Topic: Dawn of Discovery - Ubisoft brings the Anno Series to Wii

[Flames_of_chaos]

For those who aren't familiar with the Anno series, it's a pretty good one. It's a RTS and a city building game.

[Stogi]

This looks like civilization.

[KDR_11k]

Maybe. It's more like Sim City except during the colonization of America. You start with a ship, try to scout out a good island and build your city there, the other players (usually AI) do the same. It's mostly about managing your city with the citizens demanding goods and buildings and stuff, you can only grow certain crops on your island so you won't be able to farm everything locally, you either have to build a secondary colony where you farm stuff or trade, with other players, flying merchants and natives you find on some islands (obviously if you have what they want you can sell it to them, too). You tech up by getting more people and getting them to higher levels (by satisfying their needs). There's also a DS version of it, I hear it's pretty good though it didn't get much exposure on the internet since there was no US release AFAIK.

Usually goes under the <year> A.D. label in the US.

[NWR_insanolord]

The DS game did eventually get released in North America, I would have bought it if I weren't ignoring my DS at the time.

[Flames_of_chaos]

The DS game did eventually get released in North America, I would have bought it if I weren't ignoring my DS at the time.

I think it was a gamestop exclusive and basically got sent to die. Yup here it is

[Stogi]

I see. So it's not about conquering?

[KDR_11k]

Well, you can fight, not sure how that really works out though since I never really got that far (takes a LOT of people at high levels to even make swords, never mind cannons for ship combat and such).

[Kairon]

I've heard good things about the Anno series, so I'm definitely gonna keep my eye on this one.

[Flames_of_chaos]

    SAN FRANCISCO – February 26th, 2009 – Today Ubisoft announced Dawn of Discovery(TM), a real-time strategy and simulation game specifically designed for the Wii(TM) home video game system, the Nintendo DS(TM) hand held system and PC. Scheduled for release in summer 2009, Dawn of Discovery gives gamers the opportunity to explore new civilizations and build their own empire like never before through the immersive action of the Wii Remote(TM) and the DS stylus.

    “Dawn of Discovery allows gamers to take the civilization-building experience to the next level of fun and interactivity,” said Adam Novickas, director of marketing for Ubisoft. “We’re pleased to be bringing the brand new, uniquely designed game to not only the PC and Nintendo DS, but also to Wii for the first time.”

    Dawn of Discovery takes place in the year 1404, when King George’s land is suffering from severe droughts and brutal famine. Aware of his people’s distress, the king calls on his two sons, William and Edward, to acquire new territories in order to produce enough goods to satisfy the needs of his empire’s inhabitants. Whereas Edward suggests aggressive means to collect the precious resources, his brother William offers a peaceful solution, proposing to explore new and unsettled lands in the south of the kingdom. With his Father’s blessing, William heads south to the mysterious Orient and returns with valuable new technologies such as the water pump that allows dry lands to be cultivated in order to produce enough food for the people. But there are still many unmet needs within the king’s empire, and players are tasked with the mission of fulfilling those needs while both expanding and sustaining the vast society.

    Game features include:

    Build and sustain your own expansive empire
    • Explore the beautifully detailed world and discover new places to create your civilization
    • Set up trade posts in the spice mines of the Orient and explore new trade routes to keep your nation growing
    • Learn from other nearby cultures to expand your horizons and master the challenges of establishing a prosperous society

    Developed specifically for Wii, DS and PC audiences
    • Unique art style and clever integration of the Wii Remote and DS stylus makes building your empire more fun and interactive than ever before
    • All new scalable 3-D engine ensures unmatched visuals, optimized for all PC’s – from high-end to low-end desktops
    • Seamless user interface delivers multiple gameplay modes and faster player rewards for both long or short play sessions

    Exclusive multiplayer modes across platforms
    • Build your civilization and make history along with a friend in the 2-player co-op mode for Wii
    • Integration with Ubi.com allows PC players to track achievements, climb leaderboards and challenge others online

    Accessible for everyone from beginners to pros
    • Intelligent help system offers contextual hints for any situation
    • In-game encyclopedia includes illustrated tutorial filled with tips and strategies for building your civilization

    Formerly known as ANNO 1404, Dawn of Discovery is the North American title of the game.

[Flames_of_chaos]

Debut trailer

[Kairon]

Debut trailer

Oh freaking hell that video is hot. It looks like an actual PC game... which, for someone like me who grew up with PC as much as Nintendo... is a HUGE plus.

OMGBBQ! CO-OP!!!

[Nick DiMola]

So Chessa got the review copy of this, but I was playing around with it last night. After 30 minutes of play, I'm already hooked on this game. It has a very Sim City-ish vibe to it, but it's not quite as intricate. Plus it feels a lot more guided because you actually have goals to accomplish.

The game is also gorgeous, featuring some of the best graphics I've seen on the Wii. It's a super smooth cel-shaded style, that is punctuated by the phenomenal animation of everything in the game.

I'll try and provide some more impressions, particularly of co-op play after Chessa and I play some more tonight. I don't want to jump the gun, but this seems like a must-have title, especially at the $30 price tag. But as I said, I'll offer up some more impressions as we play some more.

[KDR_11k]

It's 50€ here but it's a case where I can understand it, the Anno series is extremely successful in Germany but apparently not in the US so a budget price would be nonsense here.

[BlackNMild2k1]

So Chessa got the review copy of this, but I was playing around with it last night. After 30 minutes of play, I'm already hooked on this game. It has a very Sim City-ish vibe to it, but it's not quite as intricate. Plus it feels a lot more guided because you actually have goals to accomplish.

The game is also gorgeous, featuring some of the best graphics I've seen on the Wii. It's a super smooth cel-shaded style, that is punctuated by the phenomenal animation of everything in the game.

I'll try and provide some more impressions, particularly of co-op play after Chessa and I play some more tonight. I don't want to jump the gun, but this seems like a must-have title, especially at the $30 price tag. But as I said, I'll offer up some more impressions as we play some more.

Do you have the capability to do video reviews? I just watched the debut trailer, and my wallet would cry, but its all out of tears at the moment as I really don't have any more money. But a couple of video reviews might move me to put this near the top of my "games to buy" list. Sim City & Civilizations are two of my favorite PC games ever.

[Stratos]

I'm very interested in this as well. It would be a good counterpart to pick up along with Overlord. One for city building strategy, and the other for destructive strategy!

[BeautifulShy]

http://wii.ign.com/articles/100/1001560p1.html
They gave it a 8.0

[KDR_11k]

Interestingly low scores for presentation and graphics considering how much the review text praised those points... IGN AU gave it an 8.7 BTW.

[KDR_11k]

So Chessa got the review copy of this, but I was playing around with it last night.

What happened to that copy? I didn't see a review...

[BlackNMild2k1]

So Chessa got the review copy of this, but I was playing around with it last night.

What happened to that copy? I didn't see a review...

Sitting in the "to-do" box with the Cursed Mountain Impression

[Nick DiMola]

Strange enough, both of those should be getting posted any day now... Sorry for the delay.


Psst - it's a 9

[noname2200]

I keep meaning to buy this, and I keep not finding it anywhere. I did finally find a copy of Broken Sword though, so I basically replaced one good Ubisoft game with another.

[KDR_11k]

Heh, over here it's available everywhere, usually in the top ten spots.

[noname2200]

I'm sure I'll find it sooner or later, preferably sooner.

[Stratos]

Try Amazon. They tend to have more obscure titles in stock.

[noname2200]

I prefer brick and mortar stores, unless there's a great online deal. Dunno why, to be honest. But since I'm still going through LKS' Tyrant Mode, and have Broken Sword+Boom Blox+Wii Sports Resort all waiting in the wings, it'll be a while until I need to track this down in earnest. Thanks though!