Age of Empires II Definitive Edition (the game that almost got away)

Age of Empires II Definitive Edition

Through the Ages with Age of Empires

So here it is the game that is considered the best game of all time and its remastered and in 4k. The series Age of Empires has held a place in my heart for all these years. I had the chance to pick up the original Age of Empires in jewel case when I was young but it always passed by me as I was playing Europa Universalis which I picked up for two dollars at a discount department store.

Age of Empires II came and went I also remember holding the game multiple times in my hand in the jewel case but never had the money or means to obtain it. I lived two hours away from a store that sold video games so I had to choose wisely when buying games. I went with Hearts of Iron and Rise of Nations but Age of Empires always intrigued me with the knight on its cover.

Age of Empires III came along and at this point I had kept of with Hearts of Iron, Europa Universalis, and started my stint with Civ. However, as fate would have it I would come across a copy of Age of Empires III discounted at a store going out of business for ten dollars. I jumped all over the game and patiently waited to go home and load the game. Fast forward a few hours and downloading the game only to experience the worst feeling ever. This game will not run on your computer while that was just a kick in the head.

After this life happened and I grew farther away from computer gaming. A poor college student and poor college graduate can't really drop two grand on a computer to play games that will be outdated in a few years.

The Best feeling

I found out that Age of Empires II was getting another remake and that it was going to retail for around twenty Canadian Dollars and I was excited. I checked my computers specs against the games required specs and my computer was able to run the game!!

I got a Microsoft Card and bought the game when I had the time too. The is about seventeen gigabytes and took almost two days to download on Canadian WIFI. Once the game downloaded and I heard the opening sequence I was transformed into my ten year self  and my laptop became a early 2000's monitor and my keyboard turned into the yellowish colour board of my youth I was home.

Game Review

The game is everything I expected it to be and more. It is a RTS that holds up today in a world of free to play games that model the Age of Empires model. The game has numerous game modes that allow you to take part in quick battle, historical battles, full campaigns stretching across nations and continents, the tutorial Art of war, and a multiplayer mode.

The game is complex compared to most modern games that are modelled towards quick rewards and pay to win game styles. It is a rewarding experience to take a small group of people and conquer the map or take a historical figure and follow them through history and experience both their highs and lows. The gameplay and content gets a pass.

The graphics are amazing and clear. The game runs perfectly on my computer which is amazing as my laptop has barely just met the minimum requirements to run the game. So the graphics get a pass escpecially if you have a 4k capable monitor.

The town based system with upgrades is a great way to expand and the finite resources make players choose wisely as you can and will run out of resources if you don't watch out. The specific upgrades based on certain civilizations also makes replay ability high as each nation has their own quirk or special.

Overall I would give this game a 9/10 if you like RTS games. The amount of upgrades, gameplay and campaigns mean you will be playing for hours and hours. For more casual gamers you may not like the slow paced game play and might find it boring. However as a RTS is amazing.

What are your thoughts on the game? Leave a comment down below.