I don’t mean a game like Age of Mythology which is based on real cultures’ myths and legends, but rather a game with the classic Age formula that is set in a fictional world and has a selection of fictional cultures for you to play as. You would have mages acting as the priests of this setting, being able to cast spells at the cost of faith in addition to healing your units or converting enemy units. What spells your mage units would be able to cast would depend on the culture you’re playing as.
Here are some of my ideas for the civilizations you could play as:
- A Nordic barbarian culture native to the world’s northern polar region, which some tribes eking out a nomadic existence on the tundra whereas others living on the wooded coastline build longboats for overseas raiding. As a big and stocky people, they would have the strongest melee attack, but shun projectile weapons as cowardly. They would raise caribou as livestock, keep wolves and saber-toothed cats as pets, and ride woolly mammoths and rhinos into battle. Their magic would be themed around snow, ice, and frost.
- A seafaring mercantile culture with a Mediterranean flavor like that of the Greeks, Romans, Minoans, and Phoenicians. They would be indigenous to an archipelago off the main continent’s western shore, with each island supporting a city-state run as a merchant republic. Their foot soldiers’ armor would be the strongest of all the world’s cultures, but they wouldn’t have much use for cavalry, although they would raise pygmy elephants for food. Their magic would be themed around water and sea creatures.
- A large empire in the mainland’s eastern region with a culture inspired by that of medieval China. They would be the only civilization in the world to use gunpowder, giving their ranged and siege weapons the most powerful attack of all the world’s cultures. However, they would have little use for magic by virtue of their advanced technology. Nonetheless, they would support their armies with agile warrior monks, cannon-wielding war elephants, and tame tigers.
- A matriarchal kingdom of desert and savanna based on ancient North African civilizations such as Egypt, Nubia, and Ethiopia. Ruled by sorcerer-queens claiming descent from the sun goddess, their stone and mud-brick architecture would be the most durable in the game. Due to the hot climate of their homeland, their foot soldiers would wear little armor, but this would grant them superior speed to other civilization’s foot soldiers. Zebra-drawn chariots, war rhinos, amphibious war hippos, and war elephants characterize their mounted units, and their magic is themed around fire and heat.
- An assortment of jungle chiefdoms modeled after the cultures of coastal West and Central Africa. Their warriors excel at stealth, being able to weave through the thick rainforests of their homeland, and they are infamous for their poisoned arrows. Their highest-ranking warriors ride mighty dinosaurs and pterodactyls into battle, and their mages are able to tame any animals they can as well as summon poisonous or carnivorous plants to aid their cause.
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You know what? This ain’t the craziest idea. I would actually consider it buying it if it’s good enough
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I wonder if a fantasy version of Age of Empires would be something similar to a dark fantasy game like Dark Souls?
How would it be like Dark Souls? I don’t think the Dark Souls games are RTS.
I’ve never heard of Dark Souls RTS games either but what I mean was that a fantasy game within the Age of Empires series could be set in a dark magical world.
Sorry, I’m not really familiar with the Dark Souls series anyway. I have played a bit of Elden Ring though.
I’m skeptical. The history component of the Age games is so strong.
I think a “medieval” version of AoM could work well.
So instead of an ancient theme it would have a medieval theme like most classical fantasy has.
Instead of Favour you would have something like “Mana” or “Arcane” as a resource that is used to train magical units.
Building up on the gameplay basis of AoM (without calling it AoM) would make a lot of sense. Ideas from AoE1-4 should also be added to the game.
The core set of generic human units could be similar to AoE4. If possible the same engine could even be used.
Secret Sights are replaced with some magical thing that gives you Mana or things like that.
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I would like a science fiction version more, something similar to HALO wars.
Good grief no. Age is ######### linked to history. AOM is ‘historical mythology’ so that works. But straight up SF? No way that doesn’t dilute the brand.
I mean a spin-off, not canon, which is what I assume they’re talking about here (alternate versions)
It’s odd the words they won’t let you use. There’s nothing wrong with ############
I’d be cool with it, but as an expansion pack, spinoff game, or game between major AoE releases, rather than taking up a main release slot. I wouldn’t want it to become AoE5 or AoE6, for example.
I wish expansion packs would bring more than just more civs or campaign missions. It’s an area that could experiment more, bringing experimental visions like you describe to life, or adding more cool graphical things that could apply to everything – or at least be seen much, much more often than just in the one civ or campaign that is added.
Things like day/night, weather, added environmental features, more/changed sounds, lighting effects, more visual effect touches, more animals, flocks of birds, I don’t know… there’s just a lot that could be done, imo.
I wouldn’t mind this either, as an expansion pack type of thing. I once pitched the following:
- I feel the AoE2 engine is so cool, I wouldn’t mind seeing an expansion similar to Age of Mythology in it. Or an alien world with alien civs/techs in it; or just alien world with futuristic humans vying for ownership
- Alpha Centauri was a game I wanted to enjoy, but it just wasn’t that great, imo. I wanted it to be more like the AoE franchise, to be honest. (So this could be some inspiration)
- If an alien world expansion were instead done in a true Age of Empires sense (new techs, new civs, new tech trees, new ages, etc.) without deviating from the AoE gameplay core too much, I think it could be nice.
- Or if alien races aren’t desirable, it could instead be futuristic human civs battling it out on a distant world.