Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition Review

As primarily a console gamer, traditionally, I’ve solely dabbled in traditional PC franchises like Age of Empires. Nonetheless, I’ve at all times been interested by them. So, when Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Version was introduced for Xbox consoles, I used to be excited to dive in headfirst and see what all of the hype was about. Fortuitously, the event groups did a wonderful job changing this PC traditional right into a improbable Xbox recreation that doesn’t depart the participant feeling like one thing was misplaced in translation.

Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Version is a real-time technique recreation that takes place at varied factors in human historical past between the Darkish Ages and the Renaissance period. Players are capable of construct up and command ten completely different historic civilizations – eight that have been out there when the sport was initially launched (English, Chinese language, Mongols, Delhi Sultanate, French, Abbasid Dynasty, Holy Roman Empire, and Rus) in addition to the 2 extra civilizations that have been later added to the sport (Ottomans and Malians).

Every match is a balancing act between growing your civilization and increase your navy forces. Do you spend your assets extra offensively or defensively? Do you deal with battle energy or know-how? What assets do you farm with a purpose to advance to the following age? Do you enterprise out to battle or let the enemy come to you? These are all questions you’ll face in nearly each match you play.

The fight primarily revolves round a rock-paper-scissors kind of strategic fight. Whereas it actually evolves as you progress, the underside line is usually that cavalry beats archers, archers beat spearman, and spearman beat calvary. In fact, all kinds of parts additionally think about like strategic placement of troops and varied techniques resembling stealth and ambushing. This, together with the entire completely different crafting wheels and instructions, might simply be construed as overwhelming, however Age of Empires IV makes itself extraordinarily welcoming to newcomers.

The marketing campaign missions showcase the mechanics essential to mastering the sport, so you actually get a grasp of easy methods to play as you go alongside. Even the opening documentary shorts and written materials that introduce every mission supply a little bit of historic perception that helps join the participant to the occasions they are going to be reenacting.

Nonetheless, pretty much as good a job because the marketing campaign does at getting the participant acclimated to the assorted mechanics that you’ll want to know earlier than actually diving into the deep finish of Age of Empires IV, I discovered that the Artwork of Conflict problem mode was a extra enjoyable and efficient strategy to be taught the mechanics versus going by the assorted historic battles.

Every problem mission focuses on a small variety of mechanics and asks gamers to finish them with varied time constraints or by limiting casualties. The outcomes of every problem both give gamers a bronze medal, a silver medal, a gold medal, or no medal in any respect if the target isn’t full inside the parameters. As I strived to finish the aims inside the tighter restrictions, I grew to become higher on the recreation.

If the Artwork of Conflict missions are the place I honed my expertise, nonetheless, on-line play is the place I actually put them to the take a look at. As enjoyable (and useful) as beating up on the A.I. opponent might be within the early levels, there may be nothing like testing your may towards one other human participant. The unpredictability of the web opponent guarantees no two matches are fairly the identical and is what would hold me coming again for extra with a purpose to enhance my rank and stand up the leaderboards.

Earlier than I started my Age of Empires IV journey, I assumed that the historic element of the sport as properly, as its marketing campaign rooted in precise historic occasions, could be what excited me to inform different folks about it. Maybe it might open up historical past in a means I’ve by no means earlier than thought of. Sadly, that wasn’t actually the case for me.

Regardless of the sport seamlessly mixing the documentary-like storytelling with every of the missions and its varied tutorials, I discovered the real-life historical past to be a bit forgettable. (Fortunately, the entire movies and ancillary written materials are skippable for many who simply need to get into the motion.) Except for completely different coloration uniforms, the troops and villagers roughly look the identical from a distance so the story behind every of the battles was shortly forgotten as quickly because the motion kicked in. That mentioned, the sport nonetheless sunk its hooks into me… simply not for the explanations I used to be anticipating.

Whereas I by no means felt like I grew to become the historical past aficionado that I needed the sport to rework me into, I did develop right into a tactical normal who agonized over technique and seemed to outsmart my enemies at each flip. Like chess, Age of Empires IV is much extra about technique and planning than it’s about twitchy controller actions and lightning-fast reactions. That mentioned, I used to be always engaged as the sport is at all times asking gamers to plan, suppose, and react. Keep idle for too lengthy and your opponent will nearly certainly acquire the higher hand.

The transfer to console doesn’t hinder the power to plan and enact technique both. Many processes might be automated and carried out by your townspeople, total teams of your navy (and even your total navy itself) might be commanded by a single button, and navigating the assorted crafting wheels turns into second nature after some time. If there was ever a problem with finishing up a selected activity, it was at all times me who failed moderately than the sport itself.

The mission to deliver Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Version from PC to Xbox is a profitable one. Age of Empires IV might not make historical past buffs out of the uninitiated, however it’s a compelling sufficient entry for many who have an interest within the style or the subject material.