Age of Empires II (Retired) ▶ Trailer
Age of Empires II (Retired) screenshot 1Age of Empires II (Retired) screenshot 2
StrategyRTSMedievalMultiplayerClassicHistorical

1,864 playing

Peak in the last 24 hours: 3,180

Peak in the last 7 days: 3,644

Age of Empires II (Retired) Steam store

Game description

Age of Empires II has been re-imagined in high definition. With the release of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, this product will not be updated further.

Basic info

DeveloperSkybox Labs, Hidden Path Entertainment, Ensemble Studios, Forgotten Empires
PublisherXbox Game Studios
PlatformsWindows
Release dateApr 9, 2013
Price

Prices by IsThereAnyDeal

Minimum specs

OSWindows Vista, 7, 8 Pro+
Processor1.2GHZ CPU
Memory1 GB
GraphicsDirect X 9.0c Capable GPU
Storage2 GB
steamyze

Review Analysis Score

Based on 325 reviews from the past 1 year

89.2/ 100
Top 20%

Steam rating: Overwhelmingly Positive (96%)

Metacritic: 68 /100

Review analysis summary (Reviewed Oct 22, 2026)

Decades after release, this real time strategy classic still scores 89.2, top 20% of games we analyzed. Its complaints center on this retired version rather than the game itself.

👍 Strengths

179 reviews say they still enjoy it, and some call it a true childhood favorite that never gets old. 26 praise its strategic depth, with diverse civilizations, units and tactics to master. 22 enjoy playing with friends, whether as a team or against each other. Content Volume ranks 22nd of 1351, Gameplay ranks 44th of 1396, and Multiplayer ranks 30th of 642.

👎 Where it falls short

9 find the graphics dated, and some prefer the look of the newer edition. 9 note that this version is retired and no longer updated, and a few feel paying owners were treated unfairly. 7 raise price concerns, and some say too much content sits behind paid DLC. Several reviews point players to the newer edition instead. Visuals & Sound ranks 822nd of 1249, and Pricing & Fairness ranks 357th of 1399.

Representative reviews Original reviews ↗

“favorite RTS game still has active players” · 179 reviews
“dozens of viable strategies with diverse civilizations and tactics” · 26 reviews
“very fun playing with friends competitively” · 22 reviews

How it holds up

−50+5

Controls, difficulty, progression and depth
Mentioned in 36% of reviews · Top 5% of the games we've analyzed

Strategy +4.15 · Depth of builds, tactics, and meaningful choices
Positive “dozens of viable strategies with diverse civilizations and tactics” · 26 reviews
Negative “warcrafty elements don't match the classic” · 1 review

Progression 2% · Difficulty 9% · Onboarding 6% · Freedom 3% · Controls & feel 6%

Plot, characters and the world
Mentioned in 13% of reviews · Top 40% of the games we've analyzed

World +3.22 · Lore, atmosphere, and how immersive the setting is
Positive “very realistic world and better execution than the definitive edition” · 9 reviews
Negative “DLC monologue needs more refinement for immersion” · 2 reviews

Story 6% · Characters 0%

How much there is to do, variety and replay value
Mentioned in 17% of reviews · Top 5% of the games we've analyzed

Volume +3.88 · How much there is to play, including endgame, for the price
Positive “200+ hours of campaigns, 35+ civilisations, new modes, challenging campaigns, 10/10” · 3 reviews
Negative “too few campaigns, not friendly for non-PvP players” · 1 review

Variety 5% · Replayability 8%

Graphics, art style, music and sound
Mentioned in 20% of reviews · Bottom 40% of the games we've analyzed

Visuals +2.16 · Graphics, art style, and animation
Negative “graphics are rough by modern standards” · 9 reviews

Audio 6%

Playing with others, the community and servers
Mentioned in 22% of reviews · Top 5% of the games we've analyzed

Playing together +3.90 · Fun of playing with friends, teammates, or rivals
Positive “very fun playing with friends competitively” · 22 reviews
Negative “friendship stress test, cold war begins, fun stops when someone becomes sweatlord” · 4 reviews

Community 4% · Servers & Connection 1%

Pricing, cheaters, balance and matchmaking
Mentioned in 11% of reviews · Top 30% of the games we've analyzed

Balance +0.11 · Whether classes, weapons, and builds are evenly matched
Positive “good balance between economics and tactics” · 3 reviews
Negative “enemy always has million troops while I'm in Dark Age” · 5 reviews

Anti-cheat 0% · Pricing 4% · Matchmaking 2%

Bugs, performance and developer support
Mentioned in 16% of reviews · Top 40% of the games we've analyzed

Developer support -0.03 · Updates, patches, and how devs respond to players
Negative “game retired and relaunched under new name, unfair to paying customers” · 9 reviews

Stability 2% · Performance 5%

Grey means too few reviews mention it to trust. — means almost no reviews mention it.

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