Graphics are superb with a cartoon vibe to them. The water (sea) is a sight to behold if your PC can handle the requirements. No wonder this game is for me so enjoyable with rich textures and captivating artwork. 1701 is beautiful with even the user interface putting in all its worth and getting the job done.

This is a decent game for sure. I found Anno 1503 to be more fun, but it definitely has its own charm. I have played this game a few times through and it does not appeal to me as much as other simulator games and lacks the complex details I appreciate in games. Moreover, this game lacks very much in the way of micromanagement, which is fun for a beginner. But, it lost my interest after I learned how to play it.

I had high hopes for this game. But I am slightly disappointed. It is a lot like Age of empires and I did get a small feeling of settlers as well but something was lacking. A few hours of play and it suddenly got quit boring. Unless you are a fan or it is very cheep I would not recommend it.

I wasn't very impressed with this game, its pretty much Age of Empires with less depth and more emphasis on trade and exploration. It has alot of potential but fails to do much with it like most new strategy games. If you like city building games and want a light experience this is certainly for you.

Great visuals and replay value. I have Anno 1503 and liked it, so when there was a special on 1701 I decided to give it a try also. Glad I did. The gameplay in 1701 is not as tedious as previous versions and the visuals are 100% better. You can set victory conditions for yourself or play one of the scenarios. The "easy" and "normal" scenarios weren't much of a challenge, but the "hard" are very difficult, so if you are really good at the load balancing of this game go to the "hard" scenarios unless you just want to enjoy the graphics in the others. The visuals and NPC actions were the most impressive to me. You can zoom into your town and watch all the people going about their business. Maybe I'm easily amused, but I did like that feature of the game. If you like city building that isn't too tedious this is a great game. Not too many aspects to keep an eye on, but just enough to make it challenging. Basically you need to balance your cash in with your cash out. Taxes and selling goods are the income, while supply operations and buying goods are the output. Like I said not much you have to keep watch over, but still enough to make the game interesting. I rate this a 5 star because of the replay value and great graphics.

The game plays out like a cross between Pharoh and Age of Empires, while never being quite as good or deep as either. So, fun but ultimately quite shallow.

Also, for the experienced city builders among you this will be a very easy experience. For comparison, if you consider Sim City easy then this will be a cake walk.

Coming from Germany it was hard not to know this series as it is one of the most known one here. I liked the first Game, Anno 1602, a lot, as it was an easy to get into, but long time challenging building game that jsut was fun to play and see your city grow. It hasnt changed much with Anno 1701 now, the basic concept is still the same and it still is fun to see your cities develop. Graphics are even better now of course and create a nice atmosphere that makes you feel even more relaxed. If you are just alittle into "building games" you shoudl definately have this. On the negative side, the only thing i could say that it might be a little to easy for advanced gamers and that the missions are a little dull. But if you just wann lay back relax and have some good time on your PC...GET IT.