It’s been twenty years since Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings came out. Often considered by players as the best opus in the series, it was logical that Microsoft is looking into the remastering of this legendary title.
It is therefore in 2019 that the Definitive Edition of this exceptional game is released on PC. A real snub to Sony, which was entitled to a Ps2 version of the original title in 2001, this Definitive Edition arrives on Xbox One and Xbox Series from January 31.
But what is this port worth? This is what we are going to discover right away.
History in our hands
Age of Empires: Definitive Edition is a real-time strategy game that lets us relive the greatest events of the Middle Ages.
The title therefore does not follow a single linear plot, but offers no less than thirty-five civilizations that take us on a journey around the world through twenty-five scripted campaigns of increasing difficulty.
Other modes are also on the program: Skirmish allows us to launch a quick game through many maps while customizing our experience, more complex historical scenarios are also available, as well as unique challenges to test our mastery of the game.
- The missions are scripted
Finally, the title has a competitive online multiplayer mode and many seasonal events.
The content available at launch is simply dizzying. Getting through the whole title takes hundreds of hours… only for the single player mode!
In addition, each campaign and additional scenario is written with the greatest care, has dubbing (and texts) in French, as well as original staging.
- The staging is excellent
However, it is clear that the content of this console version of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is strictly identical to that offered on PC, even in the layout of the menus. Content previously released as paid DLC is still available, each at the displayed price of €9.99.
Point of importance all the same: the title is part of the Xbox Play Anywhere program. In other words, those who have already purchased the game on PC can get the console edition, DLC included, for free.
A qualitative but limited port
All lovers of real-time strategy games know it: you have to play it with keyboard and mouse. However, developers have been toiling for three decades trying to adapt their titles to home consoles, even if it means having to deliver a wobbly finished product that is borderline playable.
Many have tried the experience by breaking their teeth, some have gotten away with honors… but what about this Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition?
Clearly, the result is mixed. In the first hours, the discovery of this grip is surprisingly pleasant. The teams have really made every effort to offer us the smoothest gameplay possible, without ever making the slightest sacrifice.
- There are many missions
The left analog stick is used to move our cursor, the right takes care of the camera. A allows us to select one or more units (a single click for one, a double click for all identical units, and a selection circle by leaving the latter pressed).
The choice to use all the buttons on the controller is wise, especially since the placement of the controls has obviously been decided with the greatest care. Thus, the directional keys allow us to quickly switch between fighters, monks, villagers and direct access to the Forum.
Pleasant and intuitive, the grip can be tamed without the slightest effort… except for less frequent commands, which nevertheless require a real time to learn and adapt (such as defining passage points or changing the harvesting mode). of our peasants).
- Many cards are available
Finally, the Forgotten Empires teams have also left the player the choice between two interfaces: simplified and advanced, in order to meet everyone’s needs.
The most enjoyable idea of the title comes from its tutorial. Rather than quickly link learning at the risk of losing the player, we are invited to experience William Wallace’s campaign in four immersive missions, each allowing us to better understand all the intricacies of the gameplay as well as the controls on the joystick. It’s a big yes, whether for neophytes or regulars of the title.
Now that we have detailed the controls, the question still arises: is it playable?
- The naval battles are very original
Clearly, yes… and no. If the whole of the campaign, the scenarios and the challenges are relatively simple, we will quickly rail on the skirmish mode (and, by logical consequence, on the multiplayer which we however could not experiment. Especially since it is possible to play it in crossplay) or the most advanced difficulty modes.
Indeed, in the most tense situations, the grip on the joystick is clearly harmful. Navigation is less fluid than on PC, the title has no “active pause” option to take care of planning its actions or considering a complex situation and offers no compromise.
Yes, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition on console is strictly the same as on PC, except for the use of the controller. And no, that was probably not the best idea. Adapting the gameplay would have been a significant plus, especially considering the plethora of commands to remember to execute our orders perfectly.
- It is possible to build a city at will
In addition, an assisted mode activated by default (and impossible to remove) made us pester several times during our games. When our units are grouped together for example, selecting a single one (or an identical group) in order to better manage their positioning is an ordeal that makes us lose very, very precious seconds… and can thus decide the outcome of a battle. .
Admittedly, it is possible to connect a keyboard and a mouse in order to enjoy the same experience as on PC… making the game with the controller all the more frustrating for the console player who hardly has the feeling of being caught in the middle. serious.
A console is not a PC…
Perhaps it would be good to remind developers of this reality, which is sometimes obvious. This is certainly not a pitfall specific to Age of Empire II: Definitive Edition… But the latter is much more detrimental here.
As said before, there is absolutely no difference with the PC version of the title. In other words, the level of zoom available has hardly been improved. The problem is that very often the console player is further from his screen than his PC counterpart.
The result is quite quickly a mixed feeling. It can be difficult to differentiate your units, we spend a lot of time trying to select the right one and bring it to a specific point… or simply to understand what is happening before our eyes.
- Digesting a lot of controller units is complicated
Particularly frustrating for certain actions requiring skill (such as bringing our sheep to the Forum), it is not uncommon to press just a few millimeters from the place targeted… and thus completely change control, we forced to start all over again.
Similarly, we have repeatedly railed during the most dantesque clashes on the difficulty of reading the action, forcing us to develop techniques so as not to be completely lost (such as selecting all the available units to estimate our losses) .
Finally, the mini-map is on a completely puppet console and does not allow us to move our camera as quickly as on PC. It is therefore preferable to avoid opening several front lines, at the risk of not being able to navigate sufficiently quickly from one point to another without suffering heavy losses.
- These messages are destabilizing
Concretely, in the most advanced difficulty modes and particularly devious missions, we have no choice but to play defensive… at the risk of losing because of the controller.
Last but not least: although the title has been optimized, we discover with amazement several warning messages on “the possibility of slowdowns” when trying to define more extensive parameters during skirmishes.
On Xbox One X, it is therefore strongly discouraged to launch a battle on a map of “large” size or more, to increase the number of maximum units or simply to play eight.
Having tested the game under these conditions, we indeed experience framerate drops as well as some freezes when the card is overloaded.
Tested on Xbox One X
