Anno 1404:Venice
Underhanded... The Anno franchise gets nasty by Walt Pretorius
gamecca preview • issue 9 • March 2010
chilled in terms of rushing around, in fact. But fans of the original game will certainly want to get hold of this new expansion, which is filled with subtle intrigue and more stuff to do. It’s really worth the effort.. g
AT A GLANCE: Underhanded moves and shadowy politics do a lot to enrich the Anno experience with this expansion. Developer: Related Designs Publisher: Ubisoft Distributor: Megarom
Parental Advisory Violence Language Sex Drug Use Prejudice
6+
Accessibility Hard-Core Medium Casual
PC Platforms
W
hile one sometimes expects cosmetic changes when a game expansion is released, occasionally the things that bubble under the surface are far more intriguing… and beneficial. Take the expansion for Ubisoft’s pedantic colonisation and management title, Anno 1404. Simple subtitled Venice, this expansion brings a lot more to the table. Aside from a new Venetian setting and feel to certain buildings, the game also has a few new dynamics, just to keep things interesting. Two new ship types have been included to the mix, as well as around 300 new quests and two new quest types; trading races and ship boarding. New volcanic islands have also been added, just to keep the player on their toes. Most impressive, though is the addition of town councils and espionage. The game has become much more political – almost Machiavellian – in terms of taking other players towns over by dominating town councils and establishing secret cabinets to oversee infiltration and sabotage. Naturally, online multiplayer is necessary to truly enjoy these activities. As a multiplayer game, Anno 1404: Venice isn’t particularly fast paced… the whole game is quite
PC X360 PS3 Wii PSP DS PS2
Score
79 87