We wanted it so much, we waited so long, we just watched the announcement video with images of old games, we watched the first gameplay footage over and over again, we jumped at every leaked information from The Closed Beta and always asked for more, and that day came at the end of it, dear readers. Or rather, it’s not here yet, it’s still a month away from full release, but thanks to the four-day Stress Test we finally got a chance to sit down and play Age of Empires 4. And before we get started, let me make a public announcement, IT’S BEAUTIFUL, BROTHER.

“Brother, can you extend number 8 for an hour!”

For the purpose of the stress test, we had the chance to fight against other players or artificial intelligence with 4 different nations: the British, the Holy Roman Empire, the Russians and the Chinese. As an archer-loving strategy player, of course, I chose the Englishmen famous for their Long Bowler and entered my first match. That entrance, all of a sudden, in 2008, I ended up in that internet café where I ran away from school and went with my friends, and I ended up in the same chair by the window. I started the game with a town center, villagers waiting for my command, a scout ready to explore, feeling exactly the excitement I felt years ago.

Everything we know is in place, again using sheep, shrubs and fields, collecting food, collecting wood, extracting stones and gold from the mines, building a strong economy with our villagers who run for everything and embarking on a struggle that will last for ages. I’d like to say comfortably that, despite all the innovations it has, Age of Empires 4 is a true Age of Empires game that is true to its roots, that will make you feel that taste you got many years ago.

What an Age of 2.

However, it should not be misunderstood that AoE4 is not a simple copy of the old classics, although it contains the spirit of its predecessors. Relic’s touches to the series and the contribution of the technology that has developed in the intervening years are obvious. First, very useful arrangements were made in terms of gameplay and many mechanics that were a burden to the player were overhauled. Small touches such as automatic placement of fields, lambs running and following your watchman, and the transport of animal carcasses are comforting the player in many ways.

Of course, it should be added that some changes to the old mechanics have caused a conflict among the strict followers of the series. In particular, the fact that the arrows now reach the direct target and it is not possible to escape them with micro control has received a great reaction, but personally I felt that such changes allowed for a much more comfortable and strategy-oriented gameplay by freeing the player from unnecessary micro-control load.

Which is one of the things I’m most pleased with during the beta process in general. Age of Empires 4 makes you feel like you’re playing a real RTS game, but it’s not one that tires you out. I didn’t feel the tension I felt, especially when I was playing Starcraft 2, the stress I experienced when I was trying to perfectly implement the build sequence or do complete micro-control. Of course, similar things will happen in ranked matches, but I think I’ve found the strategy game that I’m going to open up after a tiring day and relieve stress.

RtS gives you scenes like a movie?

The touches made are not just the correction of old mechanics, but rather there are many new mechanics that we imagined many years ago, some of which we wished we had, and some of which we never thought about. Let me give you an example. First, we finally get the archers to the walls, which adds a whole new dimension to the defensive battle. It feels amazing to place archers on carefully planned walls and lead a defense that truly resembles movie scenes. On the other hand, the construction of machines such as rams and siege towers directly by infantry units on the ground when necessary research is carried out adds a nice dynamic to attacks and raids. I also felt that the map is much more lively than in previous games, map control is much more important, but I’m not sure how to explain it, depending on the bonuses of the people under your control, you may need to interact more actively with certain resources on the map.

One of the most curious things about Age of Empires 4 was that I finally had the chance to experience asymmetry between nations. To be honest, there is no radical difference between the gameplay of different nations as much as I would expect, although the difference level has undoubtedly increased many times compared to AoE2, these differences are mostly achieved with the bonuses you will benefit from building your economy and the units you will use to build your armies; For example, when playing with Holy Rome, priests and relics give you serious advantages, while in the English long bowler form the body of your army, but do not expect asymmetry at the level of Starcraft 2 or Company of Heroes. Although I may have felt the same way because the Mongols or Russians, who had more original mechanics in gameplay, were not in the beta.

Well done Relic, sit down, 100

Now to the graphics that have been the subject of serious debate since the first gameplay footage came in. Obviously, AoE4’s “cartoony” graphic style never bothered me, but from what I’ve seen, a slightly more pale and realistic visual structure has been tried to be installed before the open beta, especially with adjustments made at color levels. I can say that I am not a very selective player in this regard and I am satisfied with the visuals in general. I just think the camera angle can be expanded a little bit more, especially when your city exceeds a certain size, it can be difficult to capture where it is. And I’d like to talk about a feature that I like very much; Although I can’t figure out how they designed it, it’s incredibly enjoyable to watch your small village turn into a real medieval city over time, with roads that automatically emerge between buildings. Even when I was expanding the buildings without ever calculating them, completely according to the course of the match, it turned out to be a beautiful city visually.

It will be like squeezing in, but I would also like to add that although the game is in beta version, it is extremely successful in optimization, although I have experienced instant FPS drops from time to time (especially in Age transitions), I have not experienced a stutter or crash that impairs my enjoyment of gameplay. Which will be resolved until the exit process. The Turkish translation, which I did not know existed until I opened beta, was also beautifully translated, and although I tried to return to English with habit at first, I found a very successful translation when I failed and started playing in Turkish.

As a result, this is a very modern, stone-like RTS that smells of Age of Empires, learns from the mistakes of previous games, and has the necessary innovations. Just a few days after the beta, I started counting the days left over to the full version. Were there some shortcomings of the game, serious balance issues? Absolutely yes, it bothered me a little bit, especially not ordering units to patrol between 2 points, but I think none of these are issues that cannot be solved with the next 1 month to exit and the next 2-3 major updates. Moreover, while 22 years of Age of Empires 2 is still receiving updates today, it’s not hard to see how this game will be supported and grown over many years to come.