City builder Anno 1800's sizeable Sunken Treasure DLC expansion out this month

Acclaimed Industrial Revolution city builder, Anno 1800, gets its first paid DLC expansion this month in the form of Sunken Treasure, and developer Blue Byte has detailed the new activities, including shipwreck hunting and crafting, it will bring when it arrives on 30th July.

Sunken Treasure, which can be purchased individually or part of Anno 1880's season pass, introduces a new, six-hour storyline with "dozens" of new quests - accessible as soon as players reach the 700 artisans milestone - and a new continental session known as Cape Trelawney.

Trelawney's primary new landmass (which is joined by small, medium, and large islands) is packed with fertile earth and resources, and is three times the size of Anno 1800's current largest island. Blue Byte says it's been designed specifically, at the behest of the community, to deliver a more sandbox-like space that enables players to experiment more liberally, free from the space and resource restrictions of existing locations, as they build a prosperous metropolis.

Sunken Treasure also introduces Old Nate, a hermit and "quaint inventor", tied to the expansion's new crafting mechanic. As part of Nate's quest line, players are provided with the new diving bell steam ship (equipped with six cargo slots and three item slots), and must set forth on a hunt for sunken shipwrecks and valuable cargo.

Shipwrecks can be found via quests, maps, and even just spirited exploration, and are located in other sessions - such as the New and Old World - alongside the Cape. Once a shipwreck has been discovered, the diving bell can be deployed to strip the site of precious treasure (including gold and pearls) which can be sold for a significant profit.

Shipwrecks also provide construction materials that, once returned to Old Nate, can be used to craft exotic new contraptions, including the likes of powerful automatons. Players have full access to Nate's blueprints, meaning they can decide which invention to build next, and prepare for its construction by scavenging the correct parts while out at sea.

Alongside these headline features, Sunken Treasure also promises over 100 new items, "including new quest items, dozens of inventions to craft, additional specialists and new sets for your museum and your zoo". Additional details can be found in Blue Byte's Sunken Treasure blog post, and the developer will be showing the expansion in more detail at 2.30pm on Tuesday, 23rd July, via its latest AnnoCast Live-Stream.

Anno 1800's Sunken Treasure DLC is the first of three paid expansions that publisher Ubisoft previously announced for the game. It will be followed by Botania, which introduces a new modular Botanical Garden and Music Pavilion, and The Passage - described as a "new adventure to the arctic circle" - at a later date.