Age of Empires is a series of historical real-time strategy video games, originally created by Ensemble Studios and published by Xbox Game Studios.
The first game in the series, Age of Empires, covered events in Europe, Africa, and Asia from the Stone Age to the Iron Age. A later version of the game focused on the growth and spread of the Roman Empire. The next game, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, took place during the Middle Ages. Its expansion pack included events from the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. Age of Empires III and its two expansions explored the early modern period, when European countries were colonizing the Americas and some Asian nations were losing power. Another version, Age of Empires Online, is a free-to-play online game that uses the Games for Windows Live platform. A spin-off game, Age of Mythology, was set during the same time period as the original Age of Empires but focused on stories from Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythology. The fourth main version in the series, Age of Empires IV, was released on October 28, 2021, and also focused on the Middle Ages.
The Age of Empires series has sold more than 25 million copies worldwide.
Games
The games in the series explore historical events from different time periods. Age of Empires covers events from the Stone Age to the Classical period in Europe and Asia. Its expansion, The Rise of Rome, follows the creation and growth of the Roman Empire. Age of Kings and its Nintendo DS version show events in Europe and Asia during the Middle Ages. The Age of Kings expansion, The Conquerors, takes place during the same time but also includes scenarios about the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, El Cid, and Attila the Hun. Age of Empires III and its first expansion, The WarChiefs, are set during the European colonization of the Americas. Its second expansion, The Asian Dynasties, shows the rise of Asian civilizations during the same time. Age of Empires Online focuses on Greek and Egyptian civilizations. The series' spin-off, Age of Mythology, and its expansion, The Titans, are set during the Bronze Age but focus on mythology instead of history.
Age of Empires, released on October 15, 1997, was the first game in the series and the first major release from Ensemble Studios. It was one of the first history-based real-time strategy games, using the Genie game engine. GameSpot described it as a mix of Civilization and Warcraft. Players can choose from 12 civilizations to develop from the Stone Age to the Iron Age. The expansion pack, The Rise of Rome, published by Microsoft on October 31, 1998, added new features and four new civilizations, including the Romans. Although the games had many software bugs, patches fixed many of the problems.
Age of Empires received mostly positive reviews, though some critics had negative opinions. GameSpot criticized its confusing design, while Computer and Video Games praised its single-player and multiplayer modes. The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences named Age of Empires the 1998 "Computer Strategy Game of the Year." The game remained popular, selling over three million copies by 2000. The Rise of Rome sold one million units in 2000 and earned an 80% aggregate score from GameRankings.
In June 2017, Adam Isgreen, creative director of Xbox Game Studios, announced Age of Empires: Definitive Edition at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2017. It includes updated graphics for 4K resolution, a remastered soundtrack, and other improvements. Originally planned for October 19, 2017, the release was delayed until February 20, 2018. In May 2019, Microsoft announced the Definitive Edition would also come to Steam, along with Definitive Editions of Age of Empires II and III.
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, released on September 30, 1999, used the Genie game engine and had gameplay similar to its predecessor. The game is set in the Middle Ages, from the Dark Ages to the Imperial Age, and allows players to choose from 13 civilizations in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
On August 24, 2000, Microsoft released the expansion, The Conquerors, which added new units, five new civilizations, and included two Mesoamerican civilizations: the Maya and the Aztec. Age of Kings was more successful than the first two games, with Game Rankings and Metacritic scores of 92%. Microsoft sold over two million copies, and the game won awards. Critics praised The Conquerors as an improvement but noted some gameplay issues. Age of Kings and The Conquerors won the "Computer Strategy Game of the Year" awards in 2000 and 2001, respectively.
In April 2013, Age of Empires II: HD Edition was released on Steam for Windows. It includes the original game, The Conquerors expansion, and updated graphics for high-resolution displays. Age of Empires II: The Forgotten was an unofficial expansion that later became official, with Microsoft releasing The Forgotten HD in 2013. A third expansion, The African Kingdoms, was released in 2015, and a fourth, Rise of the Rajas, in 2016. Microsoft announced Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition in 2017.
In June 2019, Adam Isgreen shared details about Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2019. The game includes 4K graphics, Xbox Live multiplayer support, four new civilizations, three new campaigns, and other improvements. It was released on November 14, 2019. Microsoft confirmed that the HD Edition would remain available after the Definitive Edition's release.
Age of Empires III was released on October 18, 2005, using an improved version of the Age of Mythology engine with updated graphics and the Havok physics engine. The game takes place between 1421 and 1850, and players can choose from eight European nations. It introduced features like home cities, which provide resources and upgrades. The first expansion, The WarChiefs, released in 2006, added three new civilizations focused on Native Americans. The second expansion, The Asian Dynasties, released in 2007, expanded the game into Asia and added three new civilizations. Reviews were mixed, with some praising the graphics and others criticizing the gameplay. The game sold over two million copies and won the GameSpy "real-time strategy game of the year" award. The WarChiefs and The Asian Dynasties received lower scores than the original game.
Collectors' editions of Age of Empires III included a hardcover artbook. The last page showed a series timeline with Roman numerals from I to V, suggesting future games like Age of Empires IV and V. Ensemble Studios employee Sandy Petersen said the image was a guess.
In 2008, Microsoft announced it would close Ensemble Studios after completing Halo Wars.
Development
The development of the Age of Empires games had some similarities. Because the games were based on real historical events, the team did a lot of research. However, the research was not very detailed. According to Bruce Shelley, a designer for Age of Empires, this was a good choice for most entertainment products. Shelley also said that Ensemble Studios used information from children’s sections in libraries. He explained that the goal was to make the game fun for players, not for the designers or researchers. At a conference in 2007, Shelley said the series succeeded by making a game that appealed to both casual and serious gamers. He also said the games were not about history itself, but about the human experience. They focused on what humans could do in the future, like exploring space. Ensemble Studios made Age of Mythology differently from the first two games. The team worried they could not make a third historical game, so they chose mythology as the setting after discussing other options.
The artificial intelligence (AI) in the Age of Empires series was improved over time. Dave Pottinger, an AI specialist, said the team gave the AI in the original game a high priority and spent over a year working on it. He explained that the AI used tactics and strategies to win, not by cheating or giving itself unfair advantages. Pottinger said the team was proud that the AI played a fair game, following the same rules as human players.
Age of Empires lets players choose between story-based conditions or individual battles against the AI or other players. When playing against the AI, it can adapt to players’ strategies and remember past games. Over time, the AI can defeat players’ strategies and destroy their villages. In Age of Empires III, this is called a "Skirmish." Age of Empires III also allows players to improve their strategies by "building a Deck," which lets them replace "Home City" shipments with better options.
In Age of Empires II: The Conquerors, the AI was a top priority, leading to the "smart villager" feature. This feature was added to later games in the series. Smart villagers would collect resources related to structures they built, such as crops from farms or ore from deposits.
Age of Mythology: The Titans lets players use an AI debugger to create custom scenarios. This tool allows players to change how computer players act in specific ways. Similar basic AI changes were available in the first two games of the series.
The graphics in Age of Empires improved with each new release. Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings received praise for its better visuals compared to the original game. Age of Mythology also got positive reviews for its graphics, and Age of Empires III received even more praise. GameSpot said the graphics in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings looked better. Eurogamer noted the addition of female villagers, which was new compared to the original game. Allgame praised the improved grouping and path-finding systems in Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, but also said some units were hard to tell apart. Game Revolution called Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings "the best looking of the 2D RTS games."
Age of Mythology’s graphics were praised by many reviewers. IGN said the graphics were "a joy to watch" and "awesome." GameSpot gave the graphics a 9 out of 10 rating. Game Revolution and PC Gamer also praised the detailed visuals.
Age of Empires III’s graphics were highly praised. IGN said the graphics had "a lot of detail," and 1UP.com called it "one of the most beautiful games." GameSpy said the graphics were "unmatched in the strategy genre." Age of Empires III used new features from Age of Mythology, such as the Havok physics engine for Windows and PhysX for Mac OS X. These engines allowed events like building destruction and tree felling to be calculated in real time, instead of using pre-recorded animations. GameSpot liked the graphics in Age of Empires III but said some unit behavior was awkward. Other features included bloom lighting and support for pixel shader 3.0.
GameSpy gave Age of Empires III the "Best Graphics" award in their "Game of the Year 2005" list.
Stephen Rippy has been the music director for the series since the first game. He sometimes worked with his brother, David Rippy, and Kevin McMullan. The music in Age of Empires used sounds from real historical instruments. These sounds came from actual instruments and their digital recordings. Rippy said creating the music for The Age of Kings was easier because the team already knew about medieval instruments. In Age of Mythology, the team used orchestral music. McMullan said they collected many audio recordings from zoos to create a large sound library. The music in Age of Empires III was similar to The Age of Kings, using more historical instruments like bagpipes and field drums to make the soundtrack sound realistic.
Ensemble Studios worked with Big Huge Games to develop The Asian Dynasties, an expansion for Age of Empires III. This was the first time the two teams collaborated. The reason was that Ensemble Studios was busy with other projects, like Halo Wars, while Big Huge Games had few projects at the time. Big Huge Games did most of the work, but Ensemble Studios designers Greg Street and Sandy Petersen helped with brainstorming and had control over the final product. Both studios tested the game before its release.
Reception and legacy
The Age of Empires series has been successful in selling many copies of its games. By 2008, five games in the series had each sold over one million copies. According to Gamasutra, the original Age of Empires game had sold more than three million copies, and The Rise of Rome had sold one million copies by 2000. Around the same time, Microsoft reported that they had shipped over two million copies of The Age of Kings. In 2003, Microsoft announced that one million copies of Age of Mythology had been sold. By 2004, before the release of Age of Empires III, the entire Age of Empires franchise had sold over 15 million copies. On May 18, 2007, Ensemble Studios announced that two million copies of Age of Empires III had been sold. Games in the series have received high scores on review websites like GameRankings and Metacritic, which collect ratings from many sources. The highest-rated game is Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, which received a 92% score from both sites.
Critics say Age of Empires influenced other real-time strategy (RTS) games, such as Rise of Nations, Empire Earth, and Cossacks. Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds was also influenced by the series. It used the same Genie game engine as Age of Empires and Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings. Critics said it was very similar to the games. IGN began their review by saying, "I love Age of Star Wars, I mean Star Empires. Whatever it's called, I dig it." GameSpot noted that the basic features of Age of Empires II were still present in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds, making it easy for players familiar with the earlier game to enjoy it. In October 2005, Shelley talked about the impact of the series. In a GameSpy interview, he said that parents told Ensemble Studios that their children were reading books about ancient Greece because they enjoyed playing with triremes in the game or were learning about medieval history because the game taught them about trebuchets.
Shelley said the success of the games came from innovation, not copying other games. He claimed the unique features in the games helped make Ensemble Studios known as experts in the real-time strategy genre. Mark Bozon of IGN wrote in his review of The Age of Kings that the Age of Empires series was one of the most innovative real-time strategy games for PC in the past decade. Gamenikki called Ensemble Studios "the developer that started it all" when discussing how much Age of Empires III contributed to the growth of the real-time strategy genre. Shelley said the success and innovation of Age of Empires helped Ensemble Studios survive during its early years. In 2005, Shelley mentioned that critics had a bias toward expecting new ideas, even though Age of Empires III was the best-selling PC game at the time. He pointed out that a review in Computer Gaming World gave it a 60% score, and critics expected something completely new, leading them to rate it harshly.
Bungie, the company behind the Halo series, chose Ensemble Studios to develop Halo Wars, an RTS game based on Halo. They said one reason they chose Ensemble was because of the success of the Age of Empires series. They also said Ensemble was the best choice to bring the original vision of Halo to life, which was first planned as an RTS game.
In 2024, the Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado Age of Empires II tournament reached the second-highest viewership in the game's history, with 85,800 people watching at the same time. The event took place at the Castle of Almodóvar, Spain, and featured eight top players, including TheViper and Hera, who won the final 5-1. This was a 12% increase in peak viewership compared to the previous series, showing the growing popularity of Age of Empires II in competitive gaming.