Anno 117: Pax Romana - new Anno game announced!

I can't believe it's been over 5 years since Anno 1800 came out. I remember being part of the beta tests and waiting anxiously for the game, DLCs and updates to be released.

Always right at dinner time. So I'd start the downloads before I sat down to eat and by the time dessert was done, so would the download be. Ah, those were the days!

Since the announcement a while back that no new DLCs would be released for Anno 1800, I've been... well, neglecting the game. Spending a lot of time at Manor Lords recently and SteamWorld Build before that. 

But! By (maybe) the end of 2025, that will change! Because boy oh boy, did Ubisoft just announce a biggy!

Anno 117: Pax Romana

"We're proud and excited to announce a new chapter for the Anno franchise," so says the Anno Union article posted today. 

Well guys, trust me: I'm as excited as you are!

In Anno 117: Pax Romana, we will become Roman governors in the year 117 AD.

Yes, you read it: 117 AD. 

It is the first time the Anno family will hurl us back in time before the middle ages! With Anno 1404 being the game in the earliest setting, Ubisoft suddenly went back 1300 years or so!

Release trailer

If you've watched the release trailer, you may have noticed a few things. 

First, it is a live action trailer. It can't mean that the game will be live action as well, but it's the first time they've ever released an Anno-trailer in live action. Way to step up, Ubisoft!

The setting seems to be mediterrenean. Which makes sense, with Anno 117 being dubbed Pax Romana, so in the Roman Empire. 

Lastly, there will also be ships. Hooray for ships! That means sea based... something.

Seeing as the Roman Empire spread out mainly across vast stretches of land, it's not too far fetched to assume that ships can be used to carry soldiers. But that would also mean that soldiers will have to travel across land and that countries/regions will have land borders, leading to land battles? 

Maybe, maybe baby!

Release announcement

In the release announcement, even more interesting things can be found. 

"Uncover the allure of Latium and Albion, the twin provinces under your stewardship as governor. Seize the opportunity to expand your influence and harness the unique advantages and challenges each province presents."

Now, this can be read in a number of ways. Would it mean we can only govern 2 provinces? Can we conquer more, or does the aim of the game revolve around these 2? 

The game promises a mix of city building, economy, diplomacy and military. That means there will be fighting!

Which brings us back to previous questions: will land based combat make a return? Can we conquer more provinces to unite under our rule? 

The map image shown at the Ubisoft Store page, does lead us to believe that the setting will in fact be mediterranean and there will be enough chances to expand. Why else would you show a full Roman empire in the artwork announcing the release?

There will also be a "solid narrative layer". Which is great news, as I particularly loved the narrative content and lore of the Enbasa region in Anno 1800, which was introduced in the Land of Lions DLC. 

Release date

Are you excited yet? I sure am!

Unfortunately there isn't a release date yet for Anno 117: Pax Romana. 

Ubisoft mentions it is planned to release in 2025. That's 365 possible release dates. 

That being said, it is more likely that it will be released early 2026. Sure, Past performance is no guarantee of future results, but Ubisoft's track record of previous releases aren't making us feel too great about their schedules and deadlines. 

With Anno 1800, it was scheduled for a Winter release in 2018, but it became Spring 2019.

Settlers: New Allies was postponed numerous times. For good reasons, but still. 

Skull and Bones was released in 2024 after having been in development for 9 years and initially scheduled for release in 2018. 

So no, I don't have high hopes to see Anno 117 being released in 2025. It should do, with 2+2+5 being 9 and all that...  

That doesn't mean that I'm any less excited about this announcement. Anno 117: Pax Romana is going to be on my wishlist for a long time and will be bought as soon as it's released.

Of course there will be written content posted on this very website with news, tips and tricks and tutorials as that information becomes available!