Age of Empires Mobile: An experience unworthy of the franchise

With TiMi promising a 4X experience aimed at introducing younger generations to the charm of the iconic franchise, fans had high expectations.

This year has been a year of experimentation within the real-time strategy genre, with game makers exploring new takes, from the unremarkable Elder Scrolls: Castles to the highly impressive Heroes of History. Joining this lineup is Age of Empires Mobile, developed by TiMi Studio, the team behind Call of Duty Mobile.

With TiMi promising a 4X experience aimed at introducing younger generations to the charm of the iconic franchise, fans had high expectations. Unfortunately, the result is a mishmash of game modes, offering little more than a glorified city builder that is weighed down by an endless stream of microtransactions. The heart and soul of Age of Empires (AoE) is unmistakably absent.

The game begins with the tale of a holy sword that must be charged, following Princess Josephine on her quest to establish an empire. Right from the opening sequence, the game abandons the classic AoE controls in favor of a dated city-builder system, reminiscent of Clash of Clans. As you summon heroes and construct buildings to raise an army, it becomes evident that the game leaves no room for strategy, tactics, variety, or even basic army formations. Across the many game modes on offer, originality is scarce – you’re either engaged in auto-battles or playing as Princess Josephine in combat sequences reminiscent of the classic Demon Star.

While it’s hard to justify playing a real-time strategy game that requires no actual strategy, it’s equally important to acknowledge that the game does offer several game modes. Unfortunately, none of them are enjoyable or worth your time. In this scattered approach, what remains is an over-cluttered UI/menu system that provides little to no guidance on how to navigate or play the game effectively. Even after six hours of gameplay, I was still unsure what each button on the screen corresponded to in terms of in-game elements. The game’s Alliance system, however, stood out as it allowed players to overcome challenges collectively.

Like many of the new RTS mobile games, AoE Mobile also leans heavily on the use of legendary heroes from history. During my time with the game, I unlocked Joan of Arc, which initially sparked a sense of nostalgia from playing her campaign in AoE II. Later, I unlocked Cleopatra and Darius the Great. When you compare AoE mobile with something like Heroes of History you realize how little has gone into making this game work.

Lastly, the game is also let down by poor optimization. I found the game struggled on my Pixel Pro and at times even failed to register my inputs forcing me to wait for updates to fix the issue. However, over a month since launch the problems persist.

A game that tarnishes the memory of Age of Empires, this simply isn’t worth your time.

Sneak Peek:

Title: Age of Empires Mobile

Developer: TiMi Studios for Level Infinite and World’s Edge

Game Type: Online Multiplayer RTS

Platforms: Android and iOS

Price: Free to Play with in-app purchases

Verdict (all scores out of 10):

Innovative Gameplay: 4

Game Handling and Quality: 4

Value for Time: 5

Potential Progression without in-game purchases: 4

Overall: 4.25

What Stands Out:

* The classic Age of Empires style building and upgrade system is translated well to mobile and touch devices.

* The alliance system and its multiplayer features are well thought out.

Fails to impress:

* The game needs a great deal of optimization as it often lags and stutters. At times it even struggles to register some touch-based inputs.

* The game includes an overwhelming number of modes, ranging from naval tactics and world exploration to attacking specific tribes and resource gathering through combat. While this adds variety, the overall experience feels unfocused and overly cluttered.