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A failed experiment on all fronts

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 13 / 20
Date: July 22, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I remember the previews for this game. It was to have neat god powers, ballanced myth units, and take what Age of Kings made great and make it even better. Well, where the heck did that game go anyway? This surely isn't the game I saw in the previews. Let me get right to the heart of the problems with this game.

1.) The battles are oh so dinky and boring. This is impart to the fact that there's a set limit of only 10 houses you can build limiting your population limit to a low default. That's right, there's no adjusting your population limit like in Age of Kings or its expansion pack (which I now will refer to as AOK TC for short). Add to the fact that each base soldier costs 2 population limit, and you have a really small game. Myth units cost more pop limit, but that sure as heck doesn't offset the fact that...

2.) Myth units are way overpowered. I know ES wanted to show how powerful they are, but some were just out of this world. Like the Anubites only costing 100 food, have 3 times the HP of a base human soldier, twice the attack rate of a human soldier, and an attack bonus vs human soldiers. The myth units just dominated everything. I mean, having 3 or so gold colossus in battle usually means your going to win it no matter what, which isn't fair. AOK TC didn't have any 1 unit that can dominate everything else, here otherwise it's different.

3.) Defense is just as useless as well. In AOK TC, you had to ballance between defense and offense. In AOM, you only work on offensive play. If you're use to someone like the Teutons in AOK you're going to get ate up alive here, since walls are pathetically weak, and fortresses only have 1/5th the HP that castles have in AOK! Who was ES making this game for, nothing but Goth players?

4.) For some reason ES made it so the buildings were back to AOE style. Why I have no idea, since being use to having the units scale to the buildings in AOK TC, it looks really retarded having a villager tower over a house again. Don't forget that you can only build TCs on those settlements that are randomly set on the map, so if an enemy takes your Town Center out in late game and has the map scouted, he knows exactly where you have to build a TC and can defend them well .... you over.

5.) The difficulty was also poor. In AOK, the AI gives you a fair chance to learn how to play on easy, and wasn't a complete cheat on hard. In AOM on easy the computer is comatose and on moderate the AI shows no mercy and plays like ... AOK. Hard is just ungodly difficult and gives you no chance before you're rushed brutally. And unlike in AOK, you can't handle a hard rush in AOM since there is jack in defensive structures and no pop room to have defensive units laying around.

6.) The 3D graphics didn't impress. In fact, I thought they took a step back from AOKs. The units just look bland and blocky, and the terrians look dull and nothing like grass or snow. The water was really nice though, but that's it, the rest looked rather bad. The 2D engine was just right, so why fix something that's not broken? Also there's a whopping 2 map sizes to choose from (unlike the 5 or so in AOK TC), and all of them are dull and bland to look at and play. What fun!

All and all I hated AOM, and I stopped playing only after 2 weeks. The gods barely differed in playing styles for each civs, and it was just didn't have that magic that AOK did. I didn't care about the battles in AOM when I saw the myth units and heros ripping everything apart with no way of me using a superior tactic or something to take them out with my human soldiers.

Crushing down someones wall to degut their town had little excitement since only 1 ram is required for about 1 minutes worth of work before half the wall falls. AOMs Xpac doesn't look much better, it introduces a super unit that costs as much as a wonder and requires another one to defeat it since they're so impossable to defeat. And much like the rest of AOM, it doesn't constitute as fun, it's just stupid.

The game does have some good points, like how each of the 3 civs play radically different from each other. But there's also a down side, that's it only 3 civs. After a short time they get boring with no wide choises other than the minor gods little influnces to the civs playing style. The instruction book also tells you nothing, almost topping Dark Clouds Strategy Guide in being the biggest waste of paper ever. Instead you're prompted to go to their website and print off the real handbook! This is inexcusable, and I expected better from ES.

I know that people are craving another RTS from ES, but in all honesty this felt like a big failed experiment. Even Age of Empires with the Rise of Rome Expansion set is funner than this game, since it sadly seems to be more ballanced than Age of Mythology. Buy the AOK gold bundle instead and play a real game, not a failed experiment. Hopefully ES will learn from this and make Age of Empires 3 a worthy sequal instead of the series unworthy cousin.

A True RTS Classic

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: December 27, 2002
Author: Amazon User

The original Age of Empires and its sequel Age of Kings are often considered amongst the greatest RTS' ever made, and the new addition to the "Age of" series is a worthy claimant to the name. It retains its predecessors' great gameplay while adding new twists to the gameplay.
The first thing you notice when booting up the game is the great new 3D graphics. Ensemble Studios has done an excellent job here, and AOM is the first of the series that can be called truly stunning looking. Flaming arrows cut impressive paths in the sky, finding their mark on beautifully detailed units and buildings. Intracitely detailed boats land, oars pumping and sails waving, in the frothy surf to discharge a phalanx of hoplites. Forests burn and buildings fall into dust; battles rage on for control of ht emap and the game.
A cursory glance at a battle will reveal the second major innovation in the game system, as towering Colossi, powerful Mountain Giants, fearsome Fenris Wolves, and feline Sphinxes battle it out amongst the human soldiers. These creatures are constructed with a new resource (replacing stone) called "Favor." These creatures from Greek, Norse and Egyptian mythology are much more powerful than their human counterparts, as the "myth units" are able to toss soldiers like rag dolls, turn them to stone, or even convert them into undead. They too have their match in the great Heroes, able to slay the myth units with brutal effiecency.
Each one of the three major cultures has its own heroes as well as a distinct playstyle. The Greeks are the conventional culture, and the one most familiar to those who have played Age games past. Their units are strong but expensive, they gain favor by praying at the Temple, and they only can have four very powerful heroes at a time. The Egyptians have weak, cheap units that can be produced quickly. Their buildings do not cost wood, like the other cultures', instead they only cost gold or are even free. To balance this out, their buildings take much longer to produce and their peon unit is less efficient. They can counteract the ineffiencywith their powerful Pharaoh unit though. The Pharaoh dramatically increases the efficency of anything is is taked on. Buildings build and reaserch faster, and dropsites gather resources faster and more efficently. The Pharaoh also functions as a hero unit. They gain favor by building great Monuments. The Norse are the strangest culture of them all, but also possibly the most powerful. Their units are neither particularily strong nor cheap. Norse Infantry can build buildings, allowing Norse bases to pop up all over. Their villagers do not drop off rsources at buildings, instead they do at mobile Ox Carts. Their Heroes are built at the Longouse like regular units, and they gain favor in battle.
There is another level of strategic depth to the game granted bythe coice of Gods. Before a game starts and every time you advance an Age, you choose a God to worship. Each God brings its own myth unit(s), special technologies or bonuses, and most importantly a God Power. God Powers can be only used once and do such things as burn forests, create magical healing springs, give your units flaming weapons, create undead armies, turn enemies to pigs, destroy towns with meteors or earthquakes, or even transform all your peons into mighty warriors. These God Poers add another strategic layer to the game.

WHY IS IT A GOOD GAME?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 12
Date: June 18, 2006
Author: Amazon User

There are alot of reasons so you dumb people that rtae it low probably never played it heres why i think its great.

WHY ITS GREAT:

-fun in editor to just mess around (no need to test map to have people fight)

-many units that can make diffrent stratadgies

-god powers are great

-many mythical units that make the game unique

-the Titans are crazzzzy

-you beat the campaign? well download the new free one online go to the main website of AOM =D =D =D

-beat every campagin that exsists? You can still play online make many skirmish wars and even make your own campaigns

-many fun maps

-can be easy or hard depending what difficulty's you choose so its great for everyone

-new armies/gods/powers all that good stuff =]

So basically this games greta buy it actually better yet buy the gold edition which has this expansion and the original which you need to use the expansion.

HAVE FUN

Age of Mythology for Mac Review

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: December 31, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Please note: Amazon combines reviews for this basic game, the Titans expansion, the Collector's Edition, and the various operating systems all together. This review concerns only the Mac version. It specifically does NOT address the any of the Windows versions, which may indeed be spectacular. In fact, the Mac version might well be spectacular, but after spending time and money, I really can't say since it won't load correctly.

I'd love to play Age of Mythology--it looks fantastic, and I'm an addict for Age of Empires. But after convincing my loved ones to shell out relatively big bucks for it, and opening it with great joy at Christmas, and installing it with wide-eyed anticipation, I was met not with centaurs and pyramids, but only heart-rending despair. Textures didn't load, so I got odd looking polygon characters and buildings in blue and white instead of Gods and Goddesses. Oddly enough, palm tress came out okay.

Must be a faulty install, right? So I de-installed and re-installed...no luck. Surely there's information in the booklet or on the web page? Nope...but there is contact information, only on the web page.

After a short flurry of e-mail--and I must admit, MacSoft's promptness was greatly to be admired--I was told that there's a driver problem with OS 10.2.8, and since it's a driver problem, there's no fix available. MacSoft's suggestion was that I should upgrade my OS to Panther. Of course, that may play havoc with all the other software I currently use.

My suggestion to MacSoft is that they clearly label the fact that Age of Mythology doesn't work with OS 10.2.8 on the product box itself, in the Read-Me file with the installer, and on their webpage. Since OS 10.2.8 is one of the most common upgrades for OS X, to do otherwise treats the customer most poorly. I'm extremely disappointed.

Not perfect, but GREAT!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: November 08, 2002
Author: Amazon User

At first, looking at the screenshots and previews, I thought this game looked like a game not worth the playing(the grahpics looked unfinished at the screenshot).But when I started playing, I forgot all those things the second I saw the intro(It was very immpressive).
You can play nine cvlization, and much of the things is still simalar to Age Of Empires but there are gods to help you or deal with.
When you expand to a new age, you choose one god and each god has their unique ablity to help you. Like God powers, abllity to summon mythical creatures, powerful upgrades that makes your army strong etc. So you can see why this game is cool because it's like AOE mixed with God things.
But the bad things is that because this game is following lots of things that used in AOE, it has some bad things that was found at AOE.
The units are bit small, and the mouse cursor is big, so it's hard to see which unit is which and hard to click the one you want select. But once you get used to it, you'll manage it.

Overall, It's one of the best games of the year. And if you liked Age of Empires you'll love this one.

The Best!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 8 / 10
Date: December 02, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Its the king of all strategy games. Add superb graphics, great gameplay, awesome attacks, cool characters, and a whole bunch of fun together, and what do you get? Age of Mythology. Microsoft has made some great games in the past, but this by far is best. There are practically no errors in gameplay. The price is a little high, but its definitly worth it. It takes some space though as it uses 1.5 gigs on your hard drive. Besides that I see it as the perfect strategy game ever. Bottom line: If you want a superior strategy game, buy Age of Mythology.

AOM not up to the hype

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 16 / 29
Date: November 16, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I am an avid 'Age' and RTS fan, having enjoyed all the previous releases..........till now.
First let me say, the graphics are great, the best in the series by far.
But the graphics will not make up for the lack of enjoyment (for me) in the gameplay. I think my biggest concern is the all the differnet gods themselves and their abilities. There is too much focused on magic powers and not on what I enjoy most.....armed conflict, mano-o-mano.
I realize the title is Age of MYTHOLOGY, and maybe its just me, but I miss the combat of Empires and Kings which focused on the battle and not figuring out which god will do what, when and which powers to aquire. I don't mind a little magical power by a priest of the previous Age's but this is too much.
I know a lot of people like the mix of Dungeons and Dragons meets Age of Kings but I don't. I guess I'll wait till they get back to a more realistic, C&C / Red Alert style RTS. Maybe we'll see Age of Industry or Age of Modern Warfare in the future. I can only hope.

best ever

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 17
Date: September 15, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I was one of the 10000 gamers who received the alpha version of AOM. i have played it many times and it is great. the graphics are superior, the gameplay is perfect and the god powers are amazing to see. my favorite is the meteor god power, which rains fire on an enemy town. there are also myth units that you use favor to get. the myth units are great against human units but can easily be taken down by hero units. so in this game you can't just have masses of one type of unit, you must have a well-balanced, huge army. I think this game will surpass any strategy game ever made. i am going to buy this game the day it comes out, and i hope everyone else will too.

A step backwards

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 9 / 13
Date: January 04, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I've bought all of the "Age of..." games and have enjoyed them more and more with each new release. However, Age of Mythology has broken this trend and taken a step backwards in many ways. The only positive thing is the improved graphics. Everything else is worse. The number of possible opponents is fewer, the world (playing field) sizes are fewer and smaller, the number of levels of difficulty is fewer. In the last regard especially it suffers. The step in difficulty from easy to moderate is too large, from too passive to too aggresive opponents in one step. The game also lacks any feeling of strategy other than "build as fast as you can and then throw everything at your opponent". The small world sizes are a part of the reason for this as well and make anything other than 1 on 1 matches too crowded. Save your money and wait for the next one.

Fun campaign, but no replay value

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 9 / 13
Date: January 09, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I enjoyed AOE and AOK (the predecessors to this game). AOK was really fun, with a variety of single player campaigns and some variation in how one-off games could be won.

AOM includes ONE campaign. It is fun and long and it increases in difficulty with each stage so there is mostly some challenge. It is a little too easy in the first several rounds, but even then it plays with mythological stories in an engaging way. The package would have been better if more campaigns had been included.

The real problem is the one-off ("random map") games available to single players. These are what make or break an RTS game like this one because they decide whether or not the game is replayable in the absence of campaigns. In AOM, random map games require no real strategic or tactical innovativeness. They are about one thing only: build more troops more quickly than your opponent can and rush his base ASAP. If you don't the AI will do it to you, so there's no choice. As a result, AOM ceases to be playable when you have finished the campaign.

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