient noise, Latin-inspired music, and chilling environmental effects that convey both the splendor and terror of the setting.”
- “I really like the UI, the music, and the introductory missions.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is praised for its beauty, complementing the gameplay with a seamless city builder flow that enhances the overall experience.
- “The atmosphere is beautiful, and the gameplay has that perfect city builder flow.”