I’m going to lose so much time to The Settlers

The strategy builder is now aiming for 2020 on PC

Ubisoft is bringing back The Settlers in 2020, and this week at gamescom, the village-raising strategy title came into greater focus. It’s wild to think that the long-running series is alive and well on Snowdrop, the same engine used for games like The Division 2 and Starlink: Battle for Atlas.

Also wild: the original creator, Volker Wertich, is back on board for the 2020 game.

As gleaned from this trailer, you’ll get to a point where you’re in charge of loads and loads of settlers – “thousands,” according to Ubisoft – “with every step of the production chain and every single good visualized.” There’s also campaign co-op, and a new food system and “motivational meta-game.”

Ubisoft also covered three win conditions for The Settlers: Combat, Faith, and Glory. The latter victory involves heroes facing off in an arena. “Winning a fight can lead to dissatisfaction among the defeated party. This however can lead to revolts, allowing the player to take over the enemy territory.”

Anno 1800 stole a bunch of my time this year, and I expect The Settlers to do the same next year. The game will only be available on PC through the Ubisoft Store, Uplay+, and the Epic Games Store.