Zeus + Poseidon (Acropolis)

I finished the game in titan mode the equivalent of hard from Caesar 3 and Pharaoh. I have to admit that I am a bit disappointed. This game was more a puzzle game rather than a city builder. Because the comparison is inevitable with C3 and Pharaoh, here it is: In Pharaoh, your city could collapse from its size or mismanagement of the resources, the fact that some of the missions are so long, you also have to manage your population scheme and trend to avoid birth rate issue. Here in Zeus, eventhough the improvement such as the military and the delivery system is a nice change, the trading system is just complex for no reason, having to build 1 building per partner is just eating space, which is sparse on some maps. This comes to my final comment, where this game is more a puzzle than a city builder. You have to imagine not having enough space and carefully planning your buildings because at one point, you will be forced to build a gigantic temple. Building the cities is nowhere near difficult, it is massively easy even in hard mode but the lack of space makes it just scratch your head on where to place what. My cities never collapsed, I had no issue with population birth schemes and money wise it was a peace of cake. I lack the difficulty from Pharaoh, it is too bad that they do not combine the features but I still recommend to do the game if you plan on doing the sierra series but for me Pharaoh still is the best.

While it may be dated nowadays, it still holds a lot of potential for fun! Zeus is a charming game, one that you can start to play and lose hours to if you're not careful. It may not be as flashy or as fancy as newer releases, but the gameplay and game design make for a game that regardless of age is incredibly fun! The graphics are cartoony, but hold a certain charm for that too in my mind. It can also be quite challenging depending on your difficulty setting and the campaign you choose to play! Be prepared to make a few ugly, poorly laid out cities and if you're a stickler for organization you may find yourself googling the most productive layouts for housing blocks and resource areas. (Zeus Heaven is a great site for it!) Bottom line: It's a really fun game, and I've gone back to it many times in the nearly 20 years now since its release.

This is one of the first games I have ever played and I am still playing it to this date. I am keeping this review short, because there are already so many well written reviews out here. But I might add on it sooner or later. Just take this as a place holder until then. Eventually I just wish they would revive this series or remake it at least. Just like Microsoft is doing it with their series. It still works on a Windows 10 machine but the low resolution and 4:3 aspect ratio are holding the game back. I know the back story of Sierra Games and this series but there has to be someone who can do it and whoever currently owns the rights of this IP (Activision?) should look out for them.

While I hold fonder memories of Caesar 3, when it comes to Impression Games' masterpiece of city building, Zeus & Poseidon are alone at the top. While I would argue that Emperor (released after the Acropolis bundle and placed in China) would be the swan song for the company and stands easily with the former, Zeus is where Impression mastered the genre. Much needed fixes in regards to your citizens (or walkers) along with fantastic implimentation of both military, economical, and food engines make this game the most playable of all the past city builders. Unprecendented control is introduced allowing the building to zone and control each aspect of the city minimizing the somewhat idiocy of the computer AI in the past. The game tenor and art work however is where Zeus really shines. It takes a very light and enjoyable view of Greek mythology, making gods and heroes as bombastic and colorful as in any ancient myth. Lots of humor is injected into the gameplay making Zeus a very fun and relaxing game. The art work as well is a bit overblown, relying more on cartoonish fantasy for buildings and characters rather than the dry realism of the past games. Yet this is not to say the visuals are cheap and annoying, rather they accent and flow with the game brilliantly with artwork that is visually stunning. If you enjoy city building, or more specifically Impression's other games, you owe yourself to get this great pack!

This was and always will be my favourite game of all time. I played it when I was a kid and I go back to it every few months for that true feeling of nostalgia. It's so fun and engaging I can't quit it!