Ever since the first screenshots of Age of Empires: Definitive Edition have been released into the wild, one of the most frequently asked questions has been: “Is this a 2D game or a 3D game?”. Our art team took the question as a compliment, as the game is in fact 2D, just like the original Age of Empires. Let’s take a closer look.
Wait, this game looks 3D?
It certainly does look 3D! In our work to bring Age of Empires to modern devices, we used the same 2 dimensional isometric engine that is so recognisable from the original Age of Empires and Age of Empires II games. When we started development on Age of Empires: Definitive Edition, we started building further on this original engine as well. Modern tricks on top of the recognizable 2D engine results in a 3D look, but it’s still 2D at heart.
What’s happening is that we’re creating all our units, buildings and trees as 3D models, but then render them out as 2D images. This means that what you see in the game is what you get. What is behind a building doesn’t exist, because it is not rendered out đ But the units can certainly rotate for you. And even more than originally!
Where the original units would only turn in 8 directions, units now try to path their way through the game showcasing 32 directions. Which certainly does a lot in making the game feel 3D, while still staying 2D!
This doesn’t mean however that the game does not use 3D effects at all. While being 2D at heart, graphics have come a long way since 1997 and 3D effects have found their way into 2D games. The water effect in Age of Empires: Definitive Edition is the best example of this. Instead of the original white pixels that would occasionally sparkle, we now have crashing waves, boat reflections and schools of fish gently wandering about, oblivious to the carnage that’s unfolding above them.
Zooming in/out
Another great feature of Age of Empires: Definitive Edition is the fact that you can zoom in and out of the game. Now, how is that possible on 2D assets without exploding into a pixel storm? By adding “Zoom Levels“. Basically, every asset in the game has been rendered 3 times. This way, the game can be displayed crisp and clear in every supported resolution. From HD all the way up to 4K (and beyond)!
Click on the image to see it in crisp 4K quality!
On top of that, buildings now have beautiful destruction animations. All rendered out in 60FPS to give you the feeling that you’re truly sacking Rome.
This also explains why the game is such an incredibly large download (17GB!) compared to the original (300MB). With all graphical novelties combined, the new upgraded Trireme graphics are as big as the complete original game. But hey, now we go in 32 directions, we can zoom in from HD to 4K and beyond, we have sails that play nicely in the wind and the crew can gaze at themselves in the reflections on the water.
Now, you might still recognise the buildings pictured above from the original Age of Empires, and we’re very happy you do! In the end, this is was our main task when overhauling the graphics, making them look appealing yet recognisable. Filling in the gaps that your imagination dreamed up over the past 20 years so to speak đ
We hope you’ll enjoy the new look in Age of Empires: Definitive Edition!
I love it!
“Enjoy” is an understatement.
The game looks superb. A big thank you from the bottom of my heart to the whole team, specially to how beautifully you guys managed to treat your historical legacy, which happens to be in some way part ours as well.
I bow in respect.
Looking forward to the 20th :))
tis is only woow Im totally amazed!
I wish it runs on my pc like AOE original edition <3
I wish and I did it… âşď¸
And yeah it runs on my pc but lags a lil bit…
That is absolutely amazing!
“schools of fish gently wandering about, oblivious to the carnage thatâs unfolding above them”
No fish AI in 2018 smh
What kind of software do you use to create the models, textures and to create the sprites with that nice look?
I want to create game art like this, too. But I don’t know which tools are used to produce them.
Nice work! Thanks for working at that game. đ
Game is looking superb for sure but because I’m on Windows 7 I won’t be able to play it, Windows 7 is still supported until at least 2020 so there is no reason for this Windows 10 exclusivity. In addition… still waiting for a Steam release, not happy that Microsoft have decided to pull an EA here.
I would appreciate an option to download the 4K+ assets separately for a smaller base install size, but I guess that would be something that has to be supported on the Microsoft Store side before it can be implemented by you.
PS. The destructions look really satisfying XD