We love the classic Age of Empires and want its Definitive Edition to thrive since day one. We had written countless posts on this forum with many suggestions for new contents - civilizations, technologies, units, campaigns, etc - since the game were announced. And we continue to do so.
I believe that sometimes I was too ungrateful with the result of the devs dedication in address those concerns. We expect anxiously for an update, but when it comes I use to focus more on the negative aspects of it, like a new function that isn’t working properly, than to celebrate their initiative in improve the game accordingly to our expectations.
There were few times the devs presented us with updates through the game’s history, of course, so the frustration of it surely contributes to this behavior. But the devs are not entirely responsible for the present state of the game. The guys above them from where the orders come from are much more responsible, and it looks like we use to forget that, being unnecessarily severe with the devs. Well, they looked at the amount of work that it’s needed for perfect the game, informed the financial sector, who evaluated how much it would cost and decided that the necessary funding simply is not worth it. In comparison with their profits expectations when new content is produced for Age II or III, the balance may prove even more disadvantageous for Age I.
So, I would like to say that I’m grateful for the improvements the devs brought to the game, even if there is still so much to be done about the bugs, and about the players dreams for the game’s future. The work on the new graphics, music and visual or sound effects is great, and the campaigns feel renewed with the mission reports being voice acted.
I still hope that the boss man will allow them to give the game the attention it deserves. I’m sure there are people at Forgotten Empires that would love to provide for this game development more of their time. On the other hand, the game must have been placed in the refrigerator already, with no perspective of any update any time soon. If that’s the case, an official installment by the devs would be appreciated.
This is a reflection I was having and wanted to exteriorize. What do you guys think on the matter?
If you miss a refreshing old school RTS experience set in ancient history, “The Fertile Crescent” is an amazing indie game in development and I wrote about it here - Great new RTS indie game like the classic Age of Empires. Go and give it a try!