A newly announced Anno game surprised city-building fans during Ubisoft Forward. Anno 117: Pax Romana will bring players back in time to the Roman Empire, on the last year of Roman Emperor Trajan’s reign, the last years of the Pax Romana or Roman Peace in Roman history.

Coming to Ubisoft+, PS5, Xbox Series X, Amazon Luna, and PC through the Ubisoft Store and the Epic Games Store, the game has a 2025 release window. Fans can now wishlist the game on the Ubisoft Store as well. When the game launches, players on Ubisoft+ will also be able to access the game one day early.

Developed by Anno mainstay Ubisoft Mainz (Anno 1800), Anno 117: Pax Romana aims to immerse players in Ancient Rome, at the height of the Roman Empire. Players will be able to explore an immense, multicultural territory under the Roman Empire and take on the role of a Governor tasked to manage the costs of maintaining peace.

“We are thrilled to finally reveal an Anno inspired by the Roman Empire,” says Creative Director Manuel Reinher. “This is not only the biggest time jump we ever did, it als offers us a lot of possibilities to bring the Anno gameplay to a completely new era while introducing lots of new content for our players to explore.

The feedback we received on the Anno Union during the development of Anno 1800 was incredible help for us, so we want again to invite everyone to share their feedback and help us create the best Anno yet.”

Ubisoft proclaimed that Anno 117: Pax Romana marks the beginning of a new era for the Anno franchise, bearing the mark of a new visual identity for the city-building series.

“Branding and storytelling create emotional connections, differentiate the brand, and make it memorable,” says Brand Director Haye Anderson. “We’ve refreshed Anno’s visual identity to carry us into the next decade with a clear purpose: cultivating the joy of building.

Without taking ourselves too seriously, we’ve infused humor and fun into our brand storytelling, reflecting our community’s spirit.”

Players Govern Provinces in Anno 117

As Governor, players have a powerful yet challenging role in ensuring the economic growth and prosperity of their provinces. To achieve their goals, players will have to balance their roles as enforcers and benevolent leaders to the plebians.

In a first for the Anno series, players will be able to choose their starting province in Anno 117: Pax Romana. Enterprising Governors can choose the Celtic Wetlands of Albion in Great Britain, a land filled with mysteries where no civilized Roman wants to be, or the traditional Roman heartlands in Latium. Each province will pose its own different set of challenges and opportunities.

Just like other Anno games from before, Anno 117: Pax Romana’s city-building challenges will involve economics, diplomacy, military, and narrative.

Caesar V, anyone?

City-building veterans will remember the last city-building game set in Ancient Rome: Sierra Entertainment’s Caesar IV. With Anno’s jump back in time, city-building fans are finally getting the Caesar V they never got.

Although the Caesar series and the Anno series have their own mechanics and features, the games thematically and mechanically also share a lot of similarities.

Anno itself has been a very successful city-building franchise, and Anno 117: Pax Romana may be Ubisoft’s next big city-building game after the failed revival of The Settler series.