We were off to a great start, and in early March were not only able to proudly celebrate that Anno 1800 had reached more than 1 million players in its first 8 month on the market (which earned you all a free commemorative in-game ornament) – but also to announce Season 2!

In December 2019 we had let you know that we were planning more for the game but the full extent of it we only unveiled in March in a dedicated live stream (“Hey Anno Community!”) – which also marked the last regular developer stream in a year that proved to be challenging for all of us.

The first of three DLCs – “Seat of Power” – as well as the first Annoversary were just around the corner and with two more DLC scheduled for later that year, there still was plenty to do.

Our great community platform, the Anno Union, stayed at the centre of it all to keep you updated on the world of Anno – and even got a major visual and functional overhaul during the Summer.

For everyone who loves a good read, the release of all our DLC (and the History Editions) were accompanied by detailed DevBlogs describing the features and the development of the new content. From “Seat of Power” over “Bright Harvest” to “Land of Lions” (for which we wrote a total of 4 lengthy DevBlogs!) and the two Cosmetic DLC “Amusements Pack” and “City Lights Pack” we made sure you know in advance what you can expect.

The latter were based on a community voting in April, with the “City Lights Pack” coming in such a close second, that we felt compelled to realize it as well.

When talking about the Anno Union, we can’t do so without the visual stimulation and inspiration we got from the screenshot and postcard contest as well as the regular Union Updates with artworks and impressions from the community. We continue to be amazed by the awesome city designs and stunning screenshots you all create!
And even though the COVID-imposed restrictions lead to far less live streams from us than we would’ve liked, we thankfully have an amazingly active community creating video guides or streaming their adventures and record attempts online – regularly accompanied by Twitch Drop events around each DLC release.

Looking back, we continue to be extremely proud of the success of Anno 1800 in general and Season 2 in particular. Your continued feedback since release, be it reporting issues or sharing your ideas and discussing balance topics played a big role throughout the last years – and will continue shaping Anno 1800 and its development, with Season 3’s DLC and Game Updates being inspired by community feedback and wishes!

Thank you for your continued support! 😊

The success of Anno 1800 also led to it receiving its own boardgame adaption this year! Anno 1800 – The Board Game was designed by Martin Wallace and published by KOSMOS (albeit in German). An English version is planned for 2021 and we are very happy to see the enthusiastic reception since its release in early Fall.

Not only old savegames were dedusted, the modding community also became active immediately and started working on making their old projects compatible with the History Editions. This means you can also enjoy the changes and additions of community favourites like SBM, I.A.A.M. or D.E.A.P. with the History Editions.
Keep in mind, that while we love to see the efforts of the modding community, usage of these mods is not officially supported, and we cannot offer any assistance with issues you may run into using them!

Looking back at all this: What a year!

The continued success of the Anno brand in 2020 was accompanied by a global situation that no one expected. So, from early spring onwards we found ourselves cancelling events and workshops, attending lots of press events and meetings online and thinking about how much fun we had at gamescom in the last years. Additionally, working from home office brought its own challenges – but also opportunities.

We’re proud of our team shipping the enthusiastically received “Land of Lions” DLC despite these circumstances – and as we announced just a few weeks ago, we’re not stopping here:

2021 will bring new content and features to Anno 1800 and we’re excited to share more with you early next year.