Age of Empires III

 PC
Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 52 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 40 out of 52
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 52
  3. Negative: 0 out of 52
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  1. GameSpot
    82
    Those looking for a complex and interesting real-time strategy game with fantastic good looks and some historical flavor will find just what they want in Age of Empires III.
  2. IGN
    88
    The unit design and the range of opportunities in both the single player and multiplayer missions will definitely get your strategic juices flowing.
  3. ActionTrip
    79
    A game with great potential that sadly hasn't been fully developed. No matter how much you may like certain aspects of it, the fact that the retail code feels so incomplete and technically lacking is inexcusable.
  5. GameZone
    95
    There are so many new additions in this game that it will boggle your mind. This is one of the best looking games, much less an RTS game, that is out on the market currently.
  6. eToychest
    75
    Eventually even the most diehard series zealots are going to begin to ask themselves why they are still in the same place playing the same game they were playing nearly a decade ago. While the genre has grown, the series that helped to spearhead games of this type into the public eye has stayed disturbingly static.
  7. GamePro
    80
    Ultimately, AOE III has clearly won the battle for graphical supremacy, but for all its improvements elsewhere, it has yet to win the war for RTS dominance.
  8. GameSpy
    100
    An absolutely fantastic title with superb graphics and tight gameplay. Single-player or multiplayer, no matter what your skill, you'll get hours of joy out of this sucker online or off.
  9. VGPub
    85
    It has all the addictiveness of the earlier titles, but probably less replay value since there are more interesting and creative RTSs out there.
  10. PGNx Media
    90
    The game meets the bar set by previous games in the series though it doesn’t really revolutionize the genre.
  11. Next Level Gaming
    80
    At its core Age of Empires III is basically like any other RTS.
  12. Gamezilla!
    91
    With 24 campaign missions and endless replaying online, unless you have an aversion to RTS games you’ll want to give it a try.
  13. Gaming Illustrated
    88
    The gameplay of the title is the core strength, and getting through the single player campaign will suck you in for uncountable hours into the night.
  14. Total Video Games
    80
    The single-player stoy mode takes in three generations of the Black family over a number of missions, and once that challenge has been reached there's plenty of Multiplayer action to be had.
  15. Times Online
    100
    In short, AoE III is yet another masterly triumph.
  16. PC Gameworld
    90
    There is nothing terribly new or original here, but this still offers a very solid RTS experience.
  17. GamingTrend
    92
    A phenomenally awesome RTS, and stays true to all the games before it.
  18. Game Over Online
    83
    It’s a little difficult to call a game like AOE3 dated because so much work has been done on the graphics and interface, but under the hood (with the exception of the home city concept) AOE3 is all "AOE2."
  19. Gaming Horizon
    86
    Fans of the first two should pick it up for sure, and other RTS fans would be smart to do the same.
  20. Games Radar
    87
    Gorgeous to look at and wonderfully well made, but it's not a revolution. [PC Gamer UK]
  21. Play.tm
    83
    It is a finely constructed, accessible real-time strategy game with a brilliant soundtrack, tactical warfare with intricacies too long winded to go into here and highly addictive gameplay.
  22. DailyGame
    83
    There’s some good gaming here for people new to the franchise, but some parts will feel old to experienced AOE vets.
  23. PALGN
    80
    There’s certainly enough depth to be found for RTS fans, but once again, it falls a tad sort of our expectations.
  24. GameShark
    75
    In the end, Age of Empires III truly feels like a continuation of the 1999 classic. If that's good enough for you, then you'll definitely want to check it out.
  25. Computer and Video Games
    84
    It's surely the best-looking traditional real time strategy game out there at the moment, and more importantly it's a real blast to play. Boom! [PC Zone]
  26. netjak
    90
    The home city concept adds a new twist, making the game slightly more interested than it had been before.
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  27. PC Gamer
    91
    Balanced, innovative, gorgeous. Truly worthy of the series. [Holiday 2005, p.52]
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  28. Game Informer
    83
    Hopefully Ensemble will focus a little more on substance than style with its next game. [Dec 2005, p.184]
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  29. Armchair Empire
    80
    I was hoping for a revolution, but instead, I found an excellent evolution.
  30. Pelit (Finland)
    85
    Age of Empires 3 does not let you down. The game is as polished as it can get. Great for people who love multiplayer matches. [Dec 2005]
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  31. Worth Playing
    93
    The new additions do much to add new depths of strategy.
  32. G4 TV
    80
    Top it all off with a delicious graphics engine and you’ve got an Age of Empires game for modern machines that sports daring new design ideas for the modern strategy gamer.
  33. 3DAvenue
    80
    An RTS that does feel a little dated bar a few bells and whistles, although the fans of the series will likely feel right at home.
  34. PC Format
    78
    Hardcore RTS fans are well catered for. Casual players should look elsewhere. [Christmas 2005, p.98]
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  35. Gamers' Temple
    90
    Classic real-time strategy action in a beautiful new wrapper.
  36. Jolt Online Gaming UK
    78
    There are hours and hours of RTS fun to be had in Age of Empires III, but the problem is that we’ve all come to expect more over the years from our real time strategy games, and you can’t hide a lack of progress with shiny graphics and lovely physics-related cannon exploits.
  37. Electric Playground
    90
    Combining solid game play, stellar physics, and some of the most vibrant graphics available on the PC, Age of Empires III is the alpha male of the RTS pack.
  38. GamesRadar+
    80
    There's no question that Age of Empires III is enjoyable, and the strong multiplayer modes make it worth owning. It's just that it doesn’t strive hard enough to truly usher in a new age of the genre.
  39. Gamers Europe
    85
    All in all, Age of Empires 3 is a top-notch game. Not too hard on the specs either, it’ll let you away with 256mb of ram and a 1.4ghz processor (ugly but perfectly playable).
  40. Adrenaline Vault
    90
    This game is pure, unadulterated fun.
  41. Game Chronicles
    80
    The additions to the game don’t alter the basic strategy that much. So while this is a solid RTS title, it certainly isn’t breaking any new ground.

Awards & Rankings

35
#35 Best PC Game of 2005
11
#11 Most Discussed PC Game of 2005
3
#3 Most Shared PC Game of 2005

User Reviews

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User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 778 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 529 out of 778
  2. Mixed: 190 out of 778
  3. Negative: 59 out of 778
  1. HwoDragon
    Jul 8, 2012
    4
    AOE 3 was a disappointment. It's predecessor was a brilliant, fun strategy game. There were lots of unique civs to pick, historic campaigns toAOE 3 was a disappointment. It's predecessor was a brilliant, fun strategy game. There were lots of unique civs to pick, historic campaigns to play, and a simple, easy, but flexible map editor. AOE 3 has only a handful of civs, and you have to buy the expansion pack to use any native american civs. There are 3 long campaigns each with 5 minute missions in the place of a ton of short campaigns and a few individual missions. The first campaign was just silly. Magic. No kidding, magic. In the first campaign you have to find the fountain of youth and destroy it to keep a secret organization from using it's powers for evil or something. It sounds like some sort of bad sci fi. Another thing that irritated me when I played was that everything is so... big. The inability to zoom out combined with the fact that every soldier in my army is half an inch tall means that there is very little room on the screen. Not only that, but the maps are very small too. I found myself quickly running out of room to build, and, when I just started and was playing on the easier levels, found myself accidentally destroying an enemy because my guards went rouge. That's another problem. AOE 1 had that command list where you could pick formations, and set units to patrol, guard, escort, or just not attack anything. That's all gone in AOE III. If you want to guard your base with troops, you have to constantly pull them back to keep them from following a trail of retreating enemies back to their home base. In this version, instead of just reducing troop training time, troops train in squads up to 5. Personally, I have no objection to this change though, it saved me one time because I had to train soldiers while under attack, and if they had been coming out 1 by 1 they'd have been slaughtered. And then there's the realism. I'm sorry, but if your unprotected fleeing screaming villager can take over 15 BULLETS TO KILL, there is something seriously wrong. Bullets are incredibly underpowered in this game. Even after buying a special upgrade that gives me massive bonus damage versus villagers, it still took way more bullets than it realistically should have. A game where bow and arrow > gun is one where the laws or reality are warped. There are 2 things in AOE III that keep me from giving it a 2 or 3. The first one is the home city option. Though it isn't exactly "Age of Empires" style, it did a nice job of motivating me to keep playing. After all, I can't just stop with a level 9 home city, I have to go to 10. And after that, why not 15? or 50? Another thing that was fairly well done was the graphics. I don't mean the troops. They all look like a mess of colored triangles. And the buildings just look like buildings. Nice, but nothing to write home about. I'm referring to the thrill I get from positioning 16 cannons in a circle around his town center and firing, watching pieces of it fly 50 feet into the air and land in a shattered heap on top of the mess that used to be a colony. The physics in the game, though also somewhat unrealistic, (Houses appear to weigh nothing, a 20 foot long chunk that must weigh at least 1 ton can be blasted straight up into the air and come back down as if it were a lego brick) are very fun and visually interesting. All in all, this is an okay game, but if you are expecting Age of Empires III, you won't get it. This is just another rts.… Full Review »
  2. Yablo
    Jan 9, 2006
    10
    I love thise game... no more wasting time on making buildings to get resources in faster. The cards add great new demension to the strategy I love thise game... no more wasting time on making buildings to get resources in faster. The cards add great new demension to the strategy of the game. The only thing that needs to be worked on is the hit points of buildings.. they go down a bit fast.… Full Review »
  3. MorganC.
    Jan 3, 2006
    9
    A solid game. A little repetitive, but well worth your money.
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