Nova Roma is out in Early Access on PC and Game Pass

Developer Lion Shield and publisher Hooded Horse have launched Nova Roma into Early Access on PC. The Roman-themed city builder is available today for Windows and macOS. Players can pick it up on Steam, play it through PC Game Pass, or grab a DRM-free copy directly from GOG.

I remember seeing the initial reveal for this project during the PC Gaming Show back in 2023. We got a brief taste of it during a free demo last December. Now the core loop is fully playable. You are tasked with establishing a brand new Roman settlement from scratch. The primary goal is to build a thriving metropolis while managing complex supply chains and keeping your citizens fed.

Three developers and a lot of aqueducts

Lion Shield is a remarkably small team. They previously developed Kingdoms and Castles, a cozy medieval city builder that quietly built a massive audience over several years of updates. For this new project, they partnered with Hooded Horse. That publisher has completely cornered the market on deep strategy and simulation games recently. They are the same company behind massive hits like Manor Lords and Against the Storm.

The jump from medieval times to antiquity brings new mechanical challenges. Water management is a core part of the simulation. You have to construct working aqueducts and dams to control the flow of water into your city. The physics system actually simulates the water flow. If your infrastructure fails or you plan your layout poorly, the water will overflow and flood your carefully placed residential blocks. It adds a layer of geographical puzzle-solving to the usual zoning and road placement.

Appeasing the gods

You also have to deal with the divine. The game requires you to actively appease various gods to prevent disasters or secure blessings for your harvest. You build grand temples and dedicate resources to keep the pantheon happy. At the same time, you are enacting laws to maintain order among the mortal populace.

It is not an entirely peaceful sandbox. Your new settlement will face military raids from factions of "Old Rome" that want to see your upstart city crumble. You have to build up defenses and train soldiers to survive those incursions. It is a balancing act between military spending and civic expansion.

DRM-free under new ownership

The GOG release is a nice bonus for preservation-minded players. The storefront has gone through some major corporate shifts recently. CD Projekt sold GOG to co-founder Michał Kiciński in December 2025. Despite the change in ownership, the platform is still maintaining its core identity.

Early Access strategy games usually spend a year or two cooking before hitting version 1.0. Lion Shield already proved they can support a game long-term with their previous title. The foundation here looks solid for anyone who wants to spend their weekend optimizing grain shipments and praying to Jupiter.