Age of Empires: Castle Siege

Age of Empires: Castle Siege is a spin-off of the famous Age of Empires series. It is a free-to-play real-time strategy game with optional microtransactions. It was developed by Smoking Gun Interactive, and debuted simultaneously on Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone.

The Plot

The game takes place in the Middle Ages, and the players can choose from a few historic factions to play as. Each of them has their own unique buildings, units, and heroes. Castle Siege focuses mainly on multiplayer, but the developers also created a single player campaign that consists of a series of missions not connected by any plotline. Additonally, the game also offers scenarios inspired by famous historical battles, like the Siege of Malbork or Fall of Constantinopole.

Mechanics

When it comes to game mechanics, Age of Empires: Castle Siege is visibly different than the rest of the games from the famous series. Istead of a complex real-time strategy game we get a game more similarto mobile and web games such as DomiNations, Empires & Allies, or Clash of Clans. The gameplay has two core elements, the first being thestrategic one. In it, we gather resources, research technology, construct buildings, walls, and defence structures such as watchtowers. Battles are the second one. We use our armies to attack A.I. or player controlled strongholds. This aspect of gamplay was noticeably simplified, and the results of our battles are mainly dependant on what units we have used in combat. When we win, we receive the resources the defeated players or A.I. gathered in their valuts and garners.

Misc.

Smoking Gun Interactive implemented some new elements to the successful formula, with the available factions being one of them. Additionally, the players can control movment of their units during combat, which is quite unusual, as similar games only allow to choose where the army should go on the map. Age of Empires: Castle Siege offers beautiful, stylzied, 3D visuals. Castle Siege offers a crossplay option between the Windows and Windows Phone users.

Last updated on 02 September 2014