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Age of Empires Online Review

Game: Age of Empires Online

Developer: Gas Powered Games

Publisher: Microsoft Studios

Available on: Windows PC

It was almost a year ago to the day at Gamescom 2010, that Microsoft Studios announced that their classic Real Time Strategy franchise Age of Empires would be stepping into the online age with Age of Empires Online. The announcement, complete with trailer revealed that the new “online age” would reboot the series with a free to play model and introduce a host of gaming features, normally associated with massively multi-player online games.

Persistent online worlds, crafting, trading and co-op. Age of Empires Online is certainly ambitious. But does that ambition flourishes or falter in this new age?

STORY: Something that RTS games have done for a long time now is implement story to drag players from battle to battle. Historically cut scenes have been used to portray said story, in-game, pre-rendered or in Command & Conquer’s case, live action scenes have been used to build a believable world around isolated battles and skirmishes. It is here where AoE Online takes its first step towards the MMO side of the coin. Cut-scenes and elaborate mission briefings are out, World of Warcraft style quest briefings are in.

Quest text in the place of cut-scenes may seem like a step backwards, especially when considering that current MMO’s are implementing more and more cinematic moments all the time. Quests and the text they come with do actually feel at home in the new online age. Non-playable characters from around the world map offer quests which build their own story and link to others. You certainly won’t be playing for the story, but you will come to appreciate it as it strings you along whilst building your civilization.

GRAPHICS: It is fair to say that AoE Online is not the most graphically powerful game. Unit models are understandably low on polygons with the expectation of tens of combatants, workers, and buildings on-screen at the same time. Whilst on one hand you can certainly defend the less than spectacular models, on the other, you can point to StarCraft II’s excellently detailed units and wonder why AoE has fallen short. Some models just look a little odd, and perhaps out of place in the vibrant environments. A few quests on the Egyptian side involve taking control of Prince Sesostris, a special, one-of-a-kind unit. The prince is larger than your average combatant and works a little like a hero unit. Whilst tall and powerful, Sesostris is not pretty, and the larger model only provides further evidence that unit models lack detail. The Prince’s head looks more square than round and left me wondering why the unique unit had not been afforded more care and attention.

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