- Lion Shield x Hooded Horse Unveils New Rome-Set City Building Game
- The return of the Kingdoms & Castles development team… Positive reviews continue from the early stages of Early Access
Developer Lion Shield and publisher Hooded Horse officially released the ancient Rome-themed city-building game ‘Nova Roma’ on PC Early Access on March 26.
The game can be purchased on Steam, GOG, the Epic Games Store, and the Microsoft Store, and is also available to play via PC Game Pass. To celebrate the launch, a 20% discount is offered until April 9.
Leave the fallen empire and build a new Rome
Nova Roma is a city-building simulation that depicts the process of citizens leaving the declining Roman Empire to rebuild civilization in a new land. Players must lead a small group of citizens to expand the city by constructing ancient Roman structures such as aqueducts, temples, baths, and the Colosseum. Managing complex supply chains and fending off invaders is also a crucial element of development.
As a city grows, more citizens move in, and satisfying their diverse needs acts as a key element of urban development.
Dams, waterways, floods… He who controls the water controls the city.
A defining feature of Nova Roma is its sophisticated water resource management system. Players can control the flow of water through dams and waterways, and failure to manage them can result in the entire city suffering flood damage.
In addition, natural disaster systems such as rain, floods, and droughts, requested by users in the demo version, have been added, introducing new variables to city management. In particular, since water resource management affects agricultural productivity and soil fertility, meticulous city design is required rather than indiscriminate expansion.
Avoid the wrath of the gods and satisfy the desires of the citizens.
The game adds depth by combining a faith system with citizen management elements. Players must build temples and maintain the gods’ favor, and neglecting this can lead to various disasters.
Managing the citizens is also no easy task. It is necessary to satisfy the diverse needs of the people by establishing complex supply chains for fish, grain, pottery, and ironworks, while raising the military to defend the city from external invasion is also a crucial challenge.
Solid content structure despite being an early access version
This initial Early Access build includes small, medium, and large-scale maps encompassing both single terrain and multi-island configurations. Both Sandbox and Story modes will be available at launch, and most core components are already complete. The upcoming Early Access period will focus on expanding additional content and refining the game’s quality.
Users: ” Reawakened the fun of the city-building genre”
Overseas media outlets are generally giving positive reviews of ‘Nova Loma’.
Rock Paper Shotgun emphasized the tension created by the combination of faith and disaster elements, and PC Gamer evaluated that the sensibility of the previous game was well carried over. German media outlet GameStar introduced the game by stating, “Like Anno, you can build a new Rome on an island while enjoying the atmosphere of Caesar 3 and Timberborn’s dam system.”
Currently, it maintains a ‘Very Positive’ rating on Steam, with 97% of the 140 user reviews being positive.
An indie studio created by two friends Join hands with Hooded Horse
Lion Shield is an indie studio founded in 2016 by two high school friends, Peter Angstadt and Michael Peddicord, with a shared desire to create games.
Having distinguished itself in the indie city-building genre with its previous title, ‘Kingdoms & Castles,’ ‘Nova Roma’ is considered a work that further expands upon the experience gained from the previous title.
Nova Roma presents a new direction for the city-building genre by organically combining elements of water resource management, faith, and natural disasters. Having secured a high level of polish and positive reviews even in the Early Access stage, anticipation is building regarding how future updates will deliver enjoyment to users.
Nova Roma related information
| item | detail |
|---|---|
| Developer | Lion Shield |
| Publisher | Hooded Horse |
| Genre | City Building / Management Simulation |
| Release platform | PC (Steam, GOG, Epic Games, Microsoft Store / PC Game Pass) |
| Release date | March 26, 2026 (Early Access) |
| discount | 20% Off for Launch (Until April 9) |
| Main systems | Water Resource Management · Dams · Waterways / New System / Supply Chain / Barbarian Defense |
| Game Mode | Sandbox · Story Mode |
| Steam rating | Very positive (97%, 140 reviews) |
| Steam Page | store.steampowered.com/app/2426530/ |
