Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest videogame publishers, today announced its development of the latest game in the Settlers series. Set for release at the end of the year, the new Settlers will feature fully animated 3D environments powered by Criterion(tm)’s next-generation RenderWare technology. Players will design and develop detailed communities featuring skilled inhabitants with a number of different abilities.

Among a group of very experienced designers, Bruce Milligan contributed to the new Settlers. The American has worked with world-famous designers Sid Meier, Bruce Shelley, and Brian Reynolds and lent his creative style to successful strategy titles in the past.

"I have spent a lot of time working with the Settlers team on the creation and refinement of the overall game concept and the gameplay itself," said Bruce Milligan, who has lent his creative talents to titles including Civilization, Tropico: Paradise Island, and Rise of Nations. "I think the Settlers’ development team has crafted a 3D real-time strategy game that will be of great appeal for U.S. RTS gamers. The final result will be phenomenally appealing."

"Our preliminary gameplay research has indicated that the new-look Settlers will impress gamers not only with its stunning graphical improvements but with new gameplay features that we know everyone will love," said Tony Kee, vice president of marketing, Ubisoft. "It’s also exciting to showcase the unparalleled creativity and quality of Ubisoft’s internal production studios and their capacity to develop first-class titles in a variety of genres."