Proto:Pharaoh (Windows)

This page details one or more prototype versions of Pharaoh (Windows).

It is unknown when this Demo was released, but the executable is dated August 9th, 1999. The final game was released around October 31st, 1999.

Title Screen

Demo	Final

The title screen was redone and the developer's logo was added.

Main Menu

Demo	Final

The menu option City Construction Kit does not seem to do anything.

Load Saved Game also does not do anything, since you cannot save games in the demo in the first place.

Quit Game was changed to Quit.

Mission Select

When choosing Play Demo, you are presented the following screen.

There are three missions in the demo.

• When choosing Predynastic Period (start here), you play the missions Nubt (Naqada) and Thinis.
• When choosing Archaic Period, you play the mission Perwadjyt (Buto). The demo description states that this mission was created especially for the demo.

HUD

Demo	Final

If it wasn't noticeable before, the text graphics are entirely black in the demo. For some reason, the money (Db 6750) is shown in bold. The final version improved the text by adding a shine effect.

The demo's Advisors was changed to Overseers.

On the right side of the screen, unavailable icons are darkened in the demo, but "grayed out" in the final game.

The "undo" and "go to trouble spots" buttons in the bottom right were kept the same. But the other options were changed:

• In the final game, the opened scroll icon shows messages and the hieroglyphic Ankh icon shows the mission assignment.
• In the demo, the scroll icon (which is closed) shows the mission assignment. The person above the scroll shows messages. And the locust is supposed to let you go to disasters. Maybe it was removed since trouble spots and disasters are essentially the same.

Also note the mini map has different graphics and it shows out of bounds tiles in the demo. While out of bounds tiles do also exist in the final game in all maps, they are generally omitted on the mini map.

Audio Differences

Every single audio file is different. Some have had their quality and length changed while others have been redone from scratch. In the final game, background music and building sounds are higher quality/filesize but voicelines are lower quality/filesize. Some of the more noticeable differences are listed here.

	Demo	Final
brick_e01
buyer_e01
cart_e01
fanfare1
ferry_land
police
reed_e01

Graphical Differences

Help Text

Demo	Final

Warning

Demo	Final

Walkers

Demo	Final

The spaces for Hippos, Crocodiles, Birds, Librarians etc. were left blank or contained a number in the demo (as is the case with the Hunter above), before the graphics were added in the final version.

Empire Map

Demo	Final

Note that you cannot go to the empire map in the demo. The image can be found in the game's files.

Tutorial Cards

Some concepts and usage of sprites were not quite finalized in earlier versions.

Demo	Final
	Immigrants use a new sprite that resembles a family, the previous sprite was recycled and is used for emigrants instead.
Somehow, farms used to be placed next to flood plains...	...instead of on them.
Wood used to be transported into what we know is a Temple to Seth in the final version.	Materials are transported to Storage Yards instead.
Water Lifts used to send walkers to water Meadow Farms.	This concept was replaced by using Irrigation Ditches.
The demo used a different graphic for meat.	Also, there are subtle differences with the Bazaar graphic...
Jugglers' Booths used to look differently. The tutorial card also suggests that Jugglers keep going after they are done presenting their show...	...which isn't the case in the final game.
Walkers were supposed to move on top of Ferry Landings.	In the final game, walkers halt in front of the building.
Either Temples used to have a different look, or there was supposed to be a separate building that trains and sends out Priests.	The final game's Temples are taller.
Clay Pits, Clay and Pottery used to look differently.	Also note the difference with the overseer's space in the Storage Yard.

HUD

Caesar III	Demo (Unused)	Final (Unused)	Demo (Used)	Final (Used)
This HUD seems to be taken from Caesar III. It can be found in Pharaoh's game files.	This appears to be a "first draft" version for Pharaoh, using Caesar III's marble texture. It isn't used in the demo.	It was "translated" into the familiar Pharaoh style, but still wasn't used.	This is a more final version of the HUD, which was used in the demo.	There doesn't seem to be a HUD image for this version in the game's files. This image is taken from a screenshot instead.

Text Differences

To do: Compare Thinis Mission Assigment. Compare Advisors/Overseers menu.

Mission Assignments

Some rephrasing, Your story was changed to Our story, and some hints from the demo version's assignment text were moved to separate windows that would appear during gameplay in the final version.

Nubt
Demo	Final
Welcome to ancient Egypt, land of the Pharaohs! Here you'll participate (...) and beyond. Your story begins along the banks of the Nile river, in an area known as Nubt, where a small confederacy of clans struggles to eke out an existence in the harsh environment. With you at its head, your family leads this small settlement. The first things this village will need are housing, to provide settlers with a suitable place to live, and a network of paths, to allow its eventual inhabitants to find their way around easily and efficiently. ((Some illustrations and notes follow, to tell the player about using paths. In the final game, these tips show up as separate windows after the mission starts.))	Welcome to ancient Egypt, land of the Pharaohs! Here you'll participate (...) and beyond. Our story begins more than five thousand years ago, along the banks of the Nile river, in an area known as Nubt. Here a small confederacy of clans struggles to eke out an existence in the harsh environment. With you at its head, your family leads this small settlement

Buildings

Capitalization changes, spacing changes and grammar fixes:

Demo	Final
Senet house Juggler school Small statue Storage yard Police station ...	Senet House Juggler School Small Statue Storage Yard Police Station ...
Carpenters guild Bricklayers guild Stonemasons guild	Carpenters' Guild Bricklayers' Guild Stonemasons' Guild
Road block Floodplain	Roadblock Flood plain

Various cases of renamings:

Vacant lot Engineers' post Stone quarry Large temple Ferry Dance Stage Juggler Booth Dance Studio Entertainment Square Large Pavilion	Unoccupied Architect's Post Plain Stone Quarry Temple Complex Ferry Landing Pavilion Booth Dance School Bandstand Pavilion
Small mansion Medium mansion Large mansion Small palace Medium palace Large palace	Personal Mansion Family Mansion Dynasty Mansion Village Palace Town Palace City Palace
Small hut Large hut Small shanty Large shanty Small cottage Large cottage Small homestead Large homestead Small apartment Large apartment Small residence Medium residence Large residence Grand residence Small manor Medium manor Large manor Grand manor Estate Palatial estate	Crude Hut Sturdy Hut Meager Shanty Common Shanty Rough Cottage Ordinary Cottage Modest Homestead Spacious Homestead Modest Apartment Spacious Apartment Common Residence Spacious Residence Elegant Residence Fancy Residence Common Manor Spacious Manor Elegant Manor Stately Manor Modest Estate Palatial Estate

Two bridges are listed, apparent holdovers from Caesar III.

Low bridge Ship bridge

Bridge unused 948

More names of buildings that didn't make it into the game. The Triumphal Arch and Mission Post come from Caesar III.

Triumphal arch (not used?) Mission post (not used?) Plateau (not used?) Anti plateau (not used?)

unused 921 unused 945 unused 985 unused 987

This string can be found within the text entries. It was replaced by Plain Stone Quarry, so it might have been an early name for it.

Alabaster quarry (not used?)

Buildings

Early Bandstand & Pavilion

When placing a Bandstand or Pavilion, the game does not place any plazas along with it.

Temple Complex Road Structure

When demolishing a Large Temple (which later came to be known as Temple Complex), it will leave a road structure behind for some reason.

Missions

Nubt

Demo	Final

You start out with 6750 Deben in the demo and 5000 Deben in the final version.

The general layout of the map was kept the same; Most trees have been removed, making it easier for new players to start building a town.

Note that flood plains are a brighter color in the demo.

Thinis

To do: Compare demo and final version.

Perwadjyt

To do: Describe it.

Miscellaneous

• When starting a mission, reeds are not fully grown in the demo. They need some time to grow first. The final version starts missions with reeds fully grown.
• The difficulty setting window lets you toggle "god effects". The final game removed this option.
• When right-clicking on animals and displaying the help text, it shows a blank page.