''Annals of Rome'' is a

turn-based strategy A turn-based strategy (TBS) game is a strategy game (usually some type of wargame, especially a strategic-level wargame) where players take turns when playing. This is distinguished from real-time strategy (RTS), in which all players play si ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

developed and published by

Personal Software Services Personal Software Services (PSS) was a British software company based in Coventry, founded by Gary Mays and Richard Cockayne in 1981. The company was acquired by Mirrorsoft in 1987. PSS produced video games for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Ami ...

. It was first released in the United Kingdom for the

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as the ''ZX81 Colou ...

Amstrad CPC The Amstrad CPC (short for ''Colour Personal Computer'') is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Si ...

and Atari ST in 1986. It was then released in Germany for the Commodore 64 and Amiga in 1987 and 1988, respectively. The game is set in the late

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

, with the objective being to survive for as long as possible against rebelling European states.

Gameplay

The game is played in two windows. The first is the troops movement window, which allows the player to control the placement of troops in the

Roman state In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–50 ...

or to attack computer players. This window shows the number of forces for all players,

inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...

, popularity and national score of the

, and human player score. The last step for the player in this window is to set the tax rate, between 1.0 and 2.0% (higher taxes cause higher inflation). In the next window, the player decides which of the 21 Senate members will receive command of the various Roman armies. To help the player in making this decision, all Senate members are listed with numbers, the first two indicating their military ability and loyalty, respectively. The last number indicates their age. If the government's

popularity In sociology, popularity is how much a person, idea, place, item or other concept is either liked or accorded status by other people. Liking can be due to reciprocal liking, interpersonal attraction, and similar factors. Social status can be ...

falls below 2 (popularity is measured within a range between -5 and +5), armies with disloyal commanders can revolt and try to take Rome. If this happens before 50 BC, the successful rebel will be declared

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in tim ...

, and if this happens after, he will become

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

, which will lead to a dynasty.

Reception

Despite poor graphics and interface even for 1986, ''Annals of Rome'' received an 85% rating from ''Crash'' magazine in 1987.PSS catalogue In November 1986, ''Popular Computing Weekly'' called the game a "perfect choice if you take your strategy games seriously". Because of such popularity, the game received conversion to all computer platforms in its day. Originally, Personal Software Services released the game for C-64, Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Atari ST (platforms until September 1987) followed by versions for PC and Amiga. Today, the game has been considered a forgotten classic.Mobby about Annals of Rome
/ref> '' Computer Gaming World'' gave the game a positive review, noting innovative mechanics such as the variable turn length. The review noted that the game felt unfinished and unpolished, citing the lack of victory conditions and poor save mechanism. In 1990 the magazine gave the game three-plus out of five stars, stating that despite the poor graphics and seemingly incomplete nature, "it succeeds on many levels", especially the superior 16-bit versions. In 1993 the magazine gave the game two-plus stars.

Orson Scott Card Orson Scott Card (born August 24, 1951) is an American writer known best for his science fiction works. He is the first and (as of 2022) only person to win both a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award in consecutive years, winning both awards for both ...

wrote in ''

Compute! ''Compute!'' (), often stylized as ''COMPUTE!'', was an American home computer magazine that was published from 1979 to 1994. Its origins can be traced to 1978 in Len Lindsay's ''PET Gazette'', one of the first magazines for the Commodore PET ...

'' that ''Annals of Rome''s programmers did an excellent job of recreating Roman history, but that sales would suffer because it "looks like it was programmed in the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

References

{{Reflist, 2 1986 video games Amiga games Amstrad CPC games Atari ST games Commodore 64 games DOS games Turn-based strategy video games War video games set in Europe ZX Spectrum games Video games set in the Roman Empire Video games set in antiquity Personal Software Services games Video games developed in the United Kingdom Single-player video games