Begin with a meager group of trading ships and build them into a mercantile fleet that will make your enemies and friends alike green with jealousy as you fill your coffers with gold! Rise of Venice is much more than trading, however, as Renaissance Europe was filled with treachery and political machinations of all sorts – which you must take part in if you plan to succeed!

Venice was at the peak of its power during the Renaissance and was viewed as a city of decadence, beauty and intrigue.  Renowned as the linchpin of civilisation and the cultural centre of Europe, Venice was the most important trading post between Western Europe and the eastern stretch of the Mediterranean Sea.  It was also the stage for political corruptions and clandestine dealings.

This is where your story begins.  As a young man striving for success, power and wealth and with the support of your family, you begin to build up a trading empire across Genoa, Tripoli, Rome, Alexandria, and Constantinople in addition to many other significant cities from the Renaissance.  As you progress through the ranks of Venetian society, increasing your power with smart trading moves and calling in the occasional favour, you can begin to assemble your own fleet.  With this you will start to build up new production facilities and test yourself in challenging sea battles where you will face off against pirates as well as political enemies.

The Rise of Venice beta will allow a select number of interested fans to help test the game, and provide feedback into gameplay, combat mechanics and more. There are only 50 slots available worldwide, so those interested in helping test and offer feedback on Kalypso’s upcoming merchant simulation should apply immediately.

It is also important that the applicant's PC meets the minimum specification for the game.

The minimum specs are:

• OS: Windows Vista/7/8
• CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo or similar
• RAM: 2GB Ram
• Free space on HDD/SSD: 3 GB
• Graphics: DirectX 10 compatible at least 512MB

Key Features:

• Experience a compelling story full of intrigue and treason in Venice at the time of the Renaissance
• Trade a variety of goods in the most important cities of the time such as Rome, Alexandria, Constantinople and Athens.
• With your own family tree you can interact with your family members, send them on missions and watch how the power of your family grows over time.
• Meet other important families who are pulling the strings in Venice’s government and influence political decisions yourself.
• Build your own production facilities and trading fleets
• Take fate into your own hands and test your skills in furious sea battles
• Multiplayer mode for up to 4 players via LAN and Internet