I Almost Quit Anno 1800… Then It Became My Favourite City Builder - Anno 1800 Review

Anno 1800 was a game I picked up and dropped for months, until I finally picked it back up again. It had a very overwhelming beginning and learning curve, but once you overcome it, it becomes one of the best and most beautiful city builders you'll ever find.

Frustration to Addiction

The gameplay is very solid with tons of diverse options. Once you understand the UI (it's a lot at the beginning), it's very well put together and direct. It's super easy to find problems and solve them, which I cannot say for all city builders. You get sucked into the game (pause...) for very long sessions. The colonial European era is not a favourite of mine, but this game made me enjoy it, especially as you transition into a true industrial power.

The Music

The music is beautifully done and is a joy to listen to as you play the game. Especially in a city builder, which is hours-long sessions, the music being good is such a key to any good city builder. It's up there with Manor Lords, which has one of my favourite city builder soundtracks ever.

Naval Combat That Caught Me Off Guard

To my surprise, this game had combat, although it's all naval, it's pretty fun and engaging, and more hands-off, which is what I like. You can assign military escorts to trading ships and your charter routes. There's not too much depth but it's enough for this type of game.

Anno 1800 Review Conclusion

The game has a lot of content, mostly because every time you conquer a new island, you start from scratch, which I don't exactly know if I necessarily like that feature. Nonetheless, it forces you to build and optimize each island for its own purposes, and to make trade routes between all your islands which I enjoyed setting up. In all I put 85 hours into the game in my play through, and was very satisfied! If you're willing to invest the time, you'll find a city builder that offers a level of depth and replayability not many have.

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Main Story	Main + Sides	Completionist	All Styles
15 Hours	45 Hours	117 Hours	25½ Hours

Music: 9/10

Gameplay: 8/10

Game Design: 8/10

Story 6/10

Enjoyment: 10/10

Overall: 8/10

Anno 1800 Review