Age of Empires II HD Review

Berry picking simulator returns in full HD, but can you pick those berries any better?

The game is the same old game you love, there isn't anything new or fancy or shiny which is going to change your game experience for the better or worse, its exactly the same as it was 12 years ago and by god this is one hell of a game. I had played two hours with a friend and it was one of those games which you love from the start, yet i wont go into the game-play because its exactly the same as before.

The only new additions is some polishing of the graphics, everything seems a lot higher resolution as before but nothing which is eye candy. In-fact the textures have been increased only very slightly, I felt that they could of done more work on polishing the textures and improving the very linear and laggy animations, even if you loved the original animations it wouldn't of hurt to have smooth 60fps animations.

This is not the only problem the game suffers from, constant network problems and low frame rates seems to be quite common, yet you should remember the game isn't released yet and I’m sure the developers will get patching.

The resolution is now much higher than before its running at 1080P, which is where the “High Definition” comes from yet this is only the resolution and the actual base textures are defiantly not at 1080P. The game now allows for multiple monitors so you can strech your game over 2, 3 or 4 monitors.

The main problem here is you cannot fine tweak any resolution options. The text isn't in pure HD it seems and some elements of the game still feel like they are 12 years of age.

The game is now using the Steam API system so you can join friends and play, from what I have tested this works perfectly yet a lot of people are complaining with problems with network lag.

Maybe the most anticipated feature is the game is fully supported with Steam Workshop meaning modders will start modding and creating new content for the game and you can subscribe at a click of a button.

In general its the same old game you love, but I feel that this is not a remake to me it feels as if the game is the exact same apart from a quick resolution change and the new Steam Features. If you loved Age of Empries II and want to relive the memories then this game is for you but don’t expect a completely new game or anything to look too much better or smoother.

Overall: 7/10

A good game but kinda feels more like a cheap knock off which was a bit rushed to get the high definition quality a bit more money.