Age of Empires III

"Simply Amazing"

Graphics

Wow. The graphics in this game are amazing. If you have the video card, they are even more amazing. The shadowing is pulled of in spades. The texture of the areas is like it would be in real life. This is probably the #1 reason I play this game. Just to look at it.

Sound

I will say one thing; the voice acting is quite stereotypical. But other than that, the sound it great. The explosions don't sound like petty booms. They sound like explosions. As if they blew something up just to get the sound effect. The sword clashing sound effect was disappointing. There are two sword sound effects for the sword. But I had to listen closely to notice.

Game Play

This is where the game really shines. A new sub-feature has been added, but it doesn't really effect the game. The feature I'm talking about is a home town. It is customizable. Not very much. But still customizable. But that's not why you're playing the game! Your playing the game for the RTS-style fighting and such. That is nearly flawless. Your guys listen to you. The fighting is quite easy to follow, but can get hectic at times. It's almost hard to keep track of everything. Almost. A new feature Is added which allows you receive shipments from your hometown. Campaign is not much to write home about, it's your usual “destroy everyone and everything” missions. The online stuff is what the hardcore gamer really wants in an RTS. And this game has it. I'm not really much of an online gamer myself. So I haven't really checked it out. But, hey. It's AoE, so I'm sure it's awesome.

Overall

Overall this is a great game for almost anyone. I highly recommend it if you are a hardcore fan of the AoE series. And even if you aren't, this will get you hooked.

Scores:

Graphics: 10/10
Sound: 9/10
Game Play: 10/10

Overall: 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/09/06