Anno 1800 brings players at the dawn of the industrial age, a time of industrialization, diplomacy and discovery. Players will have the chance to prove their skills as a ruler, as they create huge metropolises, plan efficient logistic networks, explore and settle new lands and dominate their opponents by diplomacy, trade or warfare.

Anno 1800 combines the best of what the franchise can offer: a rich city-building experience, including a story-based campaign, a highly customizable sandbox mode and the classic Anno multiplayer experience.

This is the dawn of the industrial age and the path you choose will define your world. Are you renovator or exploiter? Suppressor or liberator? Diplomacy, trade or warfare, choose your strategy for victory. It’s up to you how the world will remember your name.

This is not a drill, you read that right in the title – our next Cosmetic DLC will be the Eldritch Pack! Those of you who have been following us for a long time have probably seen this name pop up a couple of times in the past, mostly during the Community Vote for CDLCs – and you probably know that it holds a special place in the hearts of the Anno team.

are you ready to be spooked and let yourself get carried away by glimmering lights, twisted trees and gargoyle statues? If your answer is yes, then…

… Something wicked this way comes!

Forgotten places, mysterious statues and Gothic architecture

Let’s start with one of our favourite ornaments from this pack: nothing screams Eldritch (pun intended) more than the Forgotten Abbey you saw in our teaser, don’t you think? It seems that this place has been abandoned for years, becoming a distant echo of the past. Left in ruins, now overrun by nature and eerie tranquillity. Is that all there is? Those green, flickering lights on the quiet surface of the water suggest something else…

The Eldritch Pack would not be complete without gothic statues: did anybody say Gargoyles? Not only is there a Gargoyle statue in the pack, but you can also spot some gargoyles on the Gothic Fence, standing tall and peering into your deepest thoughts. Not to mention the majesty of the Statue of Lady Morningstar. Look at all that grace!

For all the fans of gothic architecture and style in the Anno Community: this pack will be undoubtedly a dream – or a nightmare, if you prefer – come true. Once you decorate your cities with the new ornaments, you will find yourself wandering around the Dreamspire at dusk or sitting at the Wishing Well hoping for your desires to become reality.

Gothic ornaments call for Gothic building skins

Do not get fooled by the cheerful atmosphere around the Old Inn, as the thick fog can bewilder anyone when they least expect it. The Worker and Artisan residences, on the other hand, are surrounded by a strange tranquillity. However, we heard rumours about… ghosts? Weird figures have been spotted creeping into the night, making our residents’ dreams less sweet and more frightening.

Even the Hospital now seems to be changed, somehow. Is it just us, or does it look even more imposing than before? A thick, mysterious haziness surrounds it, hiding all its secrets from prying eyes.

Get ready for a treat – no tricks here, promise – because the Eldritch Pack Cosmetic DLC will be available starting from 14th November on PC and consoles, for usual price of 4,99€ or your regional equivalent.

What was the main source of inspiration for this pack?

It was a bit of a strange mishmash, on one hand all those lone Victorian spooky villas with their gorgeous windows, towers and verandas. On the other hand, the ornamental charm of gothic architecture and statues. It was clear we wanted Grotesques and Gargoyles and a lot of fog to surround suspicious standalone villas. From that point on, ideas just popped up and this CDLC happened.

What was the hardest ornament/skin to create? Why?

The hardest were the residence skins. This time around we decided to not only paint the skins, but to as well alter the geometry. We deleted most of the second buildings, leaving only one standalone house and then created a geometry kit to add new windows, verandas and towers. Designing those was quite challenging, especially the Artisan houses, since those have quite a different base building structure.

We have noticed there are quite a few secrets hiding in this pack. Although we won’t spoil the surprise here for the players, could you talk about your approach in their creation?

It was super fun obviously, it is always nice, after being dedicated to one strong theme for such a long time, to add some funny little details to bring it to life. There is not really one inspiration or anything, it’s more like… my mind is a huge alive Pinterest of all the stuffs I’ve seen, read and listened to, basically a culture melting pot of my time and circumstances and if prompted with a certain theme it just delivers back to me.

Are you an Eldritch/spooky stuff fan yourself?

Whilst I love the ornaments and the architectural designs as well as the general mood and colouring of it all, I can’t take anything remotely spooky myself. Real life and human beings are spooky enough as it is, no need for more horror than that. 

Which ornament and/or skin from this pack do you consider your favourite? Is there a particular reason?

I really love the Ruined Abbey. I love the idea of nature taking back those places, and I appreciate the beauty of those buildings. The idea of those grand architectural achievements coupled with wild overgrowing nature fascinates me. Also, I really love the set dressing, placing plants everywhere and making it look all green and wild… just love that.

I really like the big spooky tree, too, since it’s based of one of the 1000-year-old oaks from Ivenack, a childhood place I used to go to a lot, so it holds a special place in my heart.

And then there is the Asylum. I just love how it turned out so imposing and it was a great fusion of minds between our concept artist Damian and me. I really love how working on assets together and having great concept art like that one takes a design to a whole other level.

List of full content

• Forgotten Abbey
• Dreamspire
• Cathedral Square
• Wishing Well
• Dead Tree
• Twisted Tree
• Gargoyle
• Statue of Lady Morningstar
• Fiery Lantern
• Fire Pit
• Stone Bench
• Nostalgic Pavement (3 variants)
• Ornate Pavement
• Gothic Fence (modular system)
• Black Gate
• Victorian Skin for Worker residence (4 models)
• Victorian Skin for Artisan residence (4 models)
• “Old Inn” Pub Skin
• “Asylum” Hospital Skin

For the bravest and the detectives amongst all of you, a quest awaits: will you find all the secrets hiding within the Eldritch Pack?

Ubisoft Blue Byte also offers players the opportunity to join their team in the creation of Anno 1800 with ANNO Union. This brand new community initiative will provide exclusive content, latest news, development insights, behind the scenes content and give them the opportunity to play the game early. Gamers will be able to help the studio shape the future of the franchise, as they will regularly be invited to share their feedback, vote on features, create content and get the chance to take part in play tests during its development. 

Anno 1800 is available for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Ubisoft Connect / Epic Games Store).