Rating: 
Summary: They should've made Age of Imperialism...
Review: I was really annoyed when ensemble said they would be making AoM instead of the next "age" game, perhaps "Age of Imperialism", which would go from the colonial period to perhaps the mid-1800s. But since they were making it anyway I thought I might as well try it out. It definitely didn't have the same feel as the other age games. Sure, you started out with a town center and some villagers and a scout, but the 3d just looks bad. And the sounds weren't very good either. And only 3 races! I was very disappointed. I hope they hurry up and deliver the next age game and make it right next time!
Rating: 
Summary: Addictive
Review: This is a great game, but can't compare this to AoE or AoK since I have never played either one. I finished the single player campaign on easy and was enjoyable. I would have given this five stars but the game locks up, especially when lots of things are going on at once. Do yourself a favor and get in the habit of saving gameplay often, especially after a major achievement. It also seems to help in keeping the game from freezing if given a momentary break. The download patch doesn't work. Also use any troop or building improvements as soon as you can, it will pay off. To each his own and good luck
Rating:
Summary: If I had believed all the reviews...
Review: I never would have bought this game. I've been playing the AOE series for over a year now, and when I saw this coming out I thought I might enjoy it, being a mythology buff myself. Before I bought it though I came here and read reviews which said not to bother, nothing new here, etc. I HEARTILY disagree. I found this game to be very interesting and much more diverse than AOE. Even though there are only 3 races, each has a choice of 3 major gods and 9 minor gods, and each choice affects different aspects of your civilization. I haven't computed the numbers but it adds up to more than 10 different permutations of the game. Yes, you have to read everything so you know what you have and what you can do, but most of the data is available with a right-click of the mouse. I personally enjoy the myth units, and they are each different as well. How often do you get to create a Colossus that can renew itself by eating trees and gold? Also, I've had no trouble with villagers, in fact I think they are a vast improvement on AOK in that after they build any sort of resource building they will go ahead and start collecting on their own. Also, farms and fish never run out, which was a hassle before.
Just a few tips - READ READ READ about god things, myth units etc., that way you'll know what you get with each one. Easy level means just that - easy. I've not had the game that long so I haven't tried the harder levels yet. Do the tutorial - not for the controls which are almost the same as AOK, but for knowing about the changes made.
If you like AOE and you like mythology, get this game and I think you'll enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: Mythology should be spelled "Empire"
Review: While at the mall, I was pretty bored of most strategic games. So I picked up Age of Mythology thinking I would be treated to a great gift. But now I have mixed feelings for the game. It is just like ages of empires. The resources are the same and gathering them are the same. But there is a new one called favor. To buy myth units or certain upgrades you need favor. For the Greeks you pray at a temple, Egyptians build monuments, and Norse fight. The Greeks are basically the regular race. The main one in the game. They are okay, but kinda boring after a while. The Egyptians have cool god powers, and do not really need to chop wood for any reason. The Norse are the best, they have the best units and can build quickly with their army. While playing online, Norse always dominate because they build several fortresses right outside your town then attack. Because Norse build buildings with their infantry, they have a huge advantage. But their godpowers are not that great compared to the other races. God powers are given to you when you advance an age. If you advance to a new age you get to pick a minor god to worship, and each god has its own god power. Most of the god powers are kinda lame, and you can just waste. Zeus has a lighting bolt which kills one unit, but does not kill main units in the story, so it has no point. The only good ones are meteor, tornado, plenty vault, and earthquake. Meteor and tornado are the best Egyptian god powers, because they decimate areas of buildings. Earthquake and plenty vault rock. Earthquake belongs to the Greek and totally destroys every building in an area. Plenty vault also belongs to the Greek and provides a steady resource flow. But the fighting gets old. The unit selection is awesome, but still, norse will win. Norse have the best units and just rock. Egyptian do not need alot of wood, so they can be good. Greek needs everything and the only rewarding experience is the 2 god powers I mentioned above. If you truly love ages of empire you can like this game. Most missions result in you killing one unit, then going on to the next mission and rebuilding your base all over. So the campaign gets really frustrating. Especially on moderate where the attacks are constant. In all seriousness, if you want to buy this game go ahead, but please wait till it is on sale.
Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't play very deeply, but fun for awhile
Review: Think Age of Empires/Empire Earth/Command & Conquer/every other battle simulator, but with figures from mythology thrown into the mix. This is another video card-blaster of a game, with a whopping 2 discs to install, but the game is decidedly worth the effort. Instead of simply tweaking a few soldiers and making them minotaurs or whatever they've really gone all out and created research trees, civilization benefits, etc., all in the name of conquering other civilizations in the name of your very active pantheon. You can play as either Egyptian, Norse or Greeks (and Atlantis in some warm-up sections), and your units, buildings, gods and heroes are all culture based. I learned more about Greek mythology playing 2 hours of this than I did in 4 years of high school. The graphics aren't as seamless as Empire Earth, which is my personal fave, but the unfolding of the cultures and such is done in a way that's refreshing and unique. I anticipate a cool expansion in its future...it's going to need one to keep people interested after a couple of weeks. The major flaw here is that the play isn't very deep. There aren't enough pantheons or ways to manipulate the gods you do have access to, and with a whopping 4 ages, you advance pretty quickly to the design limits of the game and get bored. The guide that comes with it is surprisingly wack, telling you almost nothing, and while the chart that comes with it is pretty, it certainly isn't for quick reference. I guess when the game has a Prima strategy guide on the first day of its release it doesn't matter, but you should be able to excel at the game with what it comes with and some practice. If I have to spend even more money to figure out how to really play the game, why not just tack the cost of the strategy guide to the game and include it? Because it makes too much sense, that's why. Almost worth the money, even with the heavy, memory-sapping engine and the lack of info out the gate.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty Sweet Stuff!
Review: I'm a huge fan of the AoE series, and when I heard that Microsoft was comming out with AoM I was excited. The game itself is very cool. Basically it is AoE with some interesting mythology mixed in and some different civs. There were a few problems, such as slow peons and little control over them, but theyre worth putting up with! The game graphics are very awesome for an RTS! AoE fans will most likely love AoM.
Rating: 
Summary: The best game so far in strategy
Review: I am a big big fan of military warfare and mythology and I loved the trial. The graphics I believe are better than the well known Empire Earth. A must buy game!!
Rating: 
Summary: Don't buy unless you enjoy frustration.
Review: I really have enjoyed age of empires, but this game is one big frustration. I have not been able to actually play the game. It always stops responding after two or three minutes into any part of the game. Microsoft's customer service has been of no use yet. Their general suggestions is to upgrade everything. When I get a game I don't want to take all day to download updates so it will work on my computer. My computer passes the requirements posted on the side of the box. Maybe they think everybody buys a new computer every month or so. I have been reading on newsgroups and forums and there are many buyers with similar problems.
It might be a fun game if I every get it to run. Save your money until Microsoft comes up with a new version or a patch that will fix it numerous problems.
Rating:
Summary: A True RTS Classic
Review: The original Age of Empires and its sequel Age of Kings are often considered amongst the greatest RTS' ever made, and the new addition to the "Age of" series is a worthy claimant to the name. It retains its predecessors' great gameplay while adding new twists to the gameplay.
The first thing you notice when booting up the game is the great new 3D graphics. Ensemble Studios has done an excellent job here, and AOM is the first of the series that can be called truly stunning looking. Flaming arrows cut impressive paths in the sky, finding their mark on beautifully detailed units and buildings. Intracitely detailed boats land, oars pumping and sails waving, in the frothy surf to discharge a phalanx of hoplites. Forests burn and buildings fall into dust; battles rage on for control of ht emap and the game.
A cursory glance at a battle will reveal the second major innovation in the game system, as towering Colossi, powerful Mountain Giants, fearsome Fenris Wolves, and feline Sphinxes battle it out amongst the human soldiers. These creatures are constructed with a new resource (replacing stone) called "Favor." These creatures from Greek, Norse and Egyptian mythology are much more powerful than their human counterparts, as the "myth units" are able to toss soldiers like rag dolls, turn them to stone, or even convert them into undead. They too have their match in the great Heroes, able to slay the myth units with brutal effiecency.
Each one of the three major cultures has its own heroes as well as a distinct playstyle. The Greeks are the conventional culture, and the one most familiar to those who have played Age games past. Their units are strong but expensive, they gain favor by praying at the Temple, and they only can have four very powerful heroes at a time. The Egyptians have weak, cheap units that can be produced quickly. Their buildings do not cost wood, like the other cultures', instead they only cost gold or are even free. To balance this out, their buildings take much longer to produce and their peon unit is less efficient. They can counteract the ineffiencywith their powerful Pharaoh unit though. The Pharaoh dramatically increases the efficency of anything is is taked on. Buildings build and reaserch faster, and dropsites gather resources faster and more efficently. The Pharaoh also functions as a hero unit. They gain favor by building great Monuments. The Norse are the strangest culture of them all, but also possibly the most powerful. Their units are neither particularily strong nor cheap. Norse Infantry can build buildings, allowing Norse bases to pop up all over. Their villagers do not drop off rsources at buildings, instead they do at mobile Ox Carts. Their Heroes are built at the Longouse like regular units, and they gain favor in battle.
There is another level of strategic depth to the game granted bythe coice of Gods. Before a game starts and every time you advance an Age, you choose a God to worship. Each God brings its own myth unit(s), special technologies or bonuses, and most importantly a God Power. God Powers can be only used once and do such things as burn forests, create magical healing springs, give your units flaming weapons, create undead armies, turn enemies to pigs, destroy towns with meteors or earthquakes, or even transform all your peons into mighty warriors. These God Poers add another strategic layer to the game.
Rating:
Summary: Academic Suicide.
Review: This game is so addicting, you might as well crush the CD into a fine powder and roll up a dollar bill. I'm serious. Forget your job, your academics, or even the people in your life who are important to you, because after you start to play this game you will no longer have time for them. I am a huge fan of the other AOE games, and this one does not disappoint. I have read a lot of reviews saying that this game was not up to par with the others in the series. However, there is no room for interpretation or opinion on this one. They are simply wrong. The opening mini-story graphics sequence alone is worth the price of the game. It kind of reminds you of a battle scene in Lord of the Rings. Anyway, to say graphics throughout the game are drastically improved is an understatement. I was actually yelling for the little villagers to get out of the way because I thought they were real people. You too, will enjoy creating a cyclops and watching him grab an enemy soldier by the ankle, swing him around like a lariat, and fling (actually, hurl) him at other soldiers. The game's detail is exquisite both graphically and intellectually. Is your 50-ft. collosus hurt? Eat a tree or some gold. That will help him regain some health. Yes, you read that correctly, I said "eat". Also, when advancing through the ages, you must choose which god to worship, and each has different special powers and advantages. The best part about this game is that the mythological creatures and gods are included in ADDITION to, NOT INSTEAD of the other soldiers, cavalry, etc. Ensemble Studios deserves to get rich off of this one. The game is different enough to be fun and interesting, but similar enough to keep old fans happy. Don't try it, just buy it. Oh, and here's a "PS" for people who are bashing the game saying it's too much "fantasy" - History is history, and there's only so much to go around...AOE covers pretty much every part of it before the use of guns. Mythology was a great idea. I doubt you could come up with something better or more imaginative.
|
