A new era of city building begins Ubisoft invites current and prospective players to experience Anno 117 completely free of charge this week. The free weekend coincides with the launch of the extensive Dawn of the Delta download content and the accompanying Patch 3.0, an update that brings significant quality‑of‑life improvements and strategic refinements to the title.
More control, more comfort Players now benefit from several new comfort features. In photo mode, the camera can be clipped inside buildings, allowing detailed views of architectural details. Each quest can also be individually hidden, enabling a focused gameplay experience without distractions. For those seeking a greater challenge, a new "very hard" difficulty level has been introduced, which increases resource consumption and creates a tougher, more resource‑driven experience.
Balanced economy and society A central part of Patch 3.0 is the rebalancing of festival and incident mechanics. Festival costs decrease from the mid‑game onwards, with end‑game costs halved from 50,000 to 25,000 coins, while scaling better with progress. Meanwhile, incident attribute penalties from city status increase more gradually, especially around population tiers 2 and 3, while end‑game values remain unchanged.
Specialists and construction phases Two aqueduct‑related specialists were rebalanced: Aquila Dulcis, Curator Aquarum, now provides +100 % water supply instead of +200 %. Additionally, the construction menus for the Amphitheatre and Hippodrome have been updated to better illustrate each construction phase.
Performance and statistics Under the hood, the update optimizes performance on systems meeting the recommended requirements and reduces stuttering in large cities. A new stamp feature and an expanded statistics screen provide players with more detailed insights into their game development and resource flows.
Conclusion for the nerd community With Patch 3.0, Anno 117 becomes an even deeper and more detailed strategy experience, cementing its position as one of the most important titles in modern city building. The free weekend offers a great opportunity to test the new content and experience the extensive balance adjustments firsthand.