Anno 117: Pax Romana – The Hippodrome

The Hippodrome is the second major gameplay expansion for Anno 117: Pax Romana. It centers on a monumental hippodrome modeled on ancient racing arenas. It adds chariot races, new progression and prestige effects, and the option to train existing specialists as racing drivers.

The expansion is not a standalone game: you need Anno 117: Pax Romana on the same platform to play it.

The Hippodrome was released on Aug 20, 2026 for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Ubisoft is releasing the expansion as the second major DLC of Anno 117's first content year.

Native versions are available for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. On PC, the DLC is offered via Ubisoft Connect, Steam and the Epic Games Store, among others. A native PS4, Xbox One or Nintendo Switch version is not announced.

The core principle remains city building in Anno 117, but is expanded with its own events and progression system. After building the Hippodrome, the governor organizes races, provides the goods needed for them and picks specialists as drivers. During a race, a sprint can be triggered that gives a short burst of speed and rewards good timing.

Successful races increase the Splendor of the Hippodrome. Higher Splendor levels unlock bigger competitions and additional city-wide effects.

The Hippodrome is the second major gameplay DLC of the Year 1 plan. It follows Prophecies of Ash; another major expansion, Dawn of the Delta, is announced for November 2026. Buyers of the Year 1 Pass receive the included gameplay DLCs at release.

As a DLC, The Hippodrome uses the PC requirements of the base game. Steam lists at least Windows 10 64-bit, 16 GB RAM, a GTX 1660 or Radeon RX 5600 XT and 117 GB of SSD storage. AVX2 support is required for the CPU.

The Hippodrome is built in several construction phases and requires large amounts of resources such as granite, wood, marble and mosaic. As a monument, it meets the Marvels demand of the patricians across the entire island. As Splendor grows, its effects increase; certain levels unlock additional bonuses, including stronger cavalry or new demands for equites and patricians.

There are three race classes: Amateur with four drivers, Classic Quadriga with six and Imperial Races with eight participants. Larger races are unlocked via Splendor. Each specialist you assign has stats for speed, stamina, sprint and reliability; repeated races can improve these racing attributes.