A great game and a welcome addition to the series, but did it surpass AOE II?
Having been a fan of the past games, I wasted little time in picking up AOE III after it was released. Fond memories of adventuring through medieval Europe and Asia following the paths of great conflicts in our history were still in my mind as I started the main single player campaign.
Right away I knew something subtle, but significant, had changed.
The story now followed the exploits of a fictional family living through a period of our past. That alone was a disappointment for me as I had loved the pure historical accuracy and value of AOE II. In my opinion, the introduction of fiction took away from the overall seriousness of the campaign. However, this was not a show-stopping flaw.
Playing through, I found some great new features - like the home city - that blew my mind with their applications. At times, I felt the visual scale of certain units was more cartoonized than necessary, but it was easier now to tell which units fought for which side at a glance.
Of course, I can't write this review without making mention of the abundance of gunpowder-based technology. There were certain sea skirmishes I fought galleon to galleon with my enemy, and didn't care what the outcome would be. Seeing these massive ships open fire on one another was visually amazing and hypnotic.
The AI in the game was also impressive overall. The way different groups of land units would work in tandem had me staring at the screen in wonder. However, the naval AI seemed just as clumsy as it has been in past AOE games.
Overall, while I enjoyed this game on its merits and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a decent RTS, I cannot say it holds up to the example set by its predecessors.
**DISCLAIMER: This review was originally posted on 15 June 2006 under the user name TheSergeant. I have since closed that account in favour of my current one and re-posted my earlier contributions with minor spelling and informational edits.**