Cinematic Tab in Scenario Editor is Broken

Age of Empires II: DE II - Report a Bug
1

:arrow_forward: GAME INFORMATION

  • **GAME BUILD: Version 101.103.2359.0 (#133431) 17001014
  • **GAME PLATFORM: Steam
  • **OPERATING SYSTEM: Windows 11

:arrow_forward: ISSUE EXPERIENCED

The cinematic tab on the scenario editor doesn’t work.

I select a pregame video file, but then I start the scenario, the video does not play. I have also tried to use the video file that comes with the game, but that doesn’t work either.

Maybe the video file is in the wrong folder?
The path I’m using to store my video file is:
Steam/Steamapps/common/AoE2DE/resources/_common/movies

:arrow_forward: FREQUENCY OF ISSUE

Issue is persistent. Video files do not play when selected.

  • 100% of the time / matches I play (ALWAYS)

:arrow_forward: REPRODUCTION STEPS

Here’s the steps to reproduce the issue:

  1. Edit any scenario
  2. Go to the cinematic tab
  3. add a pregame video
  4. start the scenario.

:arrow_forward: EXPECTED RESULT

Video file should play when the scenario starts

:arrow_forward: IMAGE

Screenshot 2025-02-16 164347
Screenshot 2025-02-16 1643471906×1073 311 KB

2

I’ve found some information about the original game’s Scenario Editor here:
https://aok.heavengames.com/university/other/adding-pre-game-and-post-game-cinematics-to-your-scenario/

They were quite specific about the compatible video format, recommending a Video Compression Tool (Indeo Video Compressor), which is no longer available or runnable on modern Windows. I’m not sure how much the Scenario Editor has been improved for the Definitive Edition, or whether this information is still relevant.

If you’re desperate to get a video working, I’d recommend setting up a Windows 98 virtual machine and running the Indeo setup there. I’ve found several sites offering an “iv5setup.exe” that appears to include the necessary tools. Otherwise, you might wait until a Custom Scenario veteran sees this - perhaps they can provide more up-to-date guidance.

Update: Unfortunately, Indeo encoders are no longer available or included in iv5setup. However, I found a video using that codec here:
https://samples.mplayerhq.hu/V-codecs/IV50/ (MSLOGO.AVI)

When placed in the HD Edition’s Scenario Editor, it plays correctly once you add the scenario to a campaign and run it. In the Definitive Edition, however, it doesn’t play at all. This confirms that the cinematic tab in the DE Scenario Editor seems to be broken, just as you described.

Additionally, I couldn’t add a Scenario Instruction Map. The file included with the game, scenariobkg.bmp, doesn’t even appear in DE, though it does in HD.

Warning: Please be extremely cautious when attempting to download or install Indeo Video Codecs. Many executables contain malware—I became a victim of this while searching for information on this bug report.

3

I can confirm this. I had to make a single scenario campaigm in order to display instructions, history, scouts and victory.
Curiously, the defeat screen works