The original model of the building is already so small to begin with, and the actual building part takes so little space, but the ‘yard’ is so huge for some reason. I mean, who’s the ‘protagonist’ of this building? the ‘yard’, or the actual house?
Stable should be the worst one, that the paddock takes like 70% of the space and the actual stable is only 25%. It feels like AoE2’s flat building/short walls mod, except it’s the standard now and everyone is being forced to use it.
Like many other art choices in AoE4, It must be an intentional choice of design for competitive / E-sport scene, with less concern for visual appeal for general audiences.
Yes, in fact each game has its own charisma… and each has its loyal fanbase… none is better or worse than the others, but simply different, because they have different historical periods and different mechanics that people may like more or less…
Yes, you can also choose one and put it there and have it build itself…in AoE 3 it’s the same with Asian civs…it’s just a matter of getting used to it…
Yes, the buildings are very small, they would have to be bigger or make the units smaller…
I play AoE II on Xbox Series S and I have beaten the AoE IV campaigns a couple of times, but not DLC. In the future, if I can afford to, I would like to play AoE IV on a more powerful system, and get all the campaign DLCs. I’ll even try the multiplayer but I’ve always been a little bit allergic to multiplayer matches in any genre of game lol.
Edit: I really like the sounds when groups of units are moving, the mountable walls, and the overall feel of AoE IV.
My biggest issue with AoE4 are variant civs.
Even though i prefer AoE2 DE model i was considering buying AoE4 and playing it for fun but then they introduced those new amazing factions…
If that’s what you want then fine, but please don’t implement that in AoE2 DE
I have a big problem with the graphic style. Never liked it. And it’s not so much the 3D graphics, I spent many hours with Dawn of War or Warcraft 3 and many others. It’s really the style of the models.
To be fair the difference in the faction design of AOE 2 is not much different from that of the variant civs in 4.
Civs In AOE 2 share the same base tech tree, many share the same architectures and skins. Besides some bonuses and a unique unit, the Civs in AOE 2 are mostly variations on each other.
There is actually more difference between the French and the Knights templar variant in IV than there is between say the Franks and the Teutons in AOE 2.
This is not a bad thing necessarily, I prefer AOE 2 overall. Some of the IV civs seem to just have gimmicks for the sake of diference.
While I do enjoy IV, I strongly dislike it’s golden helmets.
I agree with your point about civs difference. Imo it also gives way more possibilities for other civ to be interesting and competitive without adding gimmicks only for the newest civs. Maybe in AoE2 DE some of old civs should get some new mechanics
What i also like about AoE4 is the arab split into Ayyubids and Abbasids.
I just can’t get over variant civs…
I don’t like it nearly as much. Not many surprises, it’s all been said before for the most part. But, yeah, the graphics, UI, and zoom are a few big things I don’t like. Gameplay and battles, though, too.
My thoughts...
* Graphics: Muddy, uninspiring colors. Feels low resolution graphics. Not much or anything stands out as being "wow" for me, unfortunately. Felt a little dated in this regard even at launch. I'm not a fan of how my town looks after building it, with every building looking very similar and each building getting a postage stamp of property around it with miscellaneous clutter in an attempt to make it look realistic. All that just makes the game harder to read, imo. For an RTS, readability is pretty important.
* UI: I constantly have to pause and think, "Is this icon showing gold, or wood?"... or "is this just a simplistic lookout tower, or is this a stone guard tower?" "Is this archer buff tech, or infantry buff tech?" To name a few. Things like that are constant for me with the choice to do the monochromatic, silhouette, stylistic UI.
* Audio: Is quite good for the most part, but I'm not into the highly talkative units. I want concise acknowledgements or sounds from units that I click. I don't need them giving me a 10-page soliloquy or having a big conversation with me every time I click them. In fact, I hope they don't talk to me directly as that just breaks the 4th wall. Their chatty nature, even if they're not talking directly to me, breaks the 4th wall for me and is why I don't like it.
* Military engagements lack the fun and tightness, imo, that AoE2 has. A0E4 skirmishes feel like a blurry 'blah' (for lack of better wording right now) instead of tight, strategic, responsive skirmishes. I feel I have more direct and engaging control over my military in AoE2, which translates to 'funner' for me. If I lose a skirmish in AoE4, it feels like the macro dice rolls behind-the-scenes just didn't go my way. If I lose a skirmish in AoE2, I feel more directly responsible. PS: Siege units are incredibly weak in AoE4. They explode almost on contact from a few horses.
That's just some of my personal observations. The game had potential, and still does... but it's been almost four years. I'm pretty much ready for an AoE5 if it can be done better
I’ve never played AoE4—only watched games—and never felt any urge to try it. I didn’t like the camera angle, and the units looked bland, emotionless, and cartoonish to me. It just didn’t charm me the same way AoE2 does.
You don’t just play an RTS to win in a cold, calculated manner like chess. You also play for the ambiance, the charm, the fun of controlling the units, and the emotions they provide.
Even if I had never played AoE2 before, I’d still be more tempted to control the unit on the left rather than the one on the right. There’s just no emotion or distinctness in the right picture.
That’s actually one of the things I think AOE IV does really well, the audio design is really nice. The extra animations the troops have for running, charging, walking. Warcrys as they charge into battle, cheers after defeating the enemy. It has a lot of little touches that make it feel a little more alive to me.
I really like the little graphical embellishments around the buildings as you place them, gardens and paths.
It has its downsides too though. I do think the UI design is extremely bland, and it does feel more gamey than historical in a lot of places. There are so many unit buff auras that I can’t stand the sight of, sometimes feels more like a tv sports program than historical battles.
Oh yeah, camera angle isn’t my favorite either. I usually forget to mention that with my ‘zoom level is too close’ comment.
I wish the camera could be made more orthographic, as well. That could be awesome
The cam zoom and perspective should be made easily moddable for unranked games. Like ‘small trees’ in AoE2 which is actually allowed in ranked games there, it would be a QoL thing here
Ortho cam would probably be harder (less likely to be made moddable), but it would be nice
