Age of Empires: The Age of Kings Review

Now of course, these sweet additions are not without cost. Everything costs something, and in Age of Empires DS the cost is in terms of food and gold. Buildings, units, and techs all require these resources. Fortunately, it is easy to obtain them. By merely manufacturing mills and farms over wheat spaces or producing mines over gold spaces, resource hungry civilizations can obtain the supplies they need, as each mine or mill provides a minor amount of food or gold each turn.

Those are the game mechanics. How effectively do they work in missions? Well in the missions, sometimes players must use a given army to take out the enemy, or they must destroy a certain amount of enemy units. In missions like this, the gameplay works wonders. Strategy is vitally important, as there are only a few troops to carefully consider, and the goals can be completed in around an hour or two. These types of missions are delectably fun!

However, problems arise when both sides are given Town Centers and the ability to construct their own armies for head-to-head combat. The reason there are problems is that the game’s complexity, although awesome, promotes lengthy battles and exhausting gaming.

When two civilizations go head-to-head against each other at full power, the games can last a long time. Some even move into the over 100 turns range, which is utterly ridiculous for a turn-based game. Despite its excellence at keeping the Age of Empires tradition, Majesco failed to deliver the fast-paced style of gameplay that keeps things exciting. Frankly, it can become quite dull.

In fact, it is almost like the board game Attack. Ever heard of it? Probably not, and there is a good reason for that. That game is superb because of how massive it is — differing units, complex battle system, and special technologies — but as a result of its excellence, it is takes hours upon hours to play. That is a long time for a board game, and it is unappealing.

While Age of Empires is somewhat different, it still suffers from raw tediousness. Whether it is the amount of time it takes for the computer to move, the numerous tasks a player must attend to in a given turn, or even the sheer amount of turns per game, Age of Empires occasionally pushes the line between fun strategic gameplay and an annoyance.

So yes, Age of Empires DS can become boring, but at least that is partially alleviated by the great graphics. The terrain of each level is beautifully rendered and realistic, while the units are commendably done in 2-d. Where the graphics start to shine, however, is in the battles. Although they are basically 2-d on the map, all of the troops have an alternate 3-d form that they revert to during battle sequences, and they look great. They not up to par with Metroid Prime Hunters or other graphically intense DS games, but nonetheless their quality 3-d appearance and creative animations make for sweet battle sequences.

Sound is another area where Age of Empires DS does well. Right from the get-go, players are treated to the classically distinct Age of Empires theme. Inside each individual level the music is less invigorating, but it is still good nonetheless. Every civilization has a particular song that plays during its turn, and though these songs are mostly for background noise they are still great for entertainment.

Equally prevalent are the sound effects. Whether a gamer is moving a troop or training a new one, some sort manner of sound effect will be right there alongside the action. And in battle, everything moves to a whole new level. Swords clanging, bows firing, soldiers perishing — it all makes for a thrilling experience.

And of course, Age of Empires DS also has multiplayer. By wirelessly connecting two DS systems or by passing a single system around, players can battle against their friends in basic, all-out brawls. Unfortunately, the same problems of tediousness that are present in the single player are back for the multiplayer, and they are exacerbated because it is a human, not a computer, that has to think through all of the actions. Gamers are much, much better off sitting down to a game of Risk or playing the PC version of Age of Empires via LAN connection.

All in all Age of Empires is well put together game. Majesco did a tremendous job of porting the real-time PC series into a turn-based DS game — the complex system of play is perfectly intact, the traditional sound is back and fun to listen to, and the graphics demonstrate good 3-d battles. But for all its positive aspects, Age of Empires still has one major flaw: it just was not meant to be a turn-based game.

Although it is good, it often takes forever to play, and this can be a major hindrance. It is very easy to get bored of the game before you even get halfway through, and even if you decide to stick it out the entire way, chances are you will have a deep longing for something else to do. Age of Empires has the potential to provide many hours of good turn-based enjoyment, but as far as reality goes, it simply fails to live up to that potential. If you are seeking a good turn-based DS game, try Advance Wars instead.