History of the Anno series with Creative Director Manuel Reinher

Trent Kusters chats with Ubisoft Mainz Creative Director, Manuel Reinher. Together they discuss his extensive work in the Anno series and his path from the art team to direction; the creative and technical challenges of working in the historical strategy game genre; their approach to depicting the Roman Empire in the latest series release, Anno 117: Pax Romana; how a seemingly simple transition from square to hexagon tiles comes with massive ramifications in all parts of game design; and how they tackle accessibility without sacrificing complexity and depth.

This episode is supported by Xsolla

Episode Host: Trent Kusters

Producers: Claudio Tapia and Josh Chu, The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing and leaving us a rating and review.

Support the show and get all of our episodes early/ad-free: https://bit.ly/4kU34Lt

Follow us: linktr.ee/AIAS

Please consider supporting game dev students with: AIAS Foundation