Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition

 PC
User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 163 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 105 out of 163
  2. Mixed: 22 out of 163
  3. Negative: 36 out of 163
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  1. Talkys
    Sep 8, 2023
    8
    The game is way better than AOE III from the past, but some of the same bugs are still present, and the scenario editor is not that easy to use. It has a lot of issues on Proton when playing cut scenes.
  2. Hdwc_
    Sep 3, 2023
    3
    Terrible execution, I play AOE since 90ties and games in general and I have developed a good taste. The QoL (Quality of life) in this game is terrible, no User Interface (UI) direction, terrible programming and art design is absent, totally uninspired. They have used a Golden Yellow color all over the place, panels do not allow a seamless hypertext navigation of the lobbies and multiplayerTerrible execution, I play AOE since 90ties and games in general and I have developed a good taste. The QoL (Quality of life) in this game is terrible, no User Interface (UI) direction, terrible programming and art design is absent, totally uninspired. They have used a Golden Yellow color all over the place, panels do not allow a seamless hypertext navigation of the lobbies and multiplayer area is extremely clunky. Adam Isgreen, the director, should shame himself for such an execution and Xbox Games Studios be aware of what games they allow to be released, such a big responsibility for such a saga and a franchise which underperforms in tons of elements (besides the gameplay that anyway is constantly changed by disrespectful constant meta edits that keep people grinding and having to change their strategies over and over despite the game already allows to create tons for years if it was never modified: it's basically a procedural grinding system connected to the DLCs publishing uiniting a constantly steep curve maintenance to a money making machine).
    The entire game is oriented to naive of the RTS, casuals, the actual player base that was looking to compete or looking for team mates to play with against others is disregarded completely.

    Wishper (messaging) system is another of the many clunky things: you need 4 clicks in order to reach finally the field where to type the message but if the player is offline (thing that the game strangely doesn't tell you before) your message won't be reaching the recipient (and game will mock you with a "Player is Offline").

    There are tons of things like no online status visibile on players. The ladders and elorating with all the data has not been made in house yet and with the lack of aoe3jpcommunity we have still to rely on kind of not well executed third party web sites that anyway are not there forever and anyway do not show well information nor have them all nor are well executed how it was the hyper minimalistic but extremely well informing aoe3jpcommunity stuff (check online what it was.. still some videos available despite the best is a video in dutch u can still see what the developer should offer!)

    The masks background are terrible stuff, extremely basic things so much it seems a degradation of the original game. There has been also a lot of WOKE stuff into the game like "removal of Colonial age".. now Commerce age! Sure because we went to USA to commerce, not to eradicate the locals. Ok. Some stuff ahs been well done.

    Ratings here are clearly biased like the entire system of videogames reviews from Steam which is a lobby to make Valve gain more by selling more, shutting down anything intelligent written in the forums, to these venues that do not really show a game for what it is.

    Terrible Art design, and uninspired from the fonts to the game windows, masks anything
    Zero UI direction and worse ever QoL seen in years.
    Mutiplayer experience EXTREMELY frustrating.

    I am a competitive player, I play this game since 20 years. I know what I am saying and I have a wide array of games.. completed and I do not just play games.

    This is not how you manage a project, this is the worse and without dignity execution ever.

    Microsoft should be ashamed of what they have published and allow release from Tantalus Media and Forgotten Empires. THis is a cash cow that aims to sell pay to win Civilizations included in additional "expansions" every now and then and doesn't care for the pillars that make a game work.

    They have jumped directly to the pocket of the people without first understanding you must make a proper game to gain some respect from the public.

    Seen the votes coming even positive for this, I understand the passion or the enthusiasm (I am passionate too and this is why I haven't abandoned what has been instead clearly abandoned by devs) it is quite evident where gaming is going. PURE TRASH experience because people have zero idea what gaming design should be and what quality is and today people just buy anything.

    No wonder why people without any talent and totally unable to make a game do actually manage to pull it off and make money...

    https://youtu.be/oe5B6QaDYSI    … Expand
  3. Midnight69
    Jun 14, 2023
    10
    This is one of the deepest RTS games I have played. There is always something new you are learning. From a casual perspective it is rewarding as well as you will always earn XP even when playing against the computer. The unit responsiveness is a bit clunky and the counters are really hard but I still think it is a visually beautiful game with rewarding mechanics and so so muchThis is one of the deepest RTS games I have played. There is always something new you are learning. From a casual perspective it is rewarding as well as you will always earn XP even when playing against the computer. The unit responsiveness is a bit clunky and the counters are really hard but I still think it is a visually beautiful game with rewarding mechanics and so so much replayabliity. It deviates so much from the other AOE but that is the reason I love it.… Expand
  4. superlugia94
    Mar 23, 2023
    9
    This is one my favorite games ever. And especially the remastered version of it because they managed to make a very good remastered based on the old game. One thing I would love to see from the developers is to add more civilizations. Civilizations from the Balkans or the eastern Europe would be great. And why not Polish Romanian. Maybe from the east Persians Arabs etc. Afterall perfectThis is one my favorite games ever. And especially the remastered version of it because they managed to make a very good remastered based on the old game. One thing I would love to see from the developers is to add more civilizations. Civilizations from the Balkans or the eastern Europe would be great. And why not Polish Romanian. Maybe from the east Persians Arabs etc. Afterall perfect game and it will be ever better if they add more civilization content to it.… Expand
  5. Chowjust
    Dec 4, 2022
    8
    Better than seggs. One of my favorite RTS games from my childhood and still holds up in 2022.
  6. 6thclub
    Feb 8, 2022
    5
    Good game - graphics look better and gameplay is ok. Campaigns are boring imo.

    There are a few negative aspects. It's buggy, the Multiplayer is lagging and cheaters reign it. They also cut the leveling of the cities, so now it's only for customization. There is no reason to level up now. Unfortunately they added timed events to this game; for example you have do do grindy stuff to    Good game - graphics look better and gameplay is ok. Campaigns are boring imo.

    There are a few negative aspects. It's buggy, the Multiplayer is lagging and cheaters reign it. They also cut the leveling of the cities, so now it's only for customization. There is no reason to level up now.

    Unfortunately they added timed events to this game; for example you have do do grindy stuff to unlock explorer skins, cheats or different other things, but the events are dumb and not fun at all and even limitted, forcing you to play several days and do boring stuff (like build 3 buildings of a type or such).

    Cannot recommend a game with such annoying mechanics added after release... i dont buy or play mobile games, because i cannot play every day for weeks and dislike such mechanics. Now i know why AoE IV looks like a mobile game...    … Expand
  7. tututdyure
    Jan 2, 2022
    8
    This game is amazing, but I still like Age Of Empires 2 more than Age Of Empires 3. But good job for Xbox Game Studios.
  8. heisenberg_88
    Dec 4, 2021
    10
    Good graphics but unnecessary game !
    AoE3 already looks good & there was no need of this game . AoE2 DE is acceptable as AoE2 was a very old game .
    They could've just postponed this DE game 2 -3 years later and added new things that would make players excited !
    I think they released this so that they can release AoE 4
  9. Huemen
    Dec 2, 2021
    3
    Buggy, umpolished, and umbalanced. It was released in a poor state, and it still suffers from it. Hopefully they already fixed the bug where it would brick your pc, but otherwise, it is a bad adaptation of what was otherwise (originally) a good game.
  10. The_last_magyar
    Dec 2, 2021
    4
    Aoe3 DE by itself is already a problematic game, but the fact that this was a remaster done by one of the largest companies on earth trully shows that the Dutch Diseases may also be present on the gaming industry.

    For starters: I have no idea of why the game is so heavy and badly optimized (I will put my two cents on the new models). There are mods and fan projects of the original game    Aoe3 DE by itself is already a problematic game, but the fact that this was a remaster done by one of the largest companies on earth trully shows that the Dutch Diseases may also be present on the gaming industry.

    For starters: I have no idea of why the game is so heavy and badly optimized (I will put my two cents on the new models). There are mods and fan projects of the original game with good enough designs that were infinitelly lighter than this one (and mind you, with a better color pallete and saturation).

    Secondly, the multiplayer does not properly work. The age of Empires remakes and HDs are known for being bad, but the last AOE and AOE3 DE really settle a lower a bar from what was already underground.

    Third: The game fortunatelly adds some aspects of fan patches of the original aoe3, but their insistency in archaic mechanics (like the way that some natives colect gold) leads to a more slugish game, as many of those mechanics dont fit here.

    The menus got clumcky and confusing. Homecity cards are just ''thrown'' in the Metropolis without any visual consideration. Honestly, the visual designers don't seen to have put much tough on the subject at all.

    Lastly, regarding the changes to some ''Problematic'' age names and abilities: Changing the Natives power of converting animals was a good move (even back them it was a Pocahantas steryotype) but everything else? Changing colonial to commerce, plantations, etc. They put their hand on a fire on purpose being fully aware that people would take that bait, and sure as hell it brought atention. But i don't recomend you biting it. Unecessary changes that only serve to havoc the community.

    If you want to play Age Of Empires 3, buy the complete colection. It is cheap, it is light, it has a great fan patch (Esoc) and it works online.    … Expand
  11. chrissyboi85
    Nov 12, 2021
    0
    This game was created by Ensemble Studios, not the current developer. The current developer has essentially taken credit for everything ensemble built and has tried to erase history of ensemble. Do not trust the reviews on steam, they are fake. Age of empires 3, definitive edition doesnt deserve your money.

    We must fight the fake reviews on steam. Unfortunately you have to buy the game    This game was created by Ensemble Studios, not the current developer. The current developer has essentially taken credit for everything ensemble built and has tried to erase history of ensemble. Do not trust the reviews on steam, they are fake. Age of empires 3, definitive edition doesnt deserve your money.

    We must fight the fake reviews on steam. Unfortunately you have to buy the game on steam to review on steam which doesnt make sense if you dont support the current developer.    … Expand
  12. hielrocker
    Sep 28, 2021
    6
    Not the greatest Age of empires. Actually it's the worst of them. Better graphics but go for AOE2, AOE2 or AOM
  13. RaptorX3
    Aug 3, 2021
    0
    Terrible optimisation, annoying cheap mobile game like UI, no shortcuts for town center etc. , lots of bugs, waste of money. I actually deleted after playing one game. I prefer the old one over this trash. Can't wait to see aoe4 LOL. Good luck with this franchise. RIP aoe..
  14. D4vid
    Jun 12, 2021
    0
    The game itself is easily a 10/10. It is balanced, it improves the gameplay from previous entries of the saga.

    The problem comes to the Definitive Edition itself: not only is full of bugs (new bugs come with every update), but the game has also received some unnecessary changes. It’s a game about COLONIZATION, don’t start on the moral high ground and talk about how colonization was a bad    The game itself is easily a 10/10. It is balanced, it improves the gameplay from previous entries of the saga.

    The problem comes to the Definitive Edition itself: not only is full of bugs (new bugs come with every update), but the game has also received some unnecessary changes.
    It’s a game about COLONIZATION, don’t start on the moral high ground and talk about how colonization was a bad thing and so on. I don’t care about it: I WANT TO PLAY THE GAME.

    Devs invested so much time about this politically correctness non sense: if half of this time were invested in fixing bugs, then we would have a working game.    … Expand
  15. MikeAGE
    Jun 3, 2021
    10
    The simple AOE2 minds are here to hate on the game by writing untrue reviews of the game.

    The game is awesome and for Age of Empires 4, they need to look into the direction AoE3 went rather than the unstrategic dumb AoE2 game.
  16. Misterdiony
    May 18, 2021
    8
    The Definite edition remains on the same level as its previous editions. The graphic update looks amazing but there are still errors remaining in the game that have occured years ago. If it would work top-notch along with the graphics the score could be higher, but at this point it remains as it is.
  17. Mpbpl
    May 3, 2021
    5
    Unfortunately I can't recommend this game. Starting where this version does good, it provides better representation to Native Americans than the old version.... that's it.
    It's a better version of the original but with that said, the original made this franchise have a huge hiatus until AoE2 HD/Definitive and competitive scene gave the franchise new light.
    Talking about the gameplay, it    Unfortunately I can't recommend this game. Starting where this version does good, it provides better representation to Native Americans than the old version.... that's it.
    It's a better version of the original but with that said, the original made this franchise have a huge hiatus until AoE2 HD/Definitive and competitive scene gave the franchise new light.
    Talking about the gameplay, it never really got me like AoE1 and 2, most basic units are ranged units, each spawn in a different number making it hard to keep track of what to create, the game feels a bit slower than previous entries, because of this they created a shipment mechanic, the more points you make you change them for villagers, warriors, fortresses, etc. but that is a bandaid for a problem they themselves created.
    With this I have to say that my biggest gripewith AoE3 is that it makes the franchise go from following historical characters in historical events to fictional characters on fictional events similar to historical ones or helping historical characters, and that sucks... going away from history makes the writing, dialogue, situations so stupid. There was one mission where you help General Washington in his first victory, and you even control him, but after that you go back to follow the fictional captain that is super important but does not exist and is not inspired by anyone.
    That was one of the most stupid decisions ever for the franchise, an Evil Company was created to avoid political problems, which sucks... feels like pandering history.
    All of that together makes this game overall subpar... it's not bad but wait for a discount.    … Expand
  18. L140
    Jan 25, 2021
    2
    Просто кусок параши вместо нормального ремастера, графика осталась ровно такой же как и в далеком 2008, зато фпс проседает так, словно я зашел в рдр, еще я умолчу про бесконечное количество багов и вылетов, из плюсов это две новых цивилизации и... все, но это не может компенсировать общую неиграбельность (из 8 партий я смог доиграть только 4, в других нас с друзьями просто кикало/отключалоПросто кусок параши вместо нормального ремастера, графика осталась ровно такой же как и в далеком 2008, зато фпс проседает так, словно я зашел в рдр, еще я умолчу про бесконечное количество багов и вылетов, из плюсов это две новых цивилизации и... все, но это не может компенсировать общую неиграбельность (из 8 партий я смог доиграть только 4, в других нас с друзьями просто кикало/отключало от сервера/игра вылетала)
    26.01.2021 UPD: сейчас многое пофиксили, подправили, в общем, стало играбельно. Оценку менять не буду, потому что то, что они выпустили на старте, нельзя простить    … Expand
  19. philipz484
    Jan 2, 2021
    7
    The base version from 2005 was my childhood favourite game It was pleasure to see it renewed with modern time texture resolution standards. I also enjoyed that we now have the Swedes and the Incas but they should be put into the game already in 2005 together with the Polish nation :)
    I would like to rank this game 8+ but the amount of bugs I experienced was to much, I lost all my saves    The base version from 2005 was my childhood favourite game It was pleasure to see it renewed with modern time texture resolution standards. I also enjoyed that we now have the Swedes and the Incas but they should be put into the game already in 2005 together with the Polish nation :)
    I would like to rank this game 8+ but the amount of bugs I experienced was to much, I lost all my saves after doing Steam integrity scan of the game and during the game play I had countless CTDs.    … Expand
  20. Mazma
    Dec 25, 2020
    7
    Una decente definitive, anche se col tempo spero migliori, molto pesante e con poche novita attualmente ma e' pure sempre il classico AGE 3.
  21. brevno12
    Dec 15, 2020
    10
    For sure an improvement over original, low score due to r/convervative being snowflakes so freely add 1.5 points to current score
  22. Shiranui
    Nov 17, 2020
    1
    An absolute disgrace to Ensemble Studios legacy and everything they built. They have the gall to think they know better by reworking the foundational mechanics of some of the in game factions. As a result it has produced new game breaking bugs like crashes and a completely disfunctional AI. Shame on you Forgotten Empires.
  23. i44arho
    Nov 12, 2020
    10
    To be honest, the only drawback is the lack of optimization and there are some bugs, but they are working on it, and patches are released every couple of days. Otherwise, there are some pluses. The interface has been improved for the better, it has become even more informative, the minimap has become a little larger, several of its variations are also available, the text size has also beenTo be honest, the only drawback is the lack of optimization and there are some bugs, but they are working on it, and patches are released every couple of days. Otherwise, there are some pluses. The interface has been improved for the better, it has become even more informative, the minimap has become a little larger, several of its variations are also available, the text size has also been slightly increased. The graphics were improved, although the old one was not bad. Added two new nations, modes. And also new cards. Improved balance. And a lot of small additions, a la the possibility of 3-4 teams of 2, a variant with a random civ, observer mode. Decks are available immediately and you don't need to bother with pumping anymore. The fact that the names of Indian civilizations have been changed is not a minus, what is the difference between Sioux and Lakota. Some narrow-minded people just make a problem out of nothing. As a true fan of the third part, I am completely satisfied with the remaster.… Expand
  24. garnerwills
    Nov 2, 2020
    3
    This has been such a lazy remake of an original game. Despite some improvements, there are a tonne of bugs and continued issues from the first game.

    Pros: * Graphics look great * Audio including theme songs sound fantastic * Card system improved (although new cards could be added as feels more basic) to make your game your own Cons: * Disconnection issues with players not being    This has been such a lazy remake of an original game. Despite some improvements, there are a tonne of bugs and continued issues from the first game.

    Pros:
    * Graphics look great
    * Audio including theme songs sound fantastic
    * Card system improved (although new cards could be added as feels more basic) to make your
    game your own

    Cons:
    * Disconnection issues with players not being able to reconnect to games (why is this a thing in
    2020 especially after this being a problem on the original
    * Tonnes of bugs of characters getting stuck on things
    * Upgrades for units to go from Veteran to Guard etc, there aren't directly below each unit (this was a
    problem in the original, the whole point of a remaster is to fix problems...
    * Steam update not at same time of Xbox update so can't play with friends on Steam due to them not
    pushing updates at the same time and have to wait till they both get updated.
    * Renaming to be politically correct on a game that is set in the 1800s is ridiculous and so SJW
    focused
    * AI bot games, sometimes enemy character's economy stays at like 60 as they don't build their
    empire as glitched out
    * Lots of lagging with times when it takes up to 15 seconds to register a click
    * Poorly optimised and runs at a very low FPS
    * Stuck at 200 population (now that hardware is more powerful, maybe allow this to be changed to allow for bigger battles. Also allow you to select more than 50 units at a time.

    Overall this is merely a slight refresh with some very minor improvements but a tonne of issues of things not fixed and other bugs. Glad I didn't buy it on Steam but play on Xbox Game pass in my subscription.    … Expand
  25. EarthRed
    Oct 26, 2020
    9
    An immense step up for what we thought would be a slight graphical update. With tons of new content and dedicated servers, and with a few more bug fix patches, this will be one of the best RTS re-releases to date.

    Pros: - Tons and tons of new content, for both European and Native civs. Also, the Chinese can now use more than one army type. This includes new politicians, a few new    An immense step up for what we thought would be a slight graphical update. With tons of new content and dedicated servers, and with a few more bug fix patches, this will be one of the best RTS re-releases to date.

    Pros:

    - Tons and tons of new content, for both European and Native civs. Also, the Chinese can now use more than one army type. This includes new politicians, a few new mechanics, and an expanded new revolution system.

    - Dedication to competitive multiplayer, in terms of both gameplay improvements as well as balance changes. One of the new civs is seen as a bit overpowered still and there are a few kinks left here and there, but if the devs development cycle is anything near to AoE2:DE (which everything seems to be pointing to), the game will be patched regularly. If you'd rather wait and see, that's completely understandable too.

    - If you're not one of the unlucky people that have game breaking bugs, the server infrastructure is actually really solid. Cross-continent play is (when not bugging) surprisingly lag free. For example, Europeans can play on the Korean server without practically any gamebreaking lag, which is really nice.

    - Fluid, competent and modern UI.

    Neutral:

    - No public ELO in casual games, so no easy way to filter through casual games based on ELO, but also no ELO sniping either. Some people are really pissed about this, but it also fixed a few large problems with the original release. If this is an issue for you, you'll need to wait and see if the devs implement something to let high-ELO people avoid low-ELO casual games and vice versa.

    - As stated earlier, some names have been changed here and there. If this bothers you, there is a mod that will revert the name changes back.

    Cons:

    - Some people are experiencing severe game breaking bugs, as well as other visual bugs. Be prepared to wait or refund if you're experiencing these. These include bugs that stop you from progressing in the campaign, connecting to people or seeing multiplayer lobbies.

    - No singleplayer skirmish progression, if you're interested in that.

    - If you didn't like AoE3 before, you'll most likely not like it now, except if the home city unlocking was your only gripe.

    - The game runs very poorly on some systems, so you'll have to try your luck with the games graphical performance quirks.

    - The clan and replay functionalities don't work properly all the time at the moment.

    - Chinese voicelines and localisation is bad, and in some cases buggy as well.

    - Several other localizations are buggy too.

    - We need a balance patch or two to even out some multiplayer quirks. [Link omitted per site policy]    … Expand
  26. raulraso
    Oct 24, 2020
    6
    the game closes suddenly on 1vs1 ranked matches, thats the mayor problem why i stopped playing. Also closes appear game doesnt respond" on windows when playing 4vs4
  27. Shark3900
    Oct 22, 2020
    10
    The game is great, if you liked Age of Empires 3 you'll love this.

    Bugs are a YMMV type situation, I've played several games already and had 0 issues personally.

    Ironic, the people complaining about the "dev agenda" are just trying to enforce an agenda of their own.
  28. gimus
    Oct 21, 2020
    10
    Very good remaster! I like it. Graphics is nice, sound, etc. Everything on its place.
  29. Lyvione
    Oct 20, 2020
    10
    The game is a blast and the negative reviews are just superficial whining. Yes it needs patches but remember aoe2de? Chill and enjoy some colonialism bois. See you all on the battlefield.
  30. info0game
    Oct 20, 2020
    10
    The game is really good , I love this game and the development team (Ensemble Studios)
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Awards & Rankings

66
#66 Most Discussed PC Game of 2020

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 48 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 48
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 48
  3. Negative: 0 out of 48
  1. CD-Action
    Feb 8, 2021
    75
    The developers did a great job at ironing out imperfections of the original game and expanding it without messing with its core. There are some visual shortcomings and performance issues, and the AI needs more work, but I longed for a good strategy game and Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition filled that void for me. [13/2020, p.50]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 4, 2021
    60
    Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition is a decent addition to Age of Empires family. While not surprisingly good, it is still a good game, which unfortunately suffers from its technical state. [Issue#307]
  3. GameOver.gr
    Nov 13, 2020
    70
    This is surely the best way to experience a classic and beloved game. Age of Empires III Definitive Edition is a major upgrade to the original even though its gameplay shows its age.
    Read full review
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