Coming later this year is Anno 2205, the sixth game in the long running real time strategy series, and Ubisoft has revealed a special Gold Edition for the series’ first adventure into outer space.
All RTS game series must move to the stars, apparently. I suppose it was inevitable that Civilization and its various contemporaries would go onward and upward – there is only so much history to replicate over and over again with new mechanics. Eventually, you have to just start making stuff up in order to keep your franchise moving – a necessary evolution.
The Anno series of real time strategy games made that move in 2011, after 13 years of entries set in the past, with Anno 2070. Anno 2070 jumped into a near future world after a global-warming fueled disaster floods the world, indicating that there was little space left on Earth for future entries into the series. Enter Anno 2205, coming this November, that tasks you as the leader of a corporation dedicating to rebuilding Earth’s metropolises and eventually pushing mankind to the moon and dealing with the unique struggles of building the first Lunar colonies.
Today, Ubisoft revealed the Anno 2205 Gold Edition, which will add to those challenges…eventually. The Gold Edition comes with two staples of any enhanced edition of a game: digital renditions of an art book and the game’s original soundtrack. But the meat of the Gold Edition is the two expansions included that introduce two entire new regions for building. The Orbit Expansion introduces the ability to build a space station between the Earth and the Moon, using your best citizens to provide boosts to all of your cities. The Tundra expansion introduces the Vanha Plains, where players will team up with new characters to defeat a deadly disease in the game’s biggest sector project.
However, neither of these expansions will be included in the Anno 2205 Gold Edition at launch – they will release sometime in 2016, effectively making the Gold Edition a Season Pass. Which is actually exactly what it says on the game’s website.
The standard and Gold Editions of 2205 will release on November 3, 2015. The Gold Edition will cost $79.99 to the standard edition’s $59.99.
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[toggle title=”UBISOFT DETAILS ANNO 2205 GOLD EDITION”]SAN FRANCISCO, USA – October 15, 2015 – Today, Ubisoft released details on the Anno 2205 Standard and Gold Editions. Anno 2205 is set in a futuristic world, and allows players to leave earth venturing into outer space for the first time in the series. Currently in development at Blue Byte, a Ubisoft studio, the game will release worldwide on PC on November 3rd 2015. STANDARD EDITION The Standard Edition includes the full Anno 2205 game experience. GOLD EDITION The Gold Edition includes the full Anno 2205 game experience, as well as: • Orbit Expansion • Tundra Expansion • Art book (digital format) • Original Soundtrack (digital format) ORBIT The Orbit Expansion pushes players to expand their corporation’s dominion into the ranks of outer space by building a space station in the new Orbital sector. Only the bravest men and women amongst your employees will be recruited and settled into orbit to help with the production. These scientists will construct research modules which can be used to individually upgrade and tweak your space station and create powerful global research effects which will ultimately boost all of your sectors in the game. TUNDRA The Tundra Expansion introduces a new environment, Vanha Plains, where players can roam the marshes and cross the fjords as they take their corporate to new heights. Tundra sector introduces new high-tech aircraft to explore the vast land and master the biggest sector project yet by solving the mystery of the forgotten ECO sanctuaries. With the help of new character Esther Nylund, players will disarm a deadly fever and re-use its components to create new gameplay options, quests, building types and establish exclusive Tundra production chains to supply resources to everyone on Earth. The Gold Edition includes two expansions that will be available after the launch of Anno 2205. The expansions will also be available to download separately, or as part of the Season Pass for players who already own the Standard Edition. In Anno 2205 players will join mankind’s next step into the future, with the promise of building a better tomorrow by expanding into space. Players must develop rich metropolises on Earth that are capable of launching missions to the moon as they race to establish production colonies on the lunar surface. By mining the Moon’s resources to send back down to Earth, Anno 2205 players will receive the benefits of technological advancements and the tools to help expand their cities and transform them into thriving metropolises. The new Anno 2205 Engine paves the way for players to build cities on islands five times the size of those in previous Anno games. It also allows for a high level of graphical detail in the game, so players can immerse themselves in futuristic cities that come to life with flying cars, more than a million thriving citizens, churning factories, and grinding mines. Gameplay uses a revolutionary session mode that lets players control several sessions on Earth and on the Moon simultaneously, and connects multiple regions via different sessions. For the latest information on Anno 2205, please visit: http://annogame.com About Ubisoft Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s video game series, Rayman, Far Cry and Watch Dogs. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2014-15 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,464 million. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com. About Blue Byte, a Ubisoft Studio Having opened their doors in 1988, Blue Byte’s first hit came in 1991 with Battle Isle, followed by the ever-popular development strategy game The Settlers® – which celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2013. Following their acquisition by Ubisoft in 2001, the studio continued work on The Settlers® series, and began overseeing the production of ANNO® in 2007. Winner of 2012 “Best European Studio” award (European Games Awards), Blue Byte expanded in 2014 with the acquisition of a new branch in Mainz. The teams are developing and operating HD, browser-based and mobile games, including Might and Magic® Heroes® Online, ANNO® Online and The Settlers® Online, captivating millions of players worldwide. In 2014 the studio successfully launched ANNO®: Build an Empire on mobile devices. Currently The Settlers®: Kingdoms of Anteria for PC and Assassin’s Creed® Identity for smartphones and tablets are in development at Blue Byte’s Düsseldorf studio while the Mainz studio works on Anno 2205 which will bring the acclaimed city-builder series into space. More information can be found at www.bluebyte.com. [/toggle]
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