Citadelum News

Ave,

Julius Caesar’s Gallic Wars (58-50 BCE) remain a pivotal chapter in Roman history, a testament to his military genius and a catalyst for profound societal change in Gaul. More than mere territorial expansion, these campaigns were a brutal yet effective engine of Romanization, laying the groundwork for centuries of Roman dominance north of the Alps.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3480880/Citadelum_Campaign_IV_The_Gallic_Wars/

This period, meticulously documented in Caesar’s own Commentarii de Bello Gallico, which has been our main inspiration for Citadelum new content, offers invaluable insight into Roman military strategy, logistical prowess, and the complex interplay between conquest and cultural assimilation.

The Gallic Wars introduces a new biome, the autumn forest, which adds more variety to the game (on top of Peninsula Italica, Africa, Hispania, Snow and Swamps biomes). Enjoy a new region map, more challenging missions and battle scenarios set in Gallia, where you will confront the fearsome leader Vercingetorix.


Beyond the grand battles, the Gallic Wars were a relentless series of smaller conflicts, sieges of fortified oppida, and punitive expeditions. Caesar’s meticulous planning extended to logistics, ensuring a steady supply of provisions for his vast army, often operating deep within enemy territory. The construction of roads and bridges not only facilitated troop movement and communication but also became enduring symbols of Roman power and facilitated future trade and administration.


This historical background was perfect for a strategic new campaign, since Citadelum’s core is city building, with exploration, diplomacy (introduced in 2.0 “Julius” update), trade routes and military conflict as additional elements.
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/2603020/view/511827941447959581
The economic exploitation of Gaul was also a significant aspect of Romanization. The extraction of resources, including timber, minerals, and agricultural produce, enriched Rome and further integrated Gaul into the Roman economic system. Trade flourished along Roman-built roads and waterways, exposing Gauls to Roman goods and practices. This economic integration, while benefiting Rome, also spurred urbanization and the development of new economic opportunities within Gaul, albeit under Roman control.


We hope you enjoy this new free content for Citadelum. And we want to thank you for the positive reviews, the wishlists and game sales. We are already working on upcoming DLCs, improvements and content. Leave us your feedback, and join Abylight Page on Steam to learn about new bundles, discounts, content coming to our games.
Roma Victrix.

Changelog:

• Economic balancing across all missions: We've adjusted the starting money to align with the new mechanics introduced in the latest update.
  
• Fix: Resolved some issues with Simplified Chinese translations, such as missing characters.
  
• Fix: Fixed a problem where building production upgrades were not applied correctly when the city's technology level increased.
  
• Fix: Markets no longer lose their resource selection when the city's technology level is upgraded.
  

Ave, citizens of Rome.

With the release of Update 2.0 of Citadelum (Devlog XVII: RUBICON Huge gameplay update and new features in Citadelum) we have dedicated much of the efforts to improve the optimization. At the end of the devlog you will find the complete list of improvements.

[h2]Setup[/h2]
In order to better understand the comparisons and the data obtained, it should be taken into account:

• The settings used for version 1.1 are all maxed out, including Anti-Aliasing, at a resolution of 1920x1080.
  
  
• The settings used for version 2.0 are all active and in Ultra quality, and here we have made two tests: without Anti-Aliasing and with Anti-Aliasing SSAA.
  
  
• The test is divided into a total of 12 measurements in different biomes (Italy, Desert and Snow) and spots in the game:
  
  
  
  • Empty (Italy, Desert, Snow): this is an empty map, just as you would start a game.
    
  • Worldmap (Italy, Desert, Snow): view with the zoom out to the maximum of the worldmap.
    
  • Big City (Italy, Desert, Snow): map with a city between 800 and 1000 citizens and all the infrastructure set up.
    
  • Battle (Italy, Desert, Snow): view on the battlefield.
    

[h2]Tests results[/h2]
The test has been performed on 6 different computers, you will find the specifications next to each test. The same game saves have been used for all tests.

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[h2]Graphic comparison[/h2]
Below you can see a comparison of how Citadelum looked and how it looks now, even after having made adjustments to improve optimization.

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[h2]Changelog[/h2]

• Level of detail: we have added 2 levels of LODs to environmental elements such as trees and rocks to reduce the polygon load when making an overview of the settlement.
  
• Mesh optimization: we have reduced the number of polygons of objects and characters to free up GPU load without any perceived loss of quality.
  
• Improved loading times: we have optimized the data loading routines to reduce loading times.
  
• Avoid unnecessary memory reservations: we have optimized some processes to reuse already reserved memory to avoid creating garbage that would collapse the collector.
  
• Caching building search processes: We have expanded and improved the caching systems to ensure that costly building search processes are only executed when necessary.
  
• Avoid invalidation of caches: cases where building search caches are invalidated have been cleaned up to make them valid for much longer periods of time.
  
• Revise algorithms to avoid or replace costly processes.
  
• Disable features in materials if they are not used: we have found materials that used shader functionalities that consumed precious GPU cycles without being necessary and we have disabled them.
  
• Avoid data copies in frequently used methods: many methods now receive data by reference, instead of by value, when it is possible and makes sense. This saves unnecessary data copies and potentially frees up a little more CPU.
  
• Avoid running animation events on distant characters: when we know that it is not possible to hear a sound because it is too far away, we now do not even try to play it, thus saving resources.
  

Ave, citizens of Rome,

It's been six months since the launch of Citadelum, and from our team, Abylight Barcelona, we want to thank the trust and commitment of all those players who have already built their own Roman empire with us.


We have listened to the feedback from the community, and worked hard to offer you a new version of the game; Citadelum 2.0 Julius is a free update that adds new gameplay options, more depth to the management and construction of the cities and introduces new buildings and mechanics. In addition, this update is accompanied by a technical optimization (Devlog XVIII: AUREUS) that improves the game performance on a wide range of PCs.

With this crossing of the Rubicon, Citadelum begins a new stage. Our strategy and city building game is even better and bigger, thanks to you. Below you can read the complete list of improvements that have been added in this new version. This is just one more step in the ascent of the game. We continue to work to make it the game that satisfies all players, both strategy fans and those who want to get started in the genre.

Roma Victrix

[h2]New resources and production buildings[/h2]
Now you can extract Salt and Clay, and produce Olives, Oil, Clay Bricks, Ceramics, Cheese and Honey in your settlement.

New resources:

New production buildings:


[h2]More complex production chains[/h2]
Some products such as Bread now need to combine two resources (Wheat and Salt).


[h2]Technology improvements[/h2]
Upgrading the technological level of your city will improve the performance of your buildings and increase the capacity of your warehouses. Thus, when you reach a certain prestige in your city, the possibility of increasing your technological level in exchange for materials will appear in your city's forum.



[h2]Diplomatic relations with cities[/h2]
The better relationship you have with each city, the better prices you will have to trade and the more troops you will be able to recruit from them.


[h2]Secondary missions[/h2]
Periodically the different councilors of the city will make requests to be fulfilled in a period of time. If they are fulfilled on time you will get benefits but if not... there will be punishments.



[h2]Trials[/h2]
Once you have built the Palace of Justice, you will have to make decisions about incidents that affect your city. In each trial you will be presented with two decisions, each one with its consequences (they can be positive and negative). It is important to keep the level of justice high as it influences the town's favor.


[h2]Health system improvements[/h2]
We have introduced several important changes in the health of the population. Now the health of your town depends on two factors:

• Salubrity: frequently dead people will appear in your settlement, either by natural death or by some violent event such as assassinations or revolts. These dead will remain in the streets lowering the health of your town. To keep the streets clean it is important to build Morgues that cover all of your inhabited areas.
  
  
• Health in the houses: to maintain the health of your houses to the maximum it is important that they are covered by maintenance buildings and medical centers.
  

[h2]Gods improvements.[/h2]
The relationship with the gods has undergone two important changes based on the feedback you have been reporting:

• Regia and pontiffs: we have added a new building that allows you to automate the festivals of the gods. You can even prioritize the gods you need the most at any given moment.
  
• Sacrifices can no longer be made at any time. You will only be able to make sacrifices when your faith level is very low. Thus we have put an end to the exploit of the pigs.
  

[h2]Construction of wonders[/h2]
We have added 3 new wonders that besides being huge and beautiful, will increase the desirability of your city.



[h2]Simulation mode added for battle confrontations[/h2]
Now you have the possibility to simulate each battle without the need to play it. As you add troops for the confrontation you will see a bar that will determine the probability of victory.


[h2]New achievements[/h2]

• A budding architect: Build your first wonder
  
• Wonderful: Build all 3 wonders in the same game
  
• Divine revelry: Get a pontiff to organize the festivals
  
• Enlightenment and progress: Upgrade the technology level of your city to level 3
  
• Peace in the beyond: Give burial to 50 deceased
  
• Unbreakable alliance: Get an excellent relationship with all cities on the map
  

[h2]New languages[/h2]
Polish and Catalan are added to English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Brazilian Portuguese and Italian.

[h2]Quality of life improvements[/h2]

• New filter in the construction mode that shows you similar buildings.
  
• With shift + click to assign workers.
  

[h2]Other improvements[/h2]

• We have adjusted how the different factors influencing the people's Favor were calculated, such as the unemployment rate or the crime rate, so that unfair situations do not occur for the player.
  
• We have improved the revolts: now they are more visible, being able to see citizens with torches walking the streets and burning buildings.
  
• We have added new Anti-aliasing options.
  
• We have fixed some terrain chunks where the valid points to build were wrongly configured.
  
• We have updated the tutorials with new explanations of everything included in the update. You can see all of them from the pause menu.
  
• We have fixed a bug that caused that when rebuilding any previously destroyed warehouse it did not keep the filters it had applied.
  To see the changes affecting optimization take a look at devlog XVIII: AUREUS.
  

So far, on top of this huge update, in the first six months of Citadelum we have published two additional free DLCs:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3358500/Citadelum_Campaign_II_The_Last_Conqueror_of_Britannia/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3450060/Citadelum_Campaign_III_The_Lost_Eagles_of_Germania/

Including new, more challenging missions and two new biomes: snow and swamps in new territories. And we are still working on further content for the game, that you will be able to enjoy very soon.

Hail, citizens of Rome. We are pleased to announce that the free DLC for Citadelum, The Lost Eagles of Germania is now available on Steam (and coming soon on GOG). It is a complete new campaign, in which to experience one of the most delicate moments in the history of Rome.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3450060/Citadelum_Campaign_III_The_Lost_Eagles_of_Germania/

For the first time in Citadelum, we move to a new biome, the swamps of Germania, to take on the most challenging missions that have appeared so far: the construction of new cities on the borders of the empire, the battle of Teutoburg, in which the Roman legions suffered a serious defeat, the loss of the eagles that served as a banner... and revenge, along with the troops of General Germanicus.



This additional content, free for all players, includes a series of gameplay improvements and new features:

• New campaign with additional missions, more challenging and deeper.
  
• New language, Italian (translation made by the community).
  
• Added “retry” option if the player ends up in game over.
  
• New objectives for the missions have been added: Obtain the blessing of all gods, defend yourself from a number of attacks, generate a number of denarii through trade routes, generate denarii by selling resources.
  
• We have also added time limited missions, these must be completed in a number of days.
  
• Fixed a bug that could freeze the game if a game event coincided with the summoning of a god.
  
• Fixed a bug that caused rebuilding a destroyed structure did not acquire the visual level that corresponded to the prestige of the city.
  
• Fixed a bug that caused that when using the demolish tool on a destroyed building, it returned resources.
  

Please, enjoy the new free campaign The Lost Eagles of Germania, consider leaving a positive review on Steam to reach new players and join Abylight Studios on Steam to get the latest news on our games, sales and discounts.

We want to share the team is already working on a huge gameplay update with new gameplay features and several free DLCs with new content set in historical moments of ancient Rome.

Ave, citizens of Rome. Two months after the release of Citadelum, our strategy and city building game set in ancient Rome, we want to celebrate with you the release of a new free content for our game: The Last Conqueror of Britannia.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3358500/Citadelum_Campaign_II_The_Last_Conqueror_of_Britannia

In this new campaign, players will follow the conquest of the northern lands, in the footsteps of the general Julius Cnaeus Agricola, facing the barbarian tribes of Caledonia and building new settlements as the armies of Rome advance northwards along the coast.



The Last Conqueror of Britannia is a new historical campaign, which will allow players to face more challenging strategic situations in a new biome: the snow. As requested by the Senate and people of Rome, our community, there will be missions in which to face new objectives, more scarce resources and more cunning enemies.



Along with this new free content for Citadelum, the game will add new performance improvements, bugfixing and additional features.

Citadelum Campaign II: The Last Conqueror of Britannia is now available to all players. Rome Victrix.