Periods in Egyptian history that CotN will cover

Sunday, August 08, 2004

From the HeavenGames interview with Chris Beatrice:

What period(s) of Egyptian history will you be covering?

Chris Beatrice:

The Old, Middle and New Kingdoms, plus the two Intermediate Periods.

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Targets to achieve

Sunday, August 08, 2004

From the HeavenGames interview with Chris Beatrice:

What sort of targets/goals will the player have to achieve in each game?

Chris Beatrice:

Building games are unique (and interesting, to me) in that there is a very wide range of goals that can drive you forward. All, of course, depend on your ability to build a large and prosperous city, overcoming the specific challenges of the terrain and scenario. Goals often center on the world level, for example, you need to build a fort at Buhen, a colossal statue at Abu Simbel, bring peace to the Nubian border, circumnavigate Africa, conquer an enemy, expand the nation, etc. Then there are city-building goals, such as supporting a certain number of elites in townhouses. There are also RPG style goals, for example, to achieve a certain level of notoriety or "prestige." One significant, implicit goal that is always present is the need to build your tomb before you pass into the afterlife.

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Gameplay modes: campaign and sandbox

Monday, July 12, 2004

From the HomeLAN Fed interview with Chris Beatrice:

HomeLAN:

What kinds of gameplay modes will be put into Children of the Nile?

Chris Beatrice:

The bulk of play centers on a comprehensive campaign consisting of approximately 15 scenarios, where you build your own unique version of ancient Egypt. You choose where to locate your capital city in each of the historic periods, and the goals and challenges differ based on the choice you make for each. Monuments you build carry over from one period to the next, and in the end you've put your own unique thumbprint on the ancient world.

There is also a sandbox mode, where you can just create to your heart's content. In addition, we intend to include several scenarios that recreate historical events in the lives of certain Pharaohs, and some other standalone scenarios.

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Campaign structure - cities

Monday, June 07, 2004

A followup from Chris on the forums about the 3 kingdoms with each one capitol, from the IGN preview. On the forum, there was quite a bit of talk going on about being disappointed that there seemed to be only three cities to build. A reassuring note from Chris:

You will certainly build more than three cities in CotN, but I don't want to go into any detail right now about how all these cities are arranged and connected in the campaign(s) and scenario(s). I don't think anyone will be disappointed by the amount of gameplay and replay in CotN.

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Campaign structure

Friday, June 04, 2004

From the IGN E3 preview:

On the whole, there will be more to think about than just the city. The campaign structure will revolve around the old, middle, and new worlds in ancient Egypt. During each of these ages, players will have to pick a capital city from which to rule. This is the one city that players will actually work on during the course of the game, instead of switching back and forth between various cities around the map.

From this seat, decisions will have to be made about exploration, trade, founding of cities, and war.

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Dynasties

Monday, March 29, 2004

From the GameStar interview:

GameStar:

Will I play through different dynasties, epochs or ages?

Chris Beatrice:

Yes, CotN is also a civilization builder, where play spans many centuries. You take on the role of an entire dynasty, and play through several incarnations of that dynasty. As such, your current incarnation dies periodically from natural causes, and an extraordinary amount of your resources and effort are spent trying to build the most magnificent tomb possible before you die (a god-king deserves no less!!).

But with each passing incarnation, your dynasty, too, is developing something like "fame" which, passes from one generation to the next. This is what allows you to ultimately achieve things that would not be possible for a single ruler in a single lifetime. When Ghengis Khan and Alexander the Great died, their respective empires quickly fell apart. But the glory of Egypt endured for an incredibly long period of time. This is in part due to its incredible organization, but also to the profound faith on the part of the people in the divine nature of their leadership. It's noteworthy that this mystique around the Pharaohs of Egypt persists to this day.

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