Sep 23, 2021
Age of Empires 4 Final Preview: Wololo Like It’s 1999
New chef makes subtle changes to a signature dish
Sixteen years later, Age of Empires is thriving. With new expansions and remasters of Age of Empires 2 and 3 enchanting fans, game studio Relic Entertainment has a tough order to serve. Today’s strategy titles are garnished with social and competitive components. But who draws the line between convention and heresy?
And which real-time strategy game’s playbook is Relic supposed to follow?
Age of Empires 4 contests not with its predecessor but with 1999’s excellent Age of Empires 2. While Age of Empires 3 made some massive changes across the board in 2005, it caused quite the stir among longtime fans. Age of Empires 4 doesn’t take as many chances.
But Relic doesn’t want to live in Age of Empires 2’s shadow either.
Age of Empires 4 is a cautious attempt at granting previous Age titles some modern sensibilities. Does it succeed? Yes*.
Was the 16-year wait for Age of Empires 4 worth it?
After spending hours with Age of Empires 4’s Technical Stress Test, I’m happy to report that Relic’s attempt at future nostalgia works. Most of the noteworthy changes are welcome. While the forums are packed with suggestions, Relic needs to prioritize among those thousand little cuts.
It’s good to be back in trebuchet territory.
Relic gives the aging franchise a divisive-yet-fresh coat of paint. The beta’s four civilizations (the Abbasid Dynasty, the Chinese, the English, and the Holy Roman Empire) try not to stray from the undying Age-to-Age formula. Even the combat has seen little change besides the addition of Age of Empires 3’s flaming torches and asymmetric civs.
Age of Empires 2’s hard counter system is here in all its glory:
- Light infantry units, especially pikemen, specialize in nullifying cavalry charges with bonus damage.
- Light ranged units are fragile damage dealers that are quickly cut down by light cavalry raids.
- Armored infantry and cavalry units soak up punishing damage and are countered by heavy ranged units.
- Siege weapons lay waste to defensive structures unless beaten by infantry/cavalry or an anti-siege weapon.
Age of Empires 4 gets a lot right
Male and female scouts call out resources as they reveal them on your map. Resource abundance means that you progress from the first Dark Age a whole lot quicker. Sheep meat lasts longer and scouts can learn to pick up deer carcasses. Age of Empires stacks these changes with civ-specific bonuses and neutral trading posts for a fresh change in pace.
And with a change in pacing comes a change in the Ages themselves.
Instead of an Age transition at one’s Town Center, one must now build a landmark of their choice, a la Age of Mythology’s god picks. Destroying landmarks serve as one of the game’s three victory conditions. In addition to wonders, sacred sites on the map serve as a victory condition while granting its conqueror a trickle of gold.
Even the age-old wololo has received an interesting remix.
Age of Empires 4’s monks can no longer convert units by menacingly waving their sticks. Instead, they have access to a timed conversion area-of-effect ability when holding a relic. The addition makes for a neat zoning tool that punishes desperate enemies.
Relic’s attention to detail grants the franchise a new lease of life.
Age of Empires 4’s graphics are impressive save for its divisive aesthetics
Buildings go through several stages of grief as they crumble against torches and trebuchets. The sound design is pretty solid across the board too, especially when buildings are clicked (except the Town Center bell bug).
Building and artillery loading are aided by artistic glowing spirits.
While some find the change inaccurate, remember that Relic still lets 16 war elephants sit comfortably in a transport ship. Period-accurate languages and war machine documentaries might just compensate for its creative decisions. Relic also makes a couple of minor but noteworthy improvements to combat itself.
Relic’s latest title promises stealth as an option, even during sieges.
Placing archers on stone walls to duke it out against warships turning to fire their broadside cannons is cool. But patches of forests where units can hide make for some interesting encounters. Especially when infantry can build battering rams and siege towers behind enemy lines.
As for playing with a friend, teamwork has been reworked as well.
Creating a lobby was simple once I formed a group of Age of Empires cultists. And while tributes let me keep my friends afloat, Age of Empires 4 surprised me when my ally was nearly defeated. Rebuildable town centers and landmarks let me bring a friend (minus her units) back from the dead.
Our revenge was sweet.
Asymmetrical civilizations are Age of Empires 4’s biggest draw
Akin to Age of Empires 3, unique civ bonuses drastically alter the way Age of Empires 4 plays. The English serve as an entry point for returning fans, whose defenses offer an overpowered 50% boost in attack speed to neighboring troops. Don’t get me started on their cheaper farms that also generate gold.
Things only get stranger from there.
The Abbasid Dynasty rewards a tight urban core, granting “Golden Age” production bonuses based on the number of buildings connected to the House of Wisdom. The Holy Roman Empire lets you train prelates, monks who can inspire villagers and troops for strategic advantage right from Age I. And the Chinese feature a tax system enforced by an Imperial officer who can also grant production boosts to buildings.
They also have a landmark that lets you spy on enemy villagers. For free.
Balance aside, things look bright for Age of Empires 4’s eight civs at launch.
But at times, Age of Empires 4 stumbles on its own cape
- Aesthetics takes precedence over visibility at times. Dust clouds the battlefield at the slightest hint of movement. The attack animations, while serviceable, can turn stale. Multiple attack animations are a trick Age of Empires Online pulled off to great effect.
- Unit upgrades are not as physically distinct as Age of Empires 2. When Crossbowmen could move up to Arbalests 16 years ago, why settle for a Spearman switching to an Elite Spearman?
- The game’s interface, while simple, could have been civ-specific like StarCraft 2. The simplified tech tree view isn’t as deep or intuitive as one would expect. Shift-clicking to plot unit routes doesn’t show flags the way Age of Empires 2 did.
- Heat-seeking cannon and arrow shots are Age of Empires 4’s biggest offenders. Gracefully maneuvering around cannon fire served micromanagement bliss back in the day. And now, there’s no friendly fire from siege units to dodge either.
Age of Empires 4 is vying for the throne of its immortal past
Despite a gap of 16 years, Age of Empires 4 is closer to its second iteration than its predecessor. While the game takes few chances, some of those decisions are missed opportunities. Besides the visuals, the devs have to work on the more pressing flaws mentioned by its dedicated fanbase.
Relic Entertainment has its work cut out.
And they have been listening. Gone are the absurd arrows and the extravagant dust storms. And while fans did receive a zoom-out option, I still think Age of Empires 4 would benefit from a larger field of view.
This iconic franchise is safe in Relic’s hands.
I can’t wait to hop on to Game Pass and download Age of Empires 4 when it hits PCs later next month. Nostalgia is a powerful motivator, and Relic seems to have struck the right balance with the iconic series’ newest iteration.
As kingdoms fall, a new empire rises from the ashes.
See you on the business end of a trebuchet.
