These are combined in various ways to create a whole range of products, desired by the different strata of society. The raw produce includes wood, stone, hemp and iron in the Occidental islands, and spices, quartz, clay and indigo in the southern Oriental islands (among many others). Like any good 4X game there are chains of production based on an array of base materials, which are not all available on each island. The art, like just about everything in the game, is polished and detailed. The feel of the game is not as humourous as Tropico, but seems a little like Fable as a strategy game.
Anno is something like Tropico, if you were to control more than one island. Given that I recently wrote a review of Tropico 3, I may as well compare the two games. The numeral 1404 is a general indication of the time period modelled in this game, a medieval time of feudal rule, crusades, peasants and spice trade to the Orient. Living in the shadow of games like Civilization, Total War and Age of Empires, Anno 1404 is a real-time 4X game, for explore, expand, exploit and exterminate, and is known as Dawn of Discovery in some parts of the world.
In anticipation of the upcoming Anno 2070, and as part of my foray into the slightly lesser-known games, here’s Anno 1404! The Anno series is a quiet little success story, at least for me.
