I have been a fan of the Age of Empires series from the very beginning.  When I learned that Microsoft was looking for beta testers for Age of Empires Online I believe I had the signup form filled out in about 90 seconds.  After a few weeks I received an email that I had been admitted into the beta testing program. Yeah for me! Unfortunately Microsoft had an NDA (Non disclosure Agreement) in place that prohibited me discussing details regarding the Age of Empires Online game. 

Now the NDA has been lifted and I can give you my overall impressions on the game play and what Age of Empires Online is all about. Currently my main city is at level 16 and I’ve been told the level cap is 40. I wanted to go ahead and give you my experience as it stands and how I have been enjoying the game so far. As the beta continues on I will provide updates for what I expect will be a rather popular game when it ultimately released .

What if World of Warcraft and Age of Empires had a Baby?

Age of Empires Online is one of Microsoft’s attempts to bring Windows online gaming more integrated into Xbox Live. The game combines the core real time strategy elements you would expect from an Age of Empires game with elements from MMORPG's such as World of Warcraft, for leveling, equipping your army, community interaction, crafting, and in game economy.  The game begins, like most typical MMO’s by offering you quests by a NPC with a big exclamation point over their head. The first quests serve as a tutorial and introduce you to the game mechanics.

After you have accepted quests you have a quest map that allows you to view the quest details and see the various locations on the map. In Age of Empires Online a home city essentially replaces the character identity of most typical MMORPG’s like World of Warcraft. Your city levels as you complete quests and earn experience points. Each time you level you get points you can assign to upgrade your city, unlock new units, and improve your military skills. These upgrades and everything you change about your city will be there after you logoff.

Completing Quests in Age of Empires Online

From your quest map you pick a quest and click ‘Begin Quest’. Early quests are like most real time strategy game tutorials and you will be gathering resources and doing simple building constructions. As you move higher in levels the quests become more complex. There is no traveling to the destination of the quest and no cut scenes.  You click Begin Quest, and you are there. Everything you have researched, the items you have purchased, and the upgrades you have made to your city carry through with you to the battlefield. Age of Empires 3 explored some of these aspects but Age of Empires Online takes it to the next level.

 For example, in your home city you may equip your archers with a sweet new bow crafted by another player and then upgrade their armor with an item you found on a previous quest. When you build your archery buildings and start cranking out archers in quests, these archers will all have the equipment you have selected. Like other Age of Empires games your empire itself goes through various stages of development. Each stage of development opens up new technologies and units to your civilization.

The Core Age of Empires Gameplay

At the core of the game is the Age of Empires real time strategy experience. There are a few surprises here and there but for the most part the game play is much like other age of empire games. You create villagers that gather food, wood, stone, gold, and build structures that create military units and allow upgrades. The overall quality of the beta is excellent. I’ve encounter few if any bugs and the game runs very smoothly.  In the next few days I’ll be playing more Age of Empires Online beta and will offer a more detailed write up after I break level 20.

Game On!