Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition

Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition for PC is the twentieth anniversary re-release of the real time strategy game which retains all the charm and popularity of the original release, but combines it with twenty years’ worth of improvements to the gaming world: ultra-high definition graphics, vastly improved gameplay and visuals and four new civilisations as well as a new single-player campaign called The Last Khans.

About the Game

The major change in the programming can be found in a curious choice that players must make early in the game: whether or not to opt for the old AI as an opponent or to go for the new AI, an updated version designed specifically for the Definitive Edition release.

You may think that there should not be any real difference between the two, but the old AI was built literal generations ago when it comes to video gaming advances, and it actually needed to cheat in order to win! This was no doubt frustrating – and may still be so should you choose this option!

The new AI is sophisticated enough and has enough computing power not to need to cheat, which means that if the player is defeated, it is at least an honest win on the part of the CPU! However, a little caveat: when the two types of AI were played against each other, the new one easily defeated the old, so perhaps a canny player with ingenuity – and some luck – can beat the old system more easily than the new! The only way to find out is to try it both ways.

A few systems have been tweaked to make the game more streamlined, such as being able to leave villagers in charge of farms – so there is no longer any need to return every season and tell them what to do, your farms will just replenish themselves at a steady rate. Pathfinding and managing large armies is also improved, with intuitive pathfinding coming into its own, so you can march along without any headaches while expanding your empire.

Four New Civilisations

The four new civilisations mentioned above are as follows:

• Bulgarians: These warlike cavalry-based soldiers advanced on the Danube valley in the 7th century, bringing with them not just domesticated horses, but stirrups that potentially changed the face of war in ancient Europe. Build forts, advance through passes, fend off invaders and attackers and take great pride in your Konnik warriors who fight first on horseback, and then on foot, and very probably from the ground as they take their dying breaths.

• Cumans: Nomadic tribes whose animal husbandry in the inhospitable reaches of the coldest steppes made them both feared and admired throughout the region, the fearsome, horse-back riding troops can be deployed against nearby cities to gain loot, power and territory, or they can be hired out as mercenaries to the highest bidder, fighting bloody battles to the death and boosting the reputation of anyone who has them under their command!

• Lithuanians: Band together the shy and secretive Baltic peoples who live in the swampy and dangerous lands into a fearsome and impressive army, under the name of the largest Duchy to be seen in late medieval Europe. Individually imposing, an army of these warlike people is a sight to cause even the bravest kings to quail!

• Tatars: Fly across the plains of central Asia and Mongolia with your Great Khan as leader, riding horses as easily as walking on your own feet, wearing arrow proof armour made, almost magically, from smooth silk, attacking, retreating and advancing with a speed and mobility that modern armies would genuinely envy, against enemies who are unprepared and disbelieving of the Tatar skills in combat.

Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition for PC is available for purchase on Instant Gaming for a fraction of its retail price. You will receive an official key and be able to play the game in seconds. Play smart. Pay less.