Nil Dieu Vivant alias Pharaoh
| Developer: Chip | Graphics: |
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| Publisher: Rainbow Arts | Sound: |
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| Year: 1989 | Difficulty: |
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| Genre: Strategy | Lastability: |
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| Number of players: 1 | Rating: |
4/10 | |
The pharaoh is dead, and all his heirs have vanished (presumed dead). All except you, thanks to the god Amon-Re. You’ve been raised by farmers, and it’s now time for you to take the place that’s rightfully yours, right at the top of the pyramid … social pyramid, that is.
Your job, starting from almost nothing: trade along the Nile with your little boat; defend your goods against Phoenician attacks; protect your lands from enemy tribes, and bet on camel races. Later, build a fleet of ships, make your fortune, and flaunt your new social status by offering a “pharaonic” tribute to your favourite temple. Another prerequisite for your rise is marriage. All you have to do is show up at the harem, pockets full, and pick your bride.
Finally, once you’ve secured your place as a notable, you’ll gain access to the most expensive activity of all: architecture. You’ll order the construction of a temple dedicated to the deity of your choice, then a palace … in theory. That’s my interpretation of the manual, but I didn’t make it that far.
I like strategy and management games, but I really don’t like being interrupted every two minutes by a dreadful mini-game, over and over again, only to have my game abruptly end because I failed to avoid some tiny thing, in some way, in the blink of an eye. No thanks. Egypt will manage without me.
Other management games include mini-games, but they don’t shove them in your face like that, nor are they so punishing (fail, and you die).
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