Ubisoft has thrilled gaming enthusiasts with the release of its newest city-building strategy game, Anno 117: Pax Romana. This latest addition to the Anno franchise has already made waves, achieving a record-breaking launch that has set a new benchmark for the series. Over the course of 25 years and seven installments, no title has captured the audience’s attention quite like the one released just last week.
Impressive Launch Performance
Anno 117: Pax Romana, developed by Ubisoft Mainz (formerly Blue Byte), has soared to the top of the gaming charts. It clinched the second spot on last week’s Steam chart, surpassing even the newly launched Call of Duty: Black Ops 7. This accomplishment is backed by SteamDB, which verified the standings with the following Steam Top 5 chart for the week of November 11-18:
- ARC Raiders
- Anno 117: Pax Romana
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 7
- Battlefield 6
- Steam Deck
While Black Ops 7 faced its own set of challenges, peaking at a mere 100K concurrent players on Steam compared to Black Ops 6’s 315K, Anno 117: Pax Romana stands out for its own merits. The game has been met with unprecedented critical acclaim, boasting a Metacritic average of 85 and receiving recommendations from 94% of OpenCritic reviews. Perhaps most telling is the dedication of its players, who average 3.7 hours of gameplay daily.
Developer’s Response to Success
Stéphane Jankowski, the Executive Producer of Anno, expressed his excitement and gratitude in a statement, highlighting Anno 117: Pax Romana as a pivotal moment for the franchise. He emphasized the team’s commitment to expanding the game’s universe, with plans to introduce Year 1 content that will explore the province of Egypt.
For those who have dived into the game, the question remains: are you enjoying it? Share your experiences and thoughts in the comments.