Neo Atlas 1469 allows you to explore and create the world around you. You approve or disapprove your admirals findings, and find new treasures and trade routes to dominate the trade world in the 15th century. The world is yours to discover and create.
The Tip and The Top
Neo Atlas 1469 offers a unique perspective on world exploration. The world around you is unknown, and you are in charge of a trading company that’s looking to expand and find new trade routes and treasures. Outside of Europe, the world is covered in a fog of war, and can only discovered after you send out your admirals to explore. When they return back to port, they report back their findings, and it’s up to you to approve or disapprove what they reported. The world is shaped based on their reports. Maybe there’s a new continent found,new treasures uncovered, or a new path through a straight that will make trade routes much easier. It’s up to you if you like the world that is found or if you want to send out your admirals again to revise their findings. The world you create could be similar to our known world, or it could be totally different. It’s all up to you. This makes each game a bit different every time you play, and no two worlds will be exactly the same.
The basic game play is easy to pick up on. You have a fleet of ships that you can purchase, and as you explore, you find new blueprints for ships to buy. You can send out your admirals to explore new areas or, if you find new areas, you can them out to investigate the new areas which can reveal new treasures. You also recruit new admirals as you go through the game, and each admiral has their own specialty. For instance, one admiral might be better at sea battles and you’d want to send them out to investigate pirate ships. Another admiral might be better suited for diving and discovering treasures hidden in sunken ships.
Finding new treasures allows you to set up new trade routes which is the main purpose of the game. Trading goods between two different cities uncovers new items as well. If you find metal rings and pearls, setting up a trade route between the two cities where these wares are found will allow you to create pearl rings. Mixing different materials adds a different element of exploration and making money, as certain products may be more profitable than others.
Underlining all this is the story. You are sent out by the king of Portugal to find the new trade route to the “Land of Gold”. As you explore, new episodes of the story unfold. The king also gives you a commission based on your progress. The more you explore the more money he gives you after each year to help you with your quest. While the story helps move things along, it never feels like you are forced through the story, and you can explore the world as you desire.
The game also has RPG elements. As you explore and investigate the world with your admirals, they gain levels in different categories. The world is not without danger as you can run into pirates that will threaten your trade routes or potentially the fearsome Kraken that will attack your ship and stop your progress. There are even plagues you have to worry about, and your trade ships can spread disease from one city to another if you don’t take care of the issue.
The Flip and The Flop
The tutorial is long in the game and for good reason. There is a lot to learn in the game, but there is no way to access those tutorials again. While the game isn’t overly complicated, there are some aspects that you might want brush up on through the tutorial again. It’s not a deal breaker, but it would have been a nice touch to have the tutorials available to you.
Final Grade: B+
Exploring in Neo Atlas 1469 and creating the world around you is extraordinarily interesting. Finding new treasures, creating new products, and setting up new trade routes is a lot of fun. If you like games like Civilization or if you like historical games, this one will be right up your alley. With the physical release now available on the Nintendo Switch, this is certainly something you should consider adding to your collection.
Review code provided by NIS America
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