I had to uninstall age of Empires 2 because trying to play the game after they added the Rome part but I don't have it downloaded but in order to actually add the better stuff they had to change the core mechanics of the game and now the game does not work at all because and I figured this out real fast from the dear fucking god ancient text boxes that were report the problem text boxes that were created in 1999. Age of Empires 2 is working on corrupted code from 24 fucking years ago. Age of Empires 1 does not have that problem. Is it possible to alter the coding of Age of Empires 1 slightly enough to be able to enter town centers and tower? Yes because entering transport ships already existed and having ships go on land already existed so its not hard to add that to Age of Empires 1. Adding opening and closing gates would also be doable to the coding of the game because again its able for the code. Now to port the game to Age of Empires 2 they had to slow down the units and do either an overhaul to each and every item that was being added to Age of Empires meaning buildings, ships, and units, and gathering speeds or screw up the code of Age of Empires 2 slightly enough to be able to use the older game units. Basically either add the easily addable units to a far better game or completely destroy the base game of Age of Empires 2 to add superior game into their game because Age of Empires 2 is dying and the developers are refusing to admit reality. Sure high ranking players play the game but the causal player moved to Age of Empires 1 because its actually playable.
for old schoolers is great to see a version of aoe1 with all the nice things that aoe2 has (gates, formations, full market, more intuitive scoring, etc). I really liked this dlc and to be honest was waiting for something like this for years; this is what I think AOE DE should have been.
Yeah, this is exactly what AOE DE should have been. The main reason I like this DLC is I hope it means that AOE 1 won't be abandoned anymore, the bronze age is an interesting time period that is RARELY covered in rts games.
But how those original campaigns would be compatible with the new mechanics added into the game from AoE2? Like we already have those with AoE1 so what would be the point? New campaigns with the new mechanics make waaay more sense.
There's no doubt in my mind that the community scripters will port those older campaigns in as custom campaigns. There are already 4-5 campaigns/scenarios that have been uploaded. The guy who made them has worked for or with Forgotten Empires iirc. He even added Co-Op for one. Just look for "[ROR]" in the Mod Browser.
@@michamalinowski8015 AoE 1 DE is a complete mess with atrocious pathfinding. Microsoft basically gave up on trying to fix anything about it. Is it really that shocking that people hoped it would be fully ported into the much better game that is AoE 2 DE? Also keep in mind that the studio never classified that the campaigns were not gonna be added outside of a single facebook post.
@@xKinjax There were screenshots of the campaigns, YT creators got early acces versions of the DLC. I knew way back that there will only be 3 campaogns and they will all be new ones
@@michamalinowski8015 The campaign button was greyed out on every youtube video i watched of the game pre-release. When you say "3 New Campaigns" on the store page it doesn't automatically imply the old ones wouldn't be ported over. They could have simply made it clear from the start, on the store page, that none of the campaigns would get ported over. They were not clear enough on what the content would be and the reviews reflect this.
@@aruan7sp Unfortunatley, just 4 campaigns so far. They decided two by themselfe and for those other two, we can vote for atm. But I really hope for all the campaigns.
I don’t think I’ve ever played much of AOE1 but I like the timeline! Seeing it imported to AOE2 with all the mechanics I couldn’t asked for a better DLC. I hope they will add more content to this DLC, I couldn’t be happier!
If my memory serves me right, the dev-team once mentioned during an interview that maintaining two engines(AOE1 particularly) at the same time is simply too tiresome to be viable. So they decided to port everything AOE1 into the more popular AOE2 engine and thus makes maintenence much more easier. I don't expect them changing too much game mechanisms for AOE1 in the future(such as UT or UU) since AOE1 already got some solid player base who are already quite used to it, but there's the possiblity that we may see more newly designed campaigns and even new civs for RoR in the future.
They've added a decent amount of AoE2 content for free (the co-op campaigns, for example), so I could definitely see them slowly porting over the original AoE1 campaigns.
@@thenayancat8802 Don't hold your breath. AoE2 civs Persians, Koreans, Vikings, Chinese, Mayans, Japanese, Turks, and Maygars don't have main campaigns (1-shot scenarios don't count) and some of those civs have been in AoE2 for literal decades, so building campaign scenarios in general seems to be low on the list of priorities for the development team.
then hopefully RoR sells well.. if you go by the steam reviews.. the DLC is unfortunately not so well received. mainly because of the missing AoE 1 OG campaigns. but actually all the content was announced before the release, so idk why some people rate this as negative even though it wasn't promised at the launch. We'll see what the future brings, would really like more RoR content in the form of more DLCs and patches.
AOE1 was my first PC game I ever played with my older brother (besides Starcraft and Warcraft) and this DLC is an absolute must buy. When AOE1: DE came out, I told my brother about it and we played a couple games and realized that the path finding sucks as we were so used to playing AOE2. Now we can finally play AOE1 with modern AOE2 mechanics and it just fits so well! Now I just have to teach my nephews on how to play the game with us!
Same, except not just my older brother but our cousin too. I was born in 92 and by the time I was 6 I was playing games like quake, half life, aoe, unreal tournament you name it! So here's to elder siblings and family or friends who helped us get into something that's relatively healthy and maybe kept us out of some, but maybe not all trouble lol
Similar here with my brothers and also I'm finally able to enjoy AoE 1 with my AoE 2 friends who either never got to play it when they were young or just couldn't stomach how bad the AI and pathfinding was. The quality of life changes for gates and market trading are a really nice touch and I'm having a blast even just playing matches vs AI because AoE 2 AI is actually good. This is definately a great game to start bringing other new players into the fold with I hope you have a blast playing with your nephews.
Personally, this expansion was exactly what I was wanting it to be. (And frankly, what I had hoped the original AOE1 DE was going to be when it was first announced). AOE1 with AOE2’s gameplay and quality of life improvements. I love the ancient era, but it’s always been difficult to get myself to play the first game when AOE2 was such a huge improvement by Ensemble Studios. Given just how fleshed out the medieval era is with all the expansions released for AOE2 over the past 20 years (from Conquerors all the way to Dynasties of India is, what, 8 expansions this game has, not including Return of Rome?) I hope this means more ancient era campaigns to come for this. (Though I certainly won’t complain if we get more regular AOE2 campaigns of course) Maybe a full reworking of the original game’s campaigns? Completely new campaigns like the three this expansion has?
Hi Zade, the answer you wanted to have during the hole video is quite easy: Vietnam I'm a big fan of AoE sagas (AoE 2 my favourite) and the main reason of these is to move the hole Vietnamese community in AoE 1 (they are like 25k daily players on the old AoE from 1997, incredible but true). When they did AoE 1 DE, the game was exactly the same as the oldest version but the gameplay was worse, with this new AoE 1 (ported on AoE 2) they expect the recover that. They already got everything made, the "spectator scene", the multiplayer competitive ladder, better gameplay, IA, pathfinding, and more. Thats why they did this new old DLC on AoE 2. Hopefully the hole vietnamese community joins to this beatifoul game and if that happen, it will be twice as big. Also thanks for the video, but here you got the real answer of "why did they make this DLC?" Cheers
Yes. Thank you, so many people don't realize that surprisingly AoE1 actually has the largest player base. It's just not been monetized or integrated into the global scene, just Vietnam
@@brettfitzmaurice3317 That's cos they insist on playing the cracked version of the original game, and even in that they insist on a custom ruleset that's completely unlike general play. They don't want to change, so I'm not sure if even this will win them over.
@@brettfitzmaurice3317 D3 itself does yes, but the RoR version of the game is just hugely different from the game they're used to in a whole lot of other ways. If they're open to change, they might switch, but in that case I don't see the point of D3 to begin with as they're open to change. If they're not open to change then I doubt the inclusion of D3 will be anywhere near enough to convince them to switch to such a drastically different version of the game than they're used to. But ultimately it'll probably just come down to whether FE can convince enough of the pro players to switch as the whole scene basically revolves around them, with no single-player to speak of.
I honestly don't get the hate. When people got the game with the old balance 700 people played it. Now people say why the original campaigns are not here. Seriously? Because they were made for a different game and mechanics. Like if you want to play the original campaigns AoE 1 DE is there. Getting new campaigns build with those changes in mind is a far better idea, and give people more content insted giving them the sam content twice. Maybe it's just me, because I was thinking "I would love to play AoE1 with AoE2 mechanics like gates and formations" and I got it. The fact that I get a Western Roman faction is just a cherry on the top, because the Great Migration Period is my favorite chapter of history.
I wanted this. I grew up playing aoe1 then 2 and have a love of the classical period of history in general. Aoe1 with the vastly improved mechanics of Aoe2 is definately something I wanted and willing to pay for. The new campaigns are great and worth the money on their own imo, but we also get a new aoe2 civ. I hope they add more to it and attempt to balance it more in the future!
Got it, played with friends... it's super fun ! Though the economy seems slightly broken... a bit too easy once you hit Tool Age, but maybe AOE1 is like that ? I am looking forward to new civs like the Mauryans which would fit the time period. As a side note ... can centurion be beat ? I am having way too much fun trouncing AIs with mass centurion and I make no efforts to produce other units.
@@dhruvsharma6826 "can centurion be beat ?" - Use a bunch of Ballistas / Helepoli. Now that is scary. As for how to beat that, Catapults are the answer.
@@ArawnOfAnnwn is it normal to float 10s of thousands of resources in team games post Iron Age (with all game settings at default) in the original aoe / aoe de ?
@@dhruvsharma6826 Yeah, except Helepoli in AoE 1 are a lot stronger than Scorpions in AoE 2. And AoE 1 Heavy Catapults have a lot more range in AoE 1 relative to all the other units available than Siege Onagers have in AoE 2, as they fill the Treb role too.
They just confirmed it'll get some of the campaigns, and you get to choose which ones! Plus we've already got a bunch of AoE 1 custom content from modders uploaded, so the mod scene is alive and will definitely make sure all the content is there eventually.
They just confirmed it'll get some of the campaigns, and you get to choose which ones! Plus we've already got a bunch of AoE 1 custom content from modders uploaded, so the mod scene is alive and will definitely make sure all the content is there eventually.
I'm buying it, I just need to wait a few weeks for a paycheck. I don't like the lack of stand alone but, I can't help but feel like they wanted to bring in AoE 1 factions into 2
was kinda shot that it was just DLC campaigns and skirmish too, but as far as that goes I've had a blast with every roman mission; and the Macadonian missions have been really fun, though alot harder then i'm used to being the fact I can't make a temple.
The AoE1 original/DE campaigns will probably get ported as custom campaigns by anyone who wants to do it. People can also choose to hack them up to be more AoE2 campaign-like (higher popcap, redo the landscape to accommodate gates/larger bases, add triggered events, etc), or leave them mostly as-is.
@Voice of Reason Old campaigns, unchanged with AoK style beginning video naration with single comics style image pasted on would of been at least expected.
As someone who played the original AoE 1 in the late '90s before AoE 2 was even released, and as someone who has a keen interest in ancient/classical history, I love this DLC. It's a shame it's received so many mixed reviews from the community though
You have made some really solid points. I think we need to ask more questions like this. We as a community are not as harsh on the company we pay money to. There are too many unanswered questions about this DLC. And I say this as someone who bought it immediately.
the one thing that makes the western romans, is that if you played the first Alarac mission; you fought for the eastern romans; and fought the western romans; but... both sides were Byzantium roman. with the DLC i was hot in my mind that the Western romans would finally come into the game, and they did. which means Bari's campaign will defacto be the Byzantines vs their western brother too.
Another reviewer framed it that they wanted to get the Vietnamese players to eventually move over to AoE 2 DE, which would make some sense here with the way they did things. I like the introduction of the Romans even though the age is off with the rest of the civs in AoE 2, but it's good fun.
Tf are you talking about? Romans were still around in the 14th century and only died off as a civilization after 1453. The goths existed, the huns existed and they existed before the western half collapsed. There is zero logic whatsoever in people like you saying that rome doesn’t fit yet nobody complains about goths and huns
I too wish the original campaigns had been brought over - especially Enemies of Rome. I understand that this DLC was made, at least in part, especially with the Vietnamese market in mind. Apparently there is a huge Vietnamese player base - but for AOE1. So as a marketing ploy, this DLC was made to appeal to them and perhaps bring that market into AOE 2
I own Age1 DE, but the campaign was so hard to get into because of the old timey path finding and UI. Disappointed they didn't port over the campaign. If they had a more expensive option that has them, I would pay for it. I hope someone will mod in a hybrid play mode where Age1 civs can age up into Age2. Kinda like a more expanded version of the Age3 Revolution mechanic. Trigger a dark age collapse and pick a historically accurate successor faction? Defeat an opponent in Iron Age will have them spawn in a random location in the Dark Age?
Was born in 85. I remember the first day Age of Empires 1 came out. I had been a huge Warcraft 2 player so it was just insane to see how advanced the game was. I loved it. I will also be the first person to say that Age of Empires 1 did not age very well mechanic wise. I always wanted an updated version of Age 1 and this DLC delivers exactly what Ive wished for. I can understand the argument that this could have been a standalone game but in the end Im just glad that this even exist in the first place after soooooo many years.
honestly, this DLC is exactly what people wanted, from whta i seen in general, AOE2 mecahnics and quality for AOE1, with the bettr path findingm, formation, and especially connection. the price may be a bit high if you only care for AOE2 stuff, but, you are basivally getting a new game at almost the same price as the original (depends on region) so for me, this DLC was expectacular, and im sure modders will bring nsthe old campaings. hell considering this dlc was a mod at first, they may give modders support and officially help them port said campaings
Being me, one with plenty nostalgia for AoE1 but can't ignore it's shortcomings, like the horrible path-finding which they purposely left untouched in AoE1DE... Yeah I very much enjoy this one. My only problem is the lack of the classic campaigns, which apparently was just announced they will be adding just 4 of them? And sure this could be standalone, it makes sense that it isn't because its literally the AoE2 client, but still. Many echo the sentiment that THIS is what we wanted from AoE1DE from the start, but hey AoE2DE pathing that we wanted wasn't even done yet. It's a bit of a mess for sure but hey.
I think it's just more logical that if they have the means of housing two entirely different datasets in one game, then the opportunity should be taken.
Trouble is, almost no-one plays online, there's no advanced ranked game finder UI AoK DE has.. Can hardly find any game - at EU evening time at least..
To be fair, AOE 1 def Edition already had some AOEII mechanics and no one complained in 2017, no one I know of. And as a nostalgic man, I'm glad both the DLC and AOE I exist, I would constantly miss the old AOE I mechanics. I hope it's the same for other players.
I really only play the campaigns of the AoE games and I was hyped when they said they were porting the first game to the second game's engine. Of course I thought that meant they would actually just update the first game which really needs it. Beyond the pathfinding issues, the campaign difficulty is straight up broken. Whenever they made AI improvements in the Definitive Edition, they did not account for how that would affect the campaigns. Even on the easiest difficulty, many missions require cheesy tactics and multiple restarts which is not acceptable in my opinion. I'm by no means a great, or even good player, but I've played the AoE/AoM/RTS games in general for 25 years. AoE 1 was one of the first games I even remember playing at all. It feels like a slap in the face that is this completely separate from the first game, completely separate from the second game (while still requiring the second game), no discount for game 1 owners, and doesn't even include all the first game content.
AoE1 definitive edition sucks, it has no formations and the pathing is terrible plus it's missing lots of features, for example scouts can't even auto attack in AoE1, hell, the whole D3 game mode only exists because if you rush your enemy with babylonian slingers in AoE1 you instantly won. Sure it's similar to the original mechanics of AoE1 but even back in the day everyone realized that AoE2 had superior gameplay and mechanics to it's predecessor. I'm sure that there are lots of people that just want an ancient/bronze age RTS with the more polished features of Age of Empires 2 otherwise there wouldn't be popular mods like Rome At War.
As an AOE2 player, I've always wanted a new age game that felt like AOE2, but different, a new setting, idk, anything to make it interesting and new, while keeping the original AOE2 feeling. I was hoping AOE4 would do this, but it did not, imo AOE4 doubled down on everything AOE2 did poorly, and changed everything AOE2 did well. Only thing I like about AOE4 is the way each civ is very different and unique. This DLC made something that is new enough to be interesting, but not different enough to give it a huge learning curve, I can quickly get into a game and play, and it'll feel right, all the tricks I've learned from AOE2, like dodging arrows, qucik walling, all of that will still work, and everything will feel familliar, since its essentially the same game, but it has a new setting that makes it way more interesting for me. AOE1 is not nostalgic for me, cause I barelly ever played it, so to me, and to most of the younger AOE2 player base (wich there are quite a few of us), its a brand new game that feels just familliar enough. This DLC makes me excited for what's to come in the future, if they decide to do something else in the same style as this, but with an original new setting, or maybe bring back the old star wars version of AOE2 lol (wich I've never played, but it seems cool) it would be very interesting, and I will definitly pay for it again and again.
So basically this is AOE1 if I made it. A little history, I played Age of Empires 2 before I played the first game and found the game obnoxious, archaic and old still enjoyed it. Always wanted to see a port like this with better mechanics added.
I'm guessing the main reason for putting most of AoE1 in AoE2 is so most of AoE1 can be in the XBox version of AoE2 without separately porting and updating all of AoE1DE. It's what makes the most sense to me.
It's for Xbox players who want to play Age 1 with the Age 2 DE quality of life improvements. Things like a town bell are essential when playing on controller because of the lack of ability to select individual units with precision. It's a DLC to Age 2 DE rather than separate so that they can charge Gamepass players $15 instead of listing it for free.
If you're into AoE2 and are curious to try AoE1 but don't want to buy it, then this is the best way to do it. If you enjoy AoE1 but don't own AoE2, then this will be a hard sell. I'm also not entirely on board with essentially creating a paid patch like this.
I pre-ordered and refunded: The nostalgia was fun for 30 minutes; then I wanted to play AoE II again. I am not paying for one civ that is not time appropriate.
Hope this dlc could help to attract more new /old aoe1 players to the definitive world. Although this is not for me, will consider it when it’s on discount only.
Really hope they put ranked queue in? I finished the campaigns and was seriously hoping for that basic feature. Had no idea it didn't have it until I clicked it and was very confused. Only one player on when I looked. Tragic considering how fun the skirmishes are. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this game unless you are ONLY into playing campaigns and want to pay 5$ each for three of them.
It would have been great if they have added the old AOE1 campaigns. not only that they they could have also added an option to advance from the stone age all the way to the castle age. it would make it feel more like the old Empire Earth Games or Rise of Nations.
Watched the review and definitely getting it. My bro played AOE I. I only got a computer to play in when AOE II came out. So never played the first one. So this is now the game for me!
To me its quite clear what's happening. They had a plan to add some dlc for age 1 de. But then they realized its no longer relevant. Age 2, in the other hand, is massively popular till this day. So they added it to age 2 despite not fitting the timeframe of the game.
Basically the AoE 1 client is pretty scruffy, so the Koreans still play the OG version of the game. Porting it over to work on the more stable AoE 2 Definitive edition is an attempt to appeal to the Korean audience
Yeah I shelled out because I wanted Age 1 in Age 2. I was very disappointed with the Age 1 DE and this DLC is pretty much exactly what I'd hoped the first AoE1:DE was going to be. If they port over the base games campaigns (and spend some time making the gameplay a bit smoother as some old design choices are a little screwy) then this will be my Age1:DE in my heart.
I guess it was easier to transfer visuals into aoe2 mechanics than to rewrite them for aoe1. For me the annoying thing is lack of original soundtrack, which was simply amazing. And now I own 3 different copies of the same game. Yay for me 😛
I might be wrong on this, but i think one major reason why this DLC exist and is also the reason why i got it myself despite owning AoE1:DE is possible console. I feel like quite some people forget that Age of Empires 2 exist on Xbox now (thankfully) plus Age of Empires 4(especially thankfully). And surely you could argue about "why not simply port AoE1DE over" (by the way I'd love if we get on Xbox AoE 3 as well), but than they would split up the AoE Community on Console too much, which might not really have been in touch with the series (most people atleast) and that's why they've gone with the "give the most popular and the newest one" (AoE2 and AoE4), which could've been counterproductive. But adding it as a DLC for AoE2 not only gives it some modernization which they got used to when starting out on AoE2, it also bundles it more to one singular experience than two separate one. So it wouldn't surprise me "personally" if their Focus / Intention for the DLC was so Xbox players have also somewhat AoE 1 content. However they've still done the DLC dirty due not adding all campaigns... (that's why i got it on sale)
Would have been cool if they had included a few more civs and some of the editor stuff. New statues, wooden fences, small stuff like that. Similar to how they included aoe2 gaia stuff into return of rome.
Ever since I got Return of Rome, I have barely touched regular aoe2. Having aoe1 with aoe2 qol like formations and better pathfinding was literally my dream game. I just like the units and the historical period better.
If anything, I would say $18 AUD is not a bad deal considering mobile games gatcha can easily cost some $30000 USD in extreme cases, and other popular FPS games cost $70 USD upwards. Plus, you have one more civ to play in ladder, and game itself has unlimited replay-ability. For the target audience it might be a bit much depending on who you ask, but generally speaking, this asking price is not too outlandish imo.
Actually I really like this... I hope they make it so I can use the editor and mix the AOE1 and AOE2 factions, units, heroes, etc together. I think we all over-reacted to it a bit. Maybe someday we can even add in new units, etc.
Bought AoE1 DE recently, then bought this. Playing campaigns with AoE1 factions with the swet AoE2 responsiveness is really nice. Also got it at 5.000 CLP, which I'm pretty sure it's way less than 25 dollars. If it's got regional prices, bless their souls
Its really a nice addition to bring back AoE 1 in AoE 2 and take over some mechanics of AoK. I was so hyped for the AoE 1 DE and it runs like shit on my system(AoE 2 DE runs smoothly). I wish they could add the original campaigns.
I just can't get past how bad the buildings in aoe1 look. I know it's quite a big change, but I feel like moving them over to the aoe2 style (scaling everything up by like 50%) would make the whole thing more playable for me
At least they fixed the pathfinding and formations this time. I never understood why they never bothered to pix that the last time. Hopefully they will add all the campaigns in time. This is what the original DE should have been (+ all the campaigns). The old version is basically only for the campaigns. The new one if you want to play any other map and have it work properly.
So basically the AoE 2 purists are upset (as always), but the AoE 1 enjoyers are happy. Considering that was the target audience sounds like a W in my book
I played AOE and AOE II, III and now IV and more or less loved them all. I love the medieval period but I think the Antiquity has even a slight edge over the middle ages for me. So I deeply, deeply wanted always a "playable" version of the old game which - imho - the definitive edition wasn't due to the missing unit formations and the other quality of life problems (which you mentioned) of the first iteration of AOE. As I am hoping AOE 5 will be set in Antiquity this Return Of Rome DLC (I suppose most of the real fans have every part of the Definitive Edition series of the games anyways) is really all I've wanted for a long time ...
As someone who never played AoE 1, I’m actually really enjoying this DLC. However, now that you mention they left out some campaigns, I’m a little sad they didn’t port them. But overall, I am glad I bought this DLC. The Romans are really fun. But the thing that got me to buy it was the Roman Civ jingle. That thing goes hard. I did, however, only buy it for $12 with some deal. I wouldn’t buy it for much more.
I bought it for the Romans and to support the devs, not sure if I would try the AoE1 content or the campaigns Nice video, good criticism The game needs a hotfix ASAP
They definitely just didn’t feel like trying to rework A1 campaigns to work in A2 mechanics. Probably would’ve been more complicated than making a new campaign using the updated mechanics.
I like the simplicity of AOE1, but after getting used to AOE2 mechanics it was hard to go back. This fixes that problem and gives us what AOE1:DE should have. I've played more AOE1 since this DLC came out than I've played since 1999.
I'm a big fan of antiquity history, and while the time span AoE2 covers is also interesting AoE1 just scratches a neat historical itch for me. I'll admit, I pre-ordered this because I wanted to play the new campaigns. A little disappointed that the old campaigns aren't coming over but even if they aren't officially ported I expect modders will do so. In the run up the DLC, I thought I'd go back and do the old AoE1 missions and it definitely highlighted how infuriating the pathfinding is in that game (even in DE), and the really strict pop cap in the campaign. So it's nice to play AoE1 with really good pathfinding and being able to field more epic feeling armies in campaign missions. But I definitely agree it's odd that it wasn't a standalone. It does seem like a terrible value proposition unless you own AoE2 already and don't mind paying again for an AoE1 total conversion. Given the cost it's a little disappointing, although I've personally had a blast with it. But I think I'm very much in that niche you mentioned in the video. I think the biggest mark against it is that it honestly demonstrates how AoE1 probably should have been remastered. I think it would have been smart to offer a discount to people who owned the original AoE1 DE too (but maybe I'm biased) =P Overall, it comes down to asking how much you want to pay for an (official) AoE1 total conversion and 15 new missions in AoE2. Whether that feels like a mean description of RoR or not probably is a good litmus test for if you'll think the DLC is good xD
I personally would've preferred if they updated Age of Empires I: Definitive Edition with more quality of life improvements and better difficulty and AI balancing, than preserve it as DLC in an overall better game, making the original definitive edition that we payed good money for: pointless. I'm not even sure if they carried over the soundtrack from the first game into this DLC pack, since I only just bought it and haven't gotten around to playing it yet. On a slightly unrelated note: Considering that the new Age of Mythology game is a re imagining, I will hold onto my Steam purchase of the original and hope they don't mess this one up.
just picked it up a few days ago and have been having a blast with it, granted my first AOE game was 2 back when it came out, so 1 never really held any special place in my heart so I've been treating this dlc like a treat galactic battlegrounds
out of all the original campaigns I would've thought they would remaster the Rise of Rome campaign. there are even three campaigns that they could've brought over. Ceasar, Octavian, or Hannibal. they could be remade in the style of Age 2. that's my biggest disappointment with this release. well that and the lack of the original death sounds. I miss those. Edit: they are bringing the Egypt campaign and a couple of others in future updates.
Ok… I’m kinda outside, playing these games as a kid… at face value, I didn’t get the bad reviews… because an aoe2 port is ideal… but if you already got aoe de, which were lackluster and pretty much abandon… if you aren’t making it a standalone, which you should, at least just give those who purchased aoe de, this dlc for free when you acquire Aoe2. In normal business, good will goes a long way. It’s only gamers that tolerates being flagellated repeatedly.
Alright... So, I think context is everything. Firstly, I paid £8 for the dlc. It's another game, and another faction for aoe2. I am ok with that. Less subjectively: 1: AoE2 definitive is on a 20 year old code base. It's being upgraded now (as in right now), but it is notoriously hard to maintain and extend. So, further development of AoE1 on a nearly 30 year old code base must be a total nightmare. I figure that this is about consolidation. Bring both games together, modernized the code base and it is easier to maintain both rather than letting one die. 2: campaigns. If the idea is to support the game longer term then I would imagine that the other campaigns would likely be brought over as well. 3: who is this game for? There are several potential ideas here. Firstly, there is a huge player base in Vietnam. Bringing them over would be massive for the franchise. But, considering the old free version is what they play, it's unlikely. Perhaps the idea is to get interest from aoe2 fans, there is not the same toxicity as around aoe4, so this has potential. You could argue that this might at least have some short terms success with the likes of viper, daut, Hera, tattoh all playing and streaming it regularly. I play and stream aoe2, but I have been playing and enjoying the new campaigns. I would not have fired up AoE1 definitive to do this. But it feels so much like aoe2 that it's not hard to just pick it up and have fun with it. One of the criticisms, at the time, of aoe4 was that it was totally different and aoe2 players just did not want to learn a new game (this was when there was fear that aoe4 would kill aoe2). In summary, for 8 quid, I am happy enough with the purchase. It seems like it's very much about consolidation. The latest update notes clearly state that there won't be more update for a while, as they are modernizing the code base. I think that the idea is to cut aoe1 loose. Port over everything and make one massive upgrade to the code base rather than two. The idea of modernizing it is to make further investment into the future. I actually find that prospect pretty exciting. And if it means less bugs in the future, also great.
I would have prevef this to be a DLC of AOE1 intead. So the antiquity would have stayed in AOE1 and people discovering the game would had the opportunity to play the game with classic style or AOE2 style
Why would you think the AOE 1 campaigns would be here? The DLC was pretty descriptive of what is what bringing over. If they ported AOE 1, it would be irrelevant. I believe this whole DLC was created to bring Romans into AOE 2, and what better way to do that is to introduce them with an AOE 1 type dlc
I honestly wouldn't even want the old AoE 1 campaigns in this. In this DLC they the new campagins take full advantage of the trigger system that is available in AoE 2 which AoE 1 simply doesn't have. This makes the old campaign pale in comparison, but also, obviously, the new campaigns more time intensive to make. So I do get why there are only three of them for now.
I liked the DLC but i am old enough to remember playing AoE 1 back in the day but has a campaign guy i am sad they never redone the old campaigns but i understand why they never. I would recommend if you have not already trying out the Romae ad Bellum mod i think you would like it. Quick edit i see they are adding some of the AoE 1 campaigns to the game. Ascent of Egypt The First Punic War And the other two will be voted on by the fans.
I think if they couple this DLC with the Age1 DE it would be nice: Buying this DLC gives you Age1 DE and vice versa. So that I could play the original campain, even though it would be in a different executable.
7:33 We didnt needed this dlc if they fixed the path fiding, formations, gates and garrison in the ao1 definitive edition. As a person that bought that version I think it would have been fair go get at least a fixed discount for this "dlc".
UPDATE: I've been informed the farm 'bug' at 8:56 is intended behavior via the 'solid farms' game setting. CZcamsr moment....
Aoe 1 de remaster edition lol
The age 1 campaigns are coming, its confirmed(at least the first two of them were chosen via community vote)
@@grraf1 Damn, where did you see this ?
@@NolmanZ steam game's news page may 19th
I had to uninstall age of Empires 2 because trying to play the game after they added the Rome part but I don't have it downloaded but in order to actually add the better stuff they had to change the core mechanics of the game and now the game does not work at all because and I figured this out real fast from the dear fucking god ancient text boxes that were report the problem text boxes that were created in 1999. Age of Empires 2 is working on corrupted code from 24 fucking years ago. Age of Empires 1 does not have that problem. Is it possible to alter the coding of Age of Empires 1 slightly enough to be able to enter town centers and tower? Yes because entering transport ships already existed and having ships go on land already existed so its not hard to add that to Age of Empires 1. Adding opening and closing gates would also be doable to the coding of the game because again its able for the code. Now to port the game to Age of Empires 2 they had to slow down the units and do either an overhaul to each and every item that was being added to Age of Empires meaning buildings, ships, and units, and gathering speeds or screw up the code of Age of Empires 2 slightly enough to be able to use the older game units. Basically either add the easily addable units to a far better game or completely destroy the base game of Age of Empires 2 to add superior game into their game because Age of Empires 2 is dying and the developers are refusing to admit reality. Sure high ranking players play the game but the causal player moved to Age of Empires 1 because its actually playable.
It exists for the guys like me who want aoe2 mechanics in aoe1. Simple.
for old schoolers is great to see a version of aoe1 with all the nice things that aoe2 has (gates, formations, full market, more intuitive scoring, etc). I really liked this dlc and to be honest was waiting for something like this for years; this is what I think AOE DE should have been.
totally fair, i'm glad you're enjoying it!
Yeah, this is exactly what AOE DE should have been.
The main reason I like this DLC is I hope it means that AOE 1 won't be abandoned anymore, the bronze age is an interesting time period that is RARELY covered in rts games.
Soo, they should have left out AoE1 campaigns from the start in AoE: DE?
@@Thirteen13551355don't be dense 😂
I agree big time. They should've used the AOE 2 engine from the beginning. It's a lot better ergonomically and has more features and it's more recent.
It was definitely lackluster as AOE2 content, but (ignoring the annoying lack of original campagins) is pretty good AOE1 content imo.
But how those original campaigns would be compatible with the new mechanics added into the game from AoE2? Like we already have those with AoE1 so what would be the point? New campaigns with the new mechanics make waaay more sense.
There's no doubt in my mind that the community scripters will port those older campaigns in as custom campaigns. There are already 4-5 campaigns/scenarios that have been uploaded. The guy who made them has worked for or with Forgotten Empires iirc.
He even added Co-Op for one. Just look for "[ROR]" in the Mod Browser.
@@michamalinowski8015 AoE 1 DE is a complete mess with atrocious pathfinding. Microsoft basically gave up on trying to fix anything about it. Is it really that shocking that people hoped it would be fully ported into the much better game that is AoE 2 DE? Also keep in mind that the studio never classified that the campaigns were not gonna be added outside of a single facebook post.
@@xKinjax There were screenshots of the campaigns, YT creators got early acces versions of the DLC. I knew way back that there will only be 3 campaogns and they will all be new ones
@@michamalinowski8015 The campaign button was greyed out on every youtube video i watched of the game pre-release. When you say "3 New Campaigns" on the store page it doesn't automatically imply the old ones wouldn't be ported over. They could have simply made it clear from the start, on the store page, that none of the campaigns would get ported over. They were not clear enough on what the content would be and the reviews reflect this.
This DLC is what AOE1DE should've been from the start. I just wish they port the original campaigns at some point in the future.
Exactly. I strongly agree with you!
Yeah, if they bought over original campaigns, maybe dropped the price or made it standalone, I'd feel a lot better tbh
They've just announced that AOE1 campaigns are being ported to Return to Rome. Guess I got my wish!
@@aruan7sp A lot of Steam comments about this as well
@@aruan7sp Unfortunatley, just 4 campaigns so far. They decided two by themselfe and for those other two, we can vote for atm. But I really hope for all the campaigns.
Really enjoyed Return to Rome gameplay. This is what I wanted the AoE1 Definitive Edition to be, honestly. Love it.
I don’t think I’ve ever played much of AOE1 but I like the timeline! Seeing it imported to AOE2 with all the mechanics I couldn’t asked for a better DLC. I hope they will add more content to this DLC, I couldn’t be happier!
Same Here! I felt as if this is for players who both love AOE2 and also like this historical setting of AOE1.
If my memory serves me right, the dev-team once mentioned during an interview that maintaining two engines(AOE1 particularly) at the same time is simply too tiresome to be viable. So they decided to port everything AOE1 into the more popular AOE2 engine and thus makes maintenence much more easier. I don't expect them changing too much game mechanisms for AOE1 in the future(such as UT or UU) since AOE1 already got some solid player base who are already quite used to it, but there's the possiblity that we may see more newly designed campaigns and even new civs for RoR in the future.
They've added a decent amount of AoE2 content for free (the co-op campaigns, for example), so I could definitely see them slowly porting over the original AoE1 campaigns.
If they are kind they can do a sale or give aoe1 players a discount to migrate
@@thenayancat8802 Don't hold your breath. AoE2 civs Persians, Koreans, Vikings, Chinese, Mayans, Japanese, Turks, and Maygars don't have main campaigns (1-shot scenarios don't count) and some of those civs have been in AoE2 for literal decades, so building campaign scenarios in general seems to be low on the list of priorities for the development team.
then hopefully RoR sells well.. if you go by the steam reviews.. the DLC is unfortunately not so well received. mainly because of the missing AoE 1 OG campaigns.
but actually all the content was announced before the release, so idk why some people rate this as negative even though it wasn't promised at the launch.
We'll see what the future brings, would really like more RoR content in the form of more DLCs and patches.
That makes sense. I just hope they bring over the campaigns, and maybe bake in a discount for AOE1DE owners to bring them over
AOE1 was my first PC game I ever played with my older brother (besides Starcraft and Warcraft) and this DLC is an absolute must buy. When AOE1: DE came out, I told my brother about it and we played a couple games and realized that the path finding sucks as we were so used to playing AOE2. Now we can finally play AOE1 with modern AOE2 mechanics and it just fits so well! Now I just have to teach my nephews on how to play the game with us!
Same, except not just my older brother but our cousin too. I was born in 92 and by the time I was 6 I was playing games like quake, half life, aoe, unreal tournament you name it! So here's to elder siblings and family or friends who helped us get into something that's relatively healthy and maybe kept us out of some, but maybe not all trouble lol
AoE 1 was my first game too and if Rome calls i must go!
Similar here with my brothers and also I'm finally able to enjoy AoE 1 with my AoE 2 friends who either never got to play it when they were young or just couldn't stomach how bad the AI and pathfinding was. The quality of life changes for gates and market trading are a really nice touch and I'm having a blast even just playing matches vs AI because AoE 2 AI is actually good. This is definately a great game to start bringing other new players into the fold with I hope you have a blast playing with your nephews.
They rly rly rly want that vietnam market money with this DLC.
Now i want Age of empires III in Age of empires II 🤑
lets gooo
AOEIV in AOE2 💰💰💰💰
@@Zade_95 Breaking news: AOM retold is actually AOM... in AOE2 🥴
@@vincentdegheyndt3609 FINALLY!
YES, PLZ!
@@vincentdegheyndt3609Jokes aside,aom retold is going to use age3 engine,so don't be shocked if is an age3 dlc
Personally, this expansion was exactly what I was wanting it to be. (And frankly, what I had hoped the original AOE1 DE was going to be when it was first announced). AOE1 with AOE2’s gameplay and quality of life improvements. I love the ancient era, but it’s always been difficult to get myself to play the first game when AOE2 was such a huge improvement by Ensemble Studios. Given just how fleshed out the medieval era is with all the expansions released for AOE2 over the past 20 years (from Conquerors all the way to Dynasties of India is, what, 8 expansions this game has, not including Return of Rome?) I hope this means more ancient era campaigns to come for this. (Though I certainly won’t complain if we get more regular AOE2 campaigns of course) Maybe a full reworking of the original game’s campaigns? Completely new campaigns like the three this expansion has?
yea the only thing i am missing are thr old campaigns but they are bringing some and i bet modders will do the rest
Hi Zade, the answer you wanted to have during the hole video is quite easy: Vietnam
I'm a big fan of AoE sagas (AoE 2 my favourite) and the main reason of these is to move the hole Vietnamese community in AoE 1 (they are like 25k daily players on the old AoE from 1997, incredible but true). When they did AoE 1 DE, the game was exactly the same as the oldest version but the gameplay was worse, with this new AoE 1 (ported on AoE 2) they expect the recover that. They already got everything made, the "spectator scene", the multiplayer competitive ladder, better gameplay, IA, pathfinding, and more. Thats why they did this new old DLC on AoE 2. Hopefully the hole vietnamese community joins to this beatifoul game and if that happen, it will be twice as big. Also thanks for the video, but here you got the real answer of "why did they make this DLC?"
Cheers
Yes. Thank you, so many people don't realize that surprisingly AoE1 actually has the largest player base. It's just not been monetized or integrated into the global scene, just Vietnam
@@brettfitzmaurice3317 That's cos they insist on playing the cracked version of the original game, and even in that they insist on a custom ruleset that's completely unlike general play. They don't want to change, so I'm not sure if even this will win them over.
@@ArawnOfAnnwn I think that ruleset is actually supported in this DLC too. Though maybe not being ranked will put them off
@@brettfitzmaurice3317 D3 itself does yes, but the RoR version of the game is just hugely different from the game they're used to in a whole lot of other ways. If they're open to change, they might switch, but in that case I don't see the point of D3 to begin with as they're open to change. If they're not open to change then I doubt the inclusion of D3 will be anywhere near enough to convince them to switch to such a drastically different version of the game than they're used to. But ultimately it'll probably just come down to whether FE can convince enough of the pro players to switch as the whole scene basically revolves around them, with no single-player to speak of.
Exactly this. You always have to look at it from a business pov.
I honestly don't get the hate. When people got the game with the old balance 700 people played it. Now people say why the original campaigns are not here. Seriously? Because they were made for a different game and mechanics. Like if you want to play the original campaigns AoE 1 DE is there. Getting new campaigns build with those changes in mind is a far better idea, and give people more content insted giving them the sam content twice. Maybe it's just me, because I was thinking "I would love to play AoE1 with AoE2 mechanics like gates and formations" and I got it. The fact that I get a Western Roman faction is just a cherry on the top, because the Great Migration Period is my favorite chapter of history.
This expansion is near perfect and what i always dreamed about. The only missing things for now is the original campaigns
Do you think there will be more campaigns?
@@buenastardes1687 theres two of them comming
@@kennedyeduardooliveira272 thanks!
@@kennedyeduardooliveira272 perfect? lmao it's awful
@@mihaimercenarul7467 sounds like a "you" problem
I wanted this. I grew up playing aoe1 then 2 and have a love of the classical period of history in general. Aoe1 with the vastly improved mechanics of Aoe2 is definately something I wanted and willing to pay for. The new campaigns are great and worth the money on their own imo, but we also get a new aoe2 civ. I hope they add more to it and attempt to balance it more in the future!
Got it, played with friends... it's super fun ! Though the economy seems slightly broken... a bit too easy once you hit Tool Age, but maybe AOE1 is like that ? I am looking forward to new civs like the Mauryans which would fit the time period. As a side note ... can centurion be beat ? I am having way too much fun trouncing AIs with mass centurion and I make no efforts to produce other units.
@@dhruvsharma6826 "can centurion be beat ?" - Use a bunch of Ballistas / Helepoli. Now that is scary. As for how to beat that, Catapults are the answer.
@@ArawnOfAnnwn okay...so like. Scorpions to beat centurion and mangonel to beat scorpion.
@@ArawnOfAnnwn is it normal to float 10s of thousands of resources in team games post Iron Age (with all game settings at default) in the original aoe / aoe de ?
@@dhruvsharma6826 Yeah, except Helepoli in AoE 1 are a lot stronger than Scorpions in AoE 2. And AoE 1 Heavy Catapults have a lot more range in AoE 1 relative to all the other units available than Siege Onagers have in AoE 2, as they fill the Treb role too.
The one thing that I wanted from this DLC was the original AOE 1 campaigns, and that was the one thing they didn’t include.
They just confirmed it'll get some of the campaigns, and you get to choose which ones! Plus we've already got a bunch of AoE 1 custom content from modders uploaded, so the mod scene is alive and will definitely make sure all the content is there eventually.
Wish it had the campaigns but as far as gameplay goes it’s a huge upgrade imo
They just confirmed it'll get some of the campaigns, and you get to choose which ones! Plus we've already got a bunch of AoE 1 custom content from modders uploaded, so the mod scene is alive and will definitely make sure all the content is there eventually.
I'm buying it, I just need to wait a few weeks for a paycheck. I don't like the lack of stand alone but, I can't help but feel like they wanted to bring in AoE 1 factions into 2
I’ve played AOE 1 almost exclusively for years - but this DLC is a big step up from DE, the campaigns is a bummer though
was kinda shot that it was just DLC campaigns and skirmish too, but as far as that goes I've had a blast with every roman mission; and the Macadonian missions have been really fun, though alot harder then i'm used to being the fact I can't make a temple.
The AoE1 original/DE campaigns will probably get ported as custom campaigns by anyone who wants to do it. People can also choose to hack them up to be more AoE2 campaign-like (higher popcap, redo the landscape to accommodate gates/larger bases, add triggered events, etc), or leave them mostly as-is.
@@hylje Don't change too much otherwise it isn't the original campaign anymore.
@@krux02 with custom campaigns made by random people, you can have both and pick whatever seems best for your taste.
@@krux02 i mean AoE1 AI tended to be derpy with the pathfinding. 2 might still be derpy, but it's alot better then one was.
This DLC is absolutely amazing and I've been waiting for it for years. Love it! It was definitely intended for me. :D
Glad to hear!
this dlc is lackluster
The good thing is that they can built on it by adding parts, like improved building designs, unique and regional units.
Nah this is literally exactly what I wanted.
honestly stoked for you
From what i heard, the main reason to bring AoE1 to 2 was the engine. They couldn't expand and stuff the Ao1 DE due the engine limitations
That and making another stab at getting the massive AoE 1 Vietnam community to finally join the rest of the world.
The three campaigns are EPIC
...and Antiquity was a lot more interesting than middle ages
I knew I was gonna be disappointed with it when I realized there wasn’t any real overhaul of AOE1, I wanted unique units and more new civs
@Voice of Reason Old campaigns, unchanged with AoK style beginning video naration with single comics style image pasted on would of been at least expected.
As someone who played the original AoE 1 in the late '90s before AoE 2 was even released, and as someone who has a keen interest in ancient/classical history, I love this DLC. It's a shame it's received so many mixed reviews from the community though
You have made some really solid points. I think we need to ask more questions like this. We as a community are not as harsh on the company we pay money to. There are too many unanswered questions about this DLC. And I say this as someone who bought it immediately.
I found it really weird that RtR isn't even discounted for AoE1DE owners, because AoE2DE was discounted for people who had previously bought HD.
the one thing that makes the western romans, is that if you played the first Alarac mission; you fought for the eastern romans; and fought the western romans; but... both sides were Byzantium roman. with the DLC i was hot in my mind that the Western romans would finally come into the game, and they did. which means Bari's campaign will defacto be the Byzantines vs their western brother too.
Another reviewer framed it that they wanted to get the Vietnamese players to eventually move over to AoE 2 DE, which would make some sense here with the way they did things. I like the introduction of the Romans even though the age is off with the rest of the civs in AoE 2, but it's good fun.
Tf are you talking about? Romans were still around in the 14th century and only died off as a civilization after 1453. The goths existed, the huns existed and they existed before the western half collapsed. There is zero logic whatsoever in people like you saying that rome doesn’t fit yet nobody complains about goths and huns
I too wish the original campaigns had been brought over - especially Enemies of Rome. I understand that this DLC was made, at least in part, especially with the Vietnamese market in mind. Apparently there is a huge Vietnamese player base - but for AOE1. So as a marketing ploy, this DLC was made to appeal to them and perhaps bring that market into AOE 2
I own Age1 DE, but the campaign was so hard to get into because of the old timey path finding and UI. Disappointed they didn't port over the campaign. If they had a more expensive option that has them, I would pay for it.
I hope someone will mod in a hybrid play mode where Age1 civs can age up into Age2. Kinda like a more expanded version of the Age3 Revolution mechanic. Trigger a dark age collapse and pick a historically accurate successor faction? Defeat an opponent in Iron Age will have them spawn in a random location in the Dark Age?
Was born in 85. I remember the first day Age of Empires 1 came out. I had been a huge Warcraft 2 player so it was just insane to see how advanced the game was. I loved it. I will also be the first person to say that Age of Empires 1 did not age very well mechanic wise. I always wanted an updated version of Age 1 and this DLC delivers exactly what Ive wished for. I can understand the argument that this could have been a standalone game but in the end Im just glad that this even exist in the first place after soooooo many years.
honestly, this DLC is exactly what people wanted, from whta i seen in general, AOE2 mecahnics and quality for AOE1, with the bettr path findingm, formation, and especially connection. the price may be a bit high if you only care for AOE2 stuff, but, you are basivally getting a new game at almost the same price as the original (depends on region) so
for me, this DLC was expectacular, and im sure modders will bring nsthe old campaings. hell considering this dlc was a mod at first, they may give modders support and officially help them port said campaings
Being me, one with plenty nostalgia for AoE1 but can't ignore it's shortcomings, like the horrible path-finding which they purposely left untouched in AoE1DE... Yeah I very much enjoy this one.
My only problem is the lack of the classic campaigns, which apparently was just announced they will be adding just 4 of them?
And sure this could be standalone, it makes sense that it isn't because its literally the AoE2 client, but still.
Many echo the sentiment that THIS is what we wanted from AoE1DE from the start, but hey AoE2DE pathing that we wanted wasn't even done yet.
It's a bit of a mess for sure but hey.
I think it's just more logical that if they have the means of housing two entirely different datasets in one game, then the opportunity should be taken.
Trouble is, almost no-one plays online, there's no advanced ranked game finder UI AoK DE has.. Can hardly find any game - at EU evening time at least..
To be fair, AOE 1 def Edition already had some AOEII mechanics and no one complained in 2017, no one I know of. And as a nostalgic man, I'm glad both the DLC and AOE I exist, I would constantly miss the old AOE I mechanics. I hope it's the same for other players.
I really only play the campaigns of the AoE games and I was hyped when they said they were porting the first game to the second game's engine. Of course I thought that meant they would actually just update the first game which really needs it. Beyond the pathfinding issues, the campaign difficulty is straight up broken. Whenever they made AI improvements in the Definitive Edition, they did not account for how that would affect the campaigns. Even on the easiest difficulty, many missions require cheesy tactics and multiple restarts which is not acceptable in my opinion. I'm by no means a great, or even good player, but I've played the AoE/AoM/RTS games in general for 25 years. AoE 1 was one of the first games I even remember playing at all. It feels like a slap in the face that is this completely separate from the first game, completely separate from the second game (while still requiring the second game), no discount for game 1 owners, and doesn't even include all the first game content.
AoE1 definitive edition sucks, it has no formations and the pathing is terrible plus it's missing lots of features, for example scouts can't even auto attack in AoE1, hell, the whole D3 game mode only exists because if you rush your enemy with babylonian slingers in AoE1 you instantly won. Sure it's similar to the original mechanics of AoE1 but even back in the day everyone realized that AoE2 had superior gameplay and mechanics to it's predecessor.
I'm sure that there are lots of people that just want an ancient/bronze age RTS with the more polished features of Age of Empires 2 otherwise there wouldn't be popular mods like Rome At War.
As an AOE2 player, I've always wanted a new age game that felt like AOE2, but different, a new setting, idk, anything to make it interesting and new, while keeping the original AOE2 feeling. I was hoping AOE4 would do this, but it did not, imo AOE4 doubled down on everything AOE2 did poorly, and changed everything AOE2 did well. Only thing I like about AOE4 is the way each civ is very different and unique.
This DLC made something that is new enough to be interesting, but not different enough to give it a huge learning curve, I can quickly get into a game and play, and it'll feel right, all the tricks I've learned from AOE2, like dodging arrows, qucik walling, all of that will still work, and everything will feel familliar, since its essentially the same game, but it has a new setting that makes it way more interesting for me. AOE1 is not nostalgic for me, cause I barelly ever played it, so to me, and to most of the younger AOE2 player base (wich there are quite a few of us), its a brand new game that feels just familliar enough.
This DLC makes me excited for what's to come in the future, if they decide to do something else in the same style as this, but with an original new setting, or maybe bring back the old star wars version of AOE2 lol (wich I've never played, but it seems cool) it would be very interesting, and I will definitly pay for it again and again.
So basically this is AOE1 if I made it. A little history, I played Age of Empires 2 before I played the first game and found the game obnoxious, archaic and old still enjoyed it.
Always wanted to see a port like this with better mechanics added.
I'm guessing the main reason for putting most of AoE1 in AoE2 is so most of AoE1 can be in the XBox version of AoE2 without separately porting and updating all of AoE1DE. It's what makes the most sense to me.
It's for Xbox players who want to play Age 1 with the Age 2 DE quality of life improvements. Things like a town bell are essential when playing on controller because of the lack of ability to select individual units with precision. It's a DLC to Age 2 DE rather than separate so that they can charge Gamepass players $15 instead of listing it for free.
They're bringing in 3 community chosen campaigns from the original game, plus the Egyptian tutorial campaign.
If you're into AoE2 and are curious to try AoE1 but don't want to buy it, then this is the best way to do it. If you enjoy AoE1 but don't own AoE2, then this will be a hard sell.
I'm also not entirely on board with essentially creating a paid patch like this.
I pre-ordered and refunded: The nostalgia was fun for 30 minutes; then I wanted to play AoE II again. I am not paying for one civ that is not time appropriate.
Its very time appropriate + there are even worse examples like Goths and Huns.
Hope this dlc could help to attract more new /old aoe1 players to the definitive world.
Although this is not for me, will consider it when it’s on discount only.
As a mediocre AoE fan, I would just like a full campaign of all Punic Wars and playing as Rome
Really hope they put ranked queue in? I finished the campaigns and was seriously hoping for that basic feature. Had no idea it didn't have it until I clicked it and was very confused. Only one player on when I looked. Tragic considering how fun the skirmishes are. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this game unless you are ONLY into playing campaigns and want to pay 5$ each for three of them.
It would have been great if they have added the old AOE1 campaigns. not only that they they could have also added an option to advance from the stone age all the way to the castle age. it would make it feel more like the old Empire Earth Games or Rise of Nations.
Legionaire: I'm Roman
Teutonic Knight: Well I'm Holy Roman.
Legionaire: Holy ****.
The devs recently opened a poll asking what campaigns from aoe 1 they should work on next for return of rome.
Watched the review and definitely getting it. My bro played AOE I. I only got a computer to play in when AOE II came out. So never played the first one. So this is now the game for me!
To me its quite clear what's happening. They had a plan to add some dlc for age 1 de. But then they realized its no longer relevant. Age 2, in the other hand, is massively popular till this day. So they added it to age 2 despite not fitting the timeframe of the game.
It is probably for the vietnamese players who refuse to buy age 1 de. It is actually good because devs wants to unite all age communities
Basically the AoE 1 client is pretty scruffy, so the Koreans still play the OG version of the game. Porting it over to work on the more stable AoE 2 Definitive edition is an attempt to appeal to the Korean audience
AoE1 is popular af in Vietnam also. But they don't care about this release.
At least 5 Age 1 campaigns are confirmed to be coming, along with the original tutorial
Yeah I shelled out because I wanted Age 1 in Age 2.
I was very disappointed with the Age 1 DE and this DLC is pretty much exactly what I'd hoped the first AoE1:DE was going to be.
If they port over the base games campaigns (and spend some time making the gameplay a bit smoother as some old design choices are a little screwy) then this will be my Age1:DE in my heart.
I guess it was easier to transfer visuals into aoe2 mechanics than to rewrite them for aoe1. For me the annoying thing is lack of original soundtrack, which was simply amazing. And now I own 3 different copies of the same game. Yay for me 😛
I might be wrong on this, but i think one major reason why this DLC exist and is also the reason why i got it myself despite owning AoE1:DE is possible console. I feel like quite some people forget that Age of Empires 2 exist on Xbox now (thankfully) plus Age of Empires 4(especially thankfully). And surely you could argue about "why not simply port AoE1DE over" (by the way I'd love if we get on Xbox AoE 3 as well), but than they would split up the AoE Community on Console too much, which might not really have been in touch with the series (most people atleast) and that's why they've gone with the "give the most popular and the newest one" (AoE2 and AoE4), which could've been counterproductive. But adding it as a DLC for AoE2 not only gives it some modernization which they got used to when starting out on AoE2, it also bundles it more to one singular experience than two separate one. So it wouldn't surprise me "personally" if their Focus / Intention for the DLC was so Xbox players have also somewhat AoE 1 content. However they've still done the DLC dirty due not adding all campaigns... (that's why i got it on sale)
As a Goths player I look forward to pillaging Rome some more!
But I agree with this video lmao
Would have been cool if they had included a few more civs and some of the editor stuff. New statues, wooden fences, small stuff like that. Similar to how they included aoe2 gaia stuff into return of rome.
I would love to see a mod which gives it the old retro look also for AOE2. I grew up with the old look and the old sound effects.
I am a bit disappointed that they didn't add in unique units for the AOE1 factions and a castle type building. I am glad I didn't buy AOE1 DE
Ever since I got Return of Rome, I have barely touched regular aoe2. Having aoe1 with aoe2 qol like formations and better pathfinding was literally my dream game. I just like the units and the historical period better.
I'm personally liking it! Though more campaigns for the ancient civs would be nice.
If anything, I would say $18 AUD is not a bad deal considering mobile games gatcha can easily cost some $30000 USD in extreme cases, and other popular FPS games cost $70 USD upwards. Plus, you have one more civ to play in ladder, and game itself has unlimited replay-ability. For the target audience it might be a bit much depending on who you ask, but generally speaking, this asking price is not too outlandish imo.
3:55 no word so far? Its known for over a week that they will bring some of the old campaigns-we can vote which ones:)
Makes more sense to consolidate both player bases into one game. We will get new civs for both games as well.
Actually I really like this... I hope they make it so I can use the editor and mix the AOE1 and AOE2 factions, units, heroes, etc together. I think we all over-reacted to it a bit. Maybe someday we can even add in new units, etc.
I think AOE1’s main appeal nowadays is the time period and general atmosphere of primitiveness. It has its very own charm compared to AOE2
yeah kind of agree tbh
Bought AoE1 DE recently, then bought this. Playing campaigns with AoE1 factions with the swet AoE2 responsiveness is really nice.
Also got it at 5.000 CLP, which I'm pretty sure it's way less than 25 dollars. If it's got regional prices, bless their souls
Its really a nice addition to bring back AoE 1 in AoE 2 and take over some mechanics of AoK. I was so hyped for the AoE 1 DE and it runs like shit on my system(AoE 2 DE runs smoothly). I wish they could add the original campaigns.
I just can't get past how bad the buildings in aoe1 look. I know it's quite a big change, but I feel like moving them over to the aoe2 style (scaling everything up by like 50%) would make the whole thing more playable for me
The DLC sounds interesting honestly, my only complain is that it should be discounted for people who already bought AOE1DE.
At least they fixed the pathfinding and formations this time. I never understood why they never bothered to pix that the last time. Hopefully they will add all the campaigns in time. This is what the original DE should have been (+ all the campaigns). The old version is basically only for the campaigns. The new one if you want to play any other map and have it work properly.
So basically the AoE 2 purists are upset (as always), but the AoE 1 enjoyers are happy.
Considering that was the target audience sounds like a W in my book
I played AOE and AOE II, III and now IV and more or less loved them all. I love the medieval period but I think the Antiquity has even a slight edge over the middle ages for me. So I deeply, deeply wanted always a "playable" version of the old game which - imho - the definitive edition wasn't due to the missing unit formations and the other quality of life problems (which you mentioned) of the first iteration of AOE. As I am hoping AOE 5 will be set in Antiquity this Return Of Rome DLC (I suppose most of the real fans have every part of the Definitive Edition series of the games anyways) is really all I've wanted for a long time ...
Good review! Question: where do you come from? The accent reminds me of New Zealand or something like that
thanks! yes, New Zealand is right :)
As someone who never played AoE 1, I’m actually really enjoying this DLC. However, now that you mention they left out some campaigns, I’m a little sad they didn’t port them. But overall, I am glad I bought this DLC. The Romans are really fun. But the thing that got me to buy it was the Roman Civ jingle. That thing goes hard. I did, however, only buy it for $12 with some deal. I wouldn’t buy it for much more.
I bought it for the Romans and to support the devs, not sure if I would try the AoE1 content or the campaigns
Nice video, good criticism
The game needs a hotfix ASAP
They definitely just didn’t feel like trying to rework A1 campaigns to work in A2 mechanics. Probably would’ve been more complicated than making a new campaign using the updated mechanics.
I like the simplicity of AOE1, but after getting used to AOE2 mechanics it was hard to go back. This fixes that problem and gives us what AOE1:DE should have. I've played more AOE1 since this DLC came out than I've played since 1999.
I'm a big fan of antiquity history, and while the time span AoE2 covers is also interesting AoE1 just scratches a neat historical itch for me.
I'll admit, I pre-ordered this because I wanted to play the new campaigns. A little disappointed that the old campaigns aren't coming over but even if they aren't officially ported I expect modders will do so.
In the run up the DLC, I thought I'd go back and do the old AoE1 missions and it definitely highlighted how infuriating the pathfinding is in that game (even in DE), and the really strict pop cap in the campaign. So it's nice to play AoE1 with really good pathfinding and being able to field more epic feeling armies in campaign missions.
But I definitely agree it's odd that it wasn't a standalone. It does seem like a terrible value proposition unless you own AoE2 already and don't mind paying again for an AoE1 total conversion. Given the cost it's a little disappointing, although I've personally had a blast with it.
But I think I'm very much in that niche you mentioned in the video. I think the biggest mark against it is that it honestly demonstrates how AoE1 probably should have been remastered. I think it would have been smart to offer a discount to people who owned the original AoE1 DE too (but maybe I'm biased) =P
Overall, it comes down to asking how much you want to pay for an (official) AoE1 total conversion and 15 new missions in AoE2. Whether that feels like a mean description of RoR or not probably is a good litmus test for if you'll think the DLC is good xD
I personally would've preferred if they updated Age of Empires I: Definitive Edition with more quality of life improvements and better difficulty and AI balancing, than preserve it as DLC in an overall better game, making the original definitive edition that we payed good money for: pointless. I'm not even sure if they carried over the soundtrack from the first game into this DLC pack, since I only just bought it and haven't gotten around to playing it yet.
On a slightly unrelated note: Considering that the new Age of Mythology game is a re imagining, I will hold onto my Steam purchase of the original and hope they don't mess this one up.
just picked it up a few days ago and have been having a blast with it, granted my first AOE game was 2 back when it came out, so 1 never really held any special place in my heart so I've been treating this dlc like a treat galactic battlegrounds
I know you probably got asked this a lot, but how come you've not reviewed Starcraft yet?
i'm scared
@@Zade_95 Of the community?
out of all the original campaigns I would've thought they would remaster the Rise of Rome campaign. there are even three campaigns that they could've brought over. Ceasar, Octavian, or Hannibal. they could be remade in the style of Age 2. that's my biggest disappointment with this release. well that and the lack of the original death sounds. I miss those.
Edit: they are bringing the Egypt campaign and a couple of others in future updates.
When AoE I DE was released I thought, I'd rather have a dlc for AoE II DE with all the improvements in gameplay.
Well, here we are. :D
Ok… I’m kinda outside, playing these games as a kid… at face value, I didn’t get the bad reviews… because an aoe2 port is ideal… but if you already got aoe de, which were lackluster and pretty much abandon… if you aren’t making it a standalone, which you should, at least just give those who purchased aoe de, this dlc for free when you acquire Aoe2. In normal business, good will goes a long way. It’s only gamers that tolerates being flagellated repeatedly.
The fact the age 1 campaign didn't come across too has actually stopped me from buying.
Alright... So, I think context is everything.
Firstly, I paid £8 for the dlc. It's another game, and another faction for aoe2. I am ok with that.
Less subjectively:
1: AoE2 definitive is on a 20 year old code base. It's being upgraded now (as in right now), but it is notoriously hard to maintain and extend. So, further development of AoE1 on a nearly 30 year old code base must be a total nightmare.
I figure that this is about consolidation. Bring both games together, modernized the code base and it is easier to maintain both rather than letting one die.
2: campaigns. If the idea is to support the game longer term then I would imagine that the other campaigns would likely be brought over as well.
3: who is this game for? There are several potential ideas here. Firstly, there is a huge player base in Vietnam. Bringing them over would be massive for the franchise. But, considering the old free version is what they play, it's unlikely.
Perhaps the idea is to get interest from aoe2 fans, there is not the same toxicity as around aoe4, so this has potential. You could argue that this might at least have some short terms success with the likes of viper, daut, Hera, tattoh all playing and streaming it regularly.
I play and stream aoe2, but I have been playing and enjoying the new campaigns. I would not have fired up AoE1 definitive to do this. But it feels so much like aoe2 that it's not hard to just pick it up and have fun with it.
One of the criticisms, at the time, of aoe4 was that it was totally different and aoe2 players just did not want to learn a new game (this was when there was fear that aoe4 would kill aoe2).
In summary, for 8 quid, I am happy enough with the purchase. It seems like it's very much about consolidation. The latest update notes clearly state that there won't be more update for a while, as they are modernizing the code base.
I think that the idea is to cut aoe1 loose. Port over everything and make one massive upgrade to the code base rather than two. The idea of modernizing it is to make further investment into the future. I actually find that prospect pretty exciting. And if it means less bugs in the future, also great.
I would have prevef this to be a DLC of AOE1 intead. So the antiquity would have stayed in AOE1 and people discovering the game would had the opportunity to play the game with classic style or AOE2 style
Why would you think the AOE 1 campaigns would be here? The DLC was pretty descriptive of what is what bringing over. If they ported AOE 1, it would be irrelevant. I believe this whole DLC was created to bring Romans into AOE 2, and what better way to do that is to introduce them with an AOE 1 type dlc
I honestly wouldn't even want the old AoE 1 campaigns in this. In this DLC they the new campagins take full advantage of the trigger system that is available in AoE 2 which AoE 1 simply doesn't have. This makes the old campaign pale in comparison, but also, obviously, the new campaigns more time intensive to make. So I do get why there are only three of them for now.
I liked the DLC but i am old enough to remember playing AoE 1 back in the day but has a campaign guy i am sad they never redone the old campaigns but i understand why they never. I would recommend if you have not already trying out the Romae ad Bellum mod i think you would like it. Quick edit i see they are adding some of the AoE 1 campaigns to the game.
Ascent of Egypt
The First Punic War
And the other two will be voted on by the fans.
I think if they couple this DLC with the Age1 DE it would be nice: Buying this DLC gives you Age1 DE and vice versa. So that I could play the original campain, even though it would be in a different executable.
yeah not a bad idea!
7:33 We didnt needed this dlc if they fixed the path fiding, formations, gates and garrison in the ao1 definitive edition. As a person that bought that version I think it would have been fair go get at least a fixed discount for this "dlc".