Anno 117: Pax Romana

Anno 117: Pax Romana offers a deeper experience despite keeping its core gameplay formula intact. The additions of research, gods, and cultural elements expand player choices and enhance progression alongside familiar population systems. Players have more freedom than ever, especially in sandbox mode, while the campaign provides a guided but worthwhile story experience. Minor bugs and missing decorations don’t detract from what is an engaging and richly atmospheric Roman and Celtic economic city-builder.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a remarkably expansive game that I can sit and play for hours, even with its little notifications telling me to take a break. This is one of the best games I've played all year. There is a great deal of depth and customization that really showcases player choice and creativity, with an unbeatable replayability.

Pax Romana is not only the most beautiful, but also the most profound ‘Anno’ game of all time. During the epic journey with Anno 1800, Ubisoft Mainz perfected its art, and the sequel tops this development. Fortunately, not everything is quite perfect yet, because we want to enjoy the upcoming DLCs as well. Anyone who thought that the ancient world was a rather dull topic is mistaken: Anno 117: Pax Romana brings the fascination of this era to life in every single minute.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a worthy successor that captivates with new building options, a proven economy system, and the classic Anno satisfaction of watching your citizens thrive.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a wonderfully engaging, deep and satisfying strategy experience that will keep players, both new and old, engaged for dozens, if not hundreds of hours as they become a Governor in Ancient Rome.

117: Pax Romana is a solid city builder that offers all the tools needed to build the Rome we imagine, raising the bar for one of the best sagas in the genre.

Masterful Roman-themed city-builder with deep gameplay systems for enthusiasts and an accessible story campaign for casuals.

With Anno 117: Pax Romana, Ubisoft Mainz proves it is possible to evolve a beloved formula without losing its identity. The move to Antiquity is more than a new setting. It reshapes building, trade, resource hierarchy, cultural balance and even city planning thanks to diagonal roads and more uneven terrain. It is not as disruptive as Anno 1800 was at the time, but it improves several essential systems. Flexible needs make each run smoother. The Roman and Celtic coexistence gives regions a stronger personality. The huge research tree adds long-term strategic depth. The visual direction is stunning and brings a rare elegance to the whole experience. Some parts still need work, such as land battles or certain UI details, but these limits never overshadow the core experience. Anno 117 remains a rich and captivating city-builder. It is more than a simple return to the past. It stands as a solid and promising new chapter for one of the strongest management series of the last decades.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a veritable feast of improvements over not only its predecessors but the whole genre. There are occasionally obtuse moments, but these minor issues are overshadowed by improvements at every possible turn. If you’re looking for your next city builder, this is it.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a delightful strategy game that combines so many cool elements (building, production, combat, diplomacy) that you can lose yourself in it for dozens of hours. It's the kind of game that could almost become a hobby in itself. The two settings (Romans and Albion) aren't dramatically different, but offer enough variety to allow for truly diverse gameplay. Pax Romana is well-designed graphically and runs without any significant issues, even on a less powerful PC (we played with a 2070GTX).

Anno 117 somehow feels like both a natural progression of the franchise that took all of the seasons of DLC and quality of life updates from the previous title and a big, bold swing to keep the title as the defining game in the genre. If you’re looking for a reason to think about the Roman Empire every day, Anno 117: Pax Romana is that. The gameplay is easy to learn but challenging to master, and in terms of bringing new audiences to Anno, I think this can do it, without overwhelming them with the systems. Still, that depth and challenge are there for those seeking it, especially for those among us with hundreds of hours in one save.

Overall, you’re coming to it after 1800, 1404, or others. It’s a good game with great mechanics taken from its predecessors that haven’t aged a bit, and you can expect to find an awesome experience that is only bound to get better as Ubisoft inevitably expands it with more content and DLCs.

Though not exactly gentle on new players, Anno 117: Pax Romana is not only one of the most stunning city-builders I have ever played, but it is also extremely rewarding.

One of the best Anno games, focusing more on evolution than revolution, and a strong contender for strategy game of the year.

A richly polished evolution of Anno 1800 that deepens empire-building through the dual-province system, strategic cultural choices, and stronger diplomacy, though its complexity and demanding resource management can overwhelm at times, ultimately delivering an engrossing and highly replayable strategy experience.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a sequel that really delivers — which wasn’t easy, considering how good Anno 1800 was. The game feels more modern overall, and the new setting brings in fresh mechanics that don’t completely change the formula, but definitely make it feel different and exciting again for longtime fans. The land battles aren’t super deep strategically, but they’re fun from a management point of view — and that’s what really counts. As a city builder, this is the best Anno so far: you can finally build diagonally, and your citizens now react to shortages in a much stronger and more dramatic way than before.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a gorgeous antique city-builder that sucked me in for dozens of hours as I planned out my next district or simply watched the bustle along my aqueduct-accented boulevards. I think this series and I were always destined to hit it off, but we kept missing each other or meeting up at the wrong times. I really get Anno now, and I could hardly be more enthused. The fantastic, deep trade system with a side of exciting naval combat really seals the deal. I could take or leave the campaign, but I still don't think I've run out of things to do in the highly customizable endless mode. It may not quite be fit for a triumph, but is certainly worthy of a standing ovation.

New ideas, mechanics and a fresh setting combined with the known and loved formula of Anno provide an accomplished tightrope walk.

Anno 117: Pax Romana continues the series' steady forward stride, refining an already well-established design while introducing new systems that genuinely refresh the experience. It delivers a layer of novelty that sets it apart from previous entries, without losing the strategic depth that defines the franchise.

Anno 117: Pax Romana brings the series confidently into Ancient Rome with polished visuals, smart city-building systems, and a richly realized setting. Its refreshed mechanics and strong sense of place make it a rewarding and atmospheric return for fans of the franchise.

Anno 117: Pax Romana takes the series into fertile new historical territory and is one of the best games in the Anno franchise, as well as being one of the most enjoyable city builder sims in recent memory. Polished, incredibly detailed, and beautiful to look at, Anno 117 hides imposing systems depth and complexity behind a relatively accessible interface. Like the Roman Empire itself, the game is a perfect platform for inevitable expansion. Meanwhile, there’s plenty of quality content for fans of the genre.

Anno 117: Pax Romana marks a triumphant return for Ubisoft’s long-running city-builder franchise, taking players to the era of Roman peace while blending familiar mechanics with fresh political and cultural systems. Its deep management, faith and research layers, and elegant logistics make it one of the most refined entries in the series—proof that Rome, and the Anno series, were not built in a day.

Games like Anno 117: Pax Romana are worth waiting decades for, not just years. Ubisoft managed to build a vibrant, detailed world that honors the spirit of classic Anno, yet still introduces new ideas and strategic depth. It's a deep and incredibly compelling game that will keep you coming back for more, even after dozens of hours.

Another magnificent Anno game that sets new priorities and offers greater freedom, but does not quite reach the design heights of its predecessor yet.

Anno 117: Pax Romana rejects the industrial revolution, replacing it with stable evolution. New mechanics and improved production chains add freshness and character. A harmonious, patience-demanding strategy where less can mean more.

Anno 117: Pax Romana proves to be an excellent simulator, worthy of the rich historical period that inspires it and also of the legacy of Ubisoft's long-running franchise. The fact that not even its technical flaws are enough to prevent a wider recommendation is a testament to the quality of its systems and all the fun involved in planning, building, and managing ancient cities.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a resounding success. It maintains the dizzying complexity Anno fans crave but packages it within an elegantly streamlined system and a truly mesmerizing aesthetic. The economic juggling act between class needs and production chains is deeply rewarding, and the management of trade routes is an engrossing sub-game in itself. For players seeking a sophisticated, visually stunning simulation that demands strategic patience and logistical prowess, your new empire awaits.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a solid installment in the franchise. It tweaks gameplay just enough to give veterans something new to engage with, while also being accessible for anyone new. Mastering production chains and finding the right ways to boost income and production is satisfying. Albion, with its conflicting cultures, is the cooler biome, and it would have been interesting for the game to explore something like Syria or Gaul rather than Latium. Unfortunately, the title’s campaign, while posing some interesting challenges, features twists that make little sense. Voice acting cannot bring to life characters that exist only to advance the story. The game also features solid multiplayer, including cooperative options, via Ubisoft Connect. Anno 117: Pax Romana is thoroughly enjoyable when dealing with building, production chain, trade, and bonuses, and a disappointment when warfare is involved.

Ubisoft Mainz's good choices started early with Anno 117: Pax Romana. It picked the perfect time period to showcase the prime of Roman city building, and packaged that in a user-friendly way that has more depth than meets the eye. There are some pacing issues with the campaign, and I have questions about the longevity of single-player modes, but that does not take away from the fact that this is an excellent city builder that tells a Roman tale with the grandeur it deserves.

After dozens of hours among estates, aqueducts, and legions, Anno 117: Pax Romana has convinced us on one point: the Anno formula still works brilliantly. The decision to move the action to the heart of the Roman Empire isn't just an aesthetic gimmick, but a clever way to shift perspective without sacrificing what the series does best: the slow and thoughtful construction of economic equilibrium. The sandbox mode is, as always, the center of the experience and the place where the game shines, thanks to a hypnotic pace and excellent variety of situations. While some mechanics add more color than depth, the title is hard to criticize: less revolutionary than some had hoped, sure, but more refined and cohesive than we might have expected from such a dramatic leap in time. Pax Romana is the confirmation of a studio that understands its audience, respects players' time, and continues to improve its work methodically and consistently. Those seeking a deep and well-constructed management challenge, with the joy of building an empire brick by brick, will find fertile ground here. Those hoping for a revolution, however, will likely have to wait for the next iteration. But for now, the Senate can applaud.

The latest installment of the popular strategy series has moved to the period of historical Rome. It brought various gameplay improvements and traditionally excellent management.

Do you like the Anno series? You'll also love Anno 117: Pax Romana. The city builder stays perfectly on the trajectory of its predecessors, with a few improvements that add gameplay options without, however, offering anything substantially different from the usual. The real star of this game is the user interface, at once simple, elegant, and super efficient: all management games should take it as their absolute model. It's a shame that the campaign story has one of the most anticlimactic endings I've ever seen.

ANNO 117: PAX ROMANA is not a typical city builder; it is a simulator that requires balancing supply and demand within a detailed economic system while also considering diplomacy. The result is a deeply engaging experience, though the high level of concentration it demands can be somewhat exhausting.

With Anno 117: Pax Romana, Ubisoft Mainz manages to push the series to a new height, bringing in small yet meaningful innovations and a duality between its two regions that works well — both in their aesthetics and in their gameplay. The military component remains as uninteresting as ever compared to the city-building aspect, which is, without a doubt, some of the very best the genre has to offer.

By bringing the city-building–trade–warfare balance to Rome with finesse, Anno 117 shines with a sleek interface and a breathtaking atmosphere; but a short, shallow story and limited variety of military missions blunt its potential.

Anno 117: Pax Romana clearly builds on the foundations laid by Blue Byte with Anno 1800. However, the developers have introduced plenty of freshness and new ideas, and the whole experience is both engaging and fun. I won’t hesitate to say it’s one of Ubisoft’s best games in recent years. Much like Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, it shows that slightly more niche projects with smaller budgets than yet another Assassin’s Creed installment can offer more interesting ideas and higher quality.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a fantastic strategy game that can swallow you up for hours on end. The simplicity and ease of the construction system allows you to create beautiful cities and hides a complex system of production and trade. Even for a newcomer to the franchise, it is quite welcoming, with a campaign that, while not brilliant, teaches you everything you need to know to start building your empire.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a fantastic new entry in a relatively niche genre that offers more accessible gameplay without sacrificing the depth that the city-building genre is known (and loved) for.

Their choice of the Roman Empire as the main theme, along with setting the game in a relatively peaceful historical period, is an apt move. Anno 117 is an enjoyable strategy game that captures the spirit of the Anno series—feeling both familiar and refreshing, while introducing new elements that bring fresh energy to the franchise.

For Anno fans, it's a must-have. For new players, this is a great chance to dive into the series - the fascinating ancient Rome setting and the deep mechanics make it totally worth pushing through the initial learning curve. Anno 117: Pax Romana will be consuming my time for weeks, months, maybe even years to come.

Anno 117: Pax Romana sends the city-building series into the Roman era with elegance, meticulous attention to detail, and stunning audiovisual design. The captivating rhythm of construction is only occasionally disrupted by technical issues and overly aggressive AI. Even so, it stands as a worthy successor – one that makes it easy to lose track of time.

The Anno series looks to the past but aims to the future with a balanced, substantial chapter, with few flaws and a lot of heart divided between Latinum and Albion.

Nothing new, but the familiar gameplay in near-perfect quality: With Anno 117, Ubisoft is playing it safe—and delivering high quality.

While neither its story nor simplistic real-time combat are stuff to write home about, the depth and accessibility when building beautiful cities up from the granular structure of every quarter will keep you highly engaged.

The latest installment in the Anno series refines a working concept, even if it doesn't offer any major breakthroughs.

Anno 117: Pax Romana stands as a refined and confident city builder, yet one that plays it a little too safe. Its strength lies in its balance, precision, and attention to detail, but that same restraint keeps it from reaching true greatness. A deeper narrative, a more dynamic religious system, and bolder moral choices could have given this empire more soul. It’s a stable, beautifully crafted experience—but one that makes you wish Rome had dared more.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is beautiful, unexpectedly complex, but also deliberately incomplete. It has been released as a base version of something that is supposed to represent the golden age of Ancient Rome — but only after about three to six DLCs. The more tired fans of the genre, who have poured thousands of hours into Anno 1800, may end up drinking sugar water already in the early stages of the game, but our complaining does not negate the fact that this is an overall excellent sequel to a beloved series, set in an even more beloved historical period that we have missed so much.

A very solid proposal that strives at all costs to diversify its mechanics in order to match other standards in the genre.

Anno 117: Pax Romana combines an engaging narrative with an excellent learning curve and deep, addictive gameplay. Although the visual details could be improved, it keeps the player fully immersed in city-building.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a beautiful and refined city builder that’s almost impossible to put down. It’s more approachable than its predecessor and is full of quality of life changes that fans will love, but it undeniably lacks the same level of depth and complexity - especially if you’re starting out in the Albion setting.

Anno 117 doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but the addition of land combat and the ability to further customize your cities with diagonal roads and decorations brings even more satisfaction to the successful formula of a strategy series with a gameplay formula like no other.

Polished city-building that goes the extra mile to create character and meaning to your block-dropping feats.

This is the best city builder of the year set during the glory days of the Roman Empire. If you are interested in history, enjoy building cities, managing logistics, and want to see something grow in your capable hands, this is for you. It's a natural continuation of the Anno series and feels modern despite the fact that we've travelled back in time. I highly recommend this if it sounds like you'd enjoy it and you have a capable computer at your disposal.

While not particularly revolutionary, there's a lot to like about Anno 117. If you get your teeth into the game's complexity, you'll find yourself investing a lot of time into spreading Roman ways across your islands and growing your settlements from tiny villages to grand cities.

Fans of the series will be delighted by the significantly improved UI, which makes city-building as addictive as ever. The visuals are gorgeous, packed with detail and enhanced by excellent lighting effects. Still, one can’t help but wish for more coherence between the various gameplay systems, as some feel undercooked, suggesting the game may have been released a bit earlier than it should have been.

Anno 117 has quite a few systems that are forgettable at best or need significant improvement, but on the other hand, it does way more things well and brings a new and refreshing spirit to the RTS genre. But above all, it is a great City Builder that stands up to the biggest challenge trapping the player into the "one last thing" loop.

Anno 117 Pax Romana is superb, well-balanced, and rich in options. While the campaign is rather disappointing, its management mechanics are well-oiled, and building beautiful, balanced cities is a pleasure. But once the comfortable routine of a functional city is established, interest wanes due to a real pacing problem. Salvation comes from the ability to manage both provinces simultaneously, which greatly revives interest. If you enjoy building slowly, deliberating, and admiring your Roman cities, you'll be in your element. Others are likely to give up before achieving Roman glory.

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a more measured, relaxed city builder than its predecessor, operating on a smaller scale while reshuffling key elements of the series' well-established formula to varying amounts of success. Both familiar and refreshing, it makes you think differently about how you build your cities. Its two different regions are both gorgeous, equally viable starters, providing their own sets of compelling challenges to solve as you settle islands and watch your cities and settlements grow – and oh, what joy it is to admire the results of your work as its excellent soundtrack plays in the background. Sadly, a short campaign and underwhelming narrative alongside a UI that requires a bit too much clicking and scrolling to navigate sabotage the latest entry in the series. The same can be said about its clunky, unsatisfying RTS-lite naval and land battles that provide too little reward for the attention they demand. Yet, even so, Anno 117: Pax Romana's best parts still outshine these missteps, making a rather compelling argument to don the mantle of governor.

Anno 117 is, as a whole, a fine game that will allow fans of the series to enter a new era and enjoy mechanics that are more complex than those of its predecessor. The soundtrack is great, and the graphics are very pleasing to the eye. However, I feel that Ubisoft has played it a little too safe and lazy. Although I personally love Anno 1800, I didn't necessarily want the new instalment to be so similar to it.

Ubisoft have built upon the foundations of its immensely satisfying city-building blueprint with a winning retheme, but a few too many technical and interface issues mean Anno 117: Pax Romana falls just shy of a recommendation.