Back in the 90s, when I was in school, I had a game on my home PC called Gospodar. The idea was simple: you have 10 years to rule. You plant crops, buy land, feed your people, and wait for new settlers. I could play it for hours.
My dad was totally into it too. He quickly figured out the math and could sit there managing the kingdom for ages. We would often discuss how much grain to save for planting and how much to give to the people.
Years later, I found out it was actually the classic game Hamurabi. The code was written in BASIC back in 1973, and the original dates all the way back to 1968! The developers of the version I played just changed the name and the setting, but kept the original rules.
I always had warm memories about it and wanted to play it again. I tried finding modern versions online, but they just weren't fun. They were either pure text or had broken logic that made it way too easy to win.
I usually build websites and apps, but this time I thought, why not recreate this game from scratch exactly the way I want it?
I decided to stick to the original, keeping the Hamurabi name and the Babylon setting. I found the classic formulas online, built the engine, ran it, and realized something. My childhood memory was actually a pretty simple game. When you are an adult, those 10 years don't feel like a lifetime anymore, and the mechanics are too obvious.
I played it many times and figured out what needed to change. The original game was a bit repetitive and the math was too simple. You could get the highest score just by getting lucky in the final year.
So, I made the math a bit harder. Now, just saving up grain until year 10 is not enough for a good ending. The game tracks the stability of your rule over the whole period. It checks how population growth matches your land expansion, if there were any sudden crashes, and how well you handled crises. The cost of a mistake is much higher now.
Winning is not easy anymore. But it is possible, even if you accidentally starve a few dozen people along the way (tested it myself 😅).
Aside from the logic, I also updated the visuals. I generated some graphics and music, and added a few languages. It is a web app, so you can play it in any browser on your computer or phone. There are no registrations or accounts. Your progress is automatically saved right in your browser, so you can stop anytime and continue later.
I hope those who remember the classic Hamurabi get a nice feeling of nostalgia. And if you have never heard of it, this is a great chance to touch a piece of gaming history.
You can try your hand at ruling Babylon here: https://hammurabi.webixsoft.com