Customer Reviews

Age of Wonders

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This game is going to be on my hard drive for a long, long time. The only thing it lacks is a random map generator, which I think will be added in a patch or an add-on later. If you're a turn-based strategy fan, this game is a must have. It blows Heroes of Might and Magic (an already superb series) out of the water with more detail, better combat, and just plain better everything (even better MUSIC, which was very hard to beat!).

If you don't love this game, you're not a gamer. (Either that or you're just a twitch gamer, which is allmost as bad. :-)

In all my years of PC gaming, this is my favorite turn-based game (tops Master of Magic and even X-COM! those two games held the "longest on hard drive" awards up until this one came along, and I know it will unseat them). It might actually be my favorite game of all time, bar-none, but that remains to be seen in the test of time.

Buy this.

This is the most recent turn-based fantasy strategy game and is arguably the best of them. The game includes two full campaigns (choose between good guys and baddies) and several single scenarios. You control one main hero with the option to recruit units and secondary heroes. Each race you control has 4 levels of units unique to each race. Heroes improve through experience in the campaign, gaining spells, higher stats and unique abilities. Units can also improve gaining better stats with experience. Heroes, units and magic items are carried forward to the next scenario subject to a points maximum. Unlike Heroes of Might and Magic, your heroes actually fight in battles (finally!). If you liked Master of Magic or the Heroes of Might and Magic series, you'll love this game.

The good parts: Multiple races (all controllable through capture even from opposite alignments). Simple intuitive interface. Deep strategic battles, where each unit has srong and weak points. Improveable heroes with spells, magic artifacts, and a large number of unique skills. Units and Heroes carry forward to the next scenario you get to select which ones. Superb replay value (many races to play, two branching campaigns, scenario editor included). Rock-solid stability (haven't had a crash since I installed it a month ago)

The bad parts: If you didn't have much of a life before, you'll have even less after you buy this game.

I bought "Age of Wonders" when it first came out. The game, in my opinion, is the best computer fantasy war game that has ever been made. With the option of twelve different races and seven different spheres of magic, there is definitely plenty of diversity and replay value in this game. The spell effects are charming, and the musical score is beautiful. The single player campaign has a great story line, and the multi-player aspect of the single scenarios is well developed. Heroes are very customizable, and if you so choose, you can actually have a hero represent you on the playing field as well (though if you die, you lose). There is only one thing that I would change about the game and that is some of the unit icons; to be honest, the artwork on some of the icons is a little lacking like they were rushing to get this product out the gates. All in all, "Age of Wonders" is an awesome game, and I am definitely looking forward to "Age of Wonders 2".

I'm in no way a hardcore gamer. Just an average teen who has an interest in turn based strategy and fantasy.

If you never played the very much talked about MoM on this page, and are intending to buy AoW, then I can tell you that it's extremely good. Don't tell me to buy MoM, 'cause I'm satisfied with AoW. Plus, my pocket money doesn't stretch that far.

What is Age of Wonders? Age of Wonders is a turn-based game combining the best elements of strategy, adventure and role-playing. It features 12 unique fantasy races, over 50 different heroes with upgradable abilities, dozens of spells and scores of locations to explore. In this game of conquest, players employ strategic and tactical skills to command troops in capturing vital locations and defeating enemies in a captivating single player campaign or compete with friends in multi-player scenarios.

It's blurb: Welcome to the Age of Wonders, once a time of magic and peace. An age swept into the ravaging gale of chaos by the arrival of a single, uninvited race: the Humans. The fragile balance that existed between the ancient races, Elves, Dwarves, Orcs and others, has changed into a struggle for power and survival in the wake of the turmoil the Humans have brought to the land. Prepare for an adventure where you will uncover wondrous ancient artifacts, awesome magical power, and the secrets of a shattered empire. Ally with the forces of light or darkness to determine the fate of the earth in the AGE OF WONDERS!

Well, that's my piece. AoW is definitely worth it!

For those of you saying this game is basically a rehash of Master of Magic I don't know what game it is you think you've been playing. While Age of Wonders is a very good game and I do reccomend buying it, if you are expecting a game with the raw amount of possibilities that were present in Master of Magic you will be dissapointed. There aren't even half the spells available, you can't create magic items for your characters, the units for each race are basically the same and the number of varrying units isn't very great, and no random map games. The other thing that really bothered me is that since there are no random map games you have to play all pre-generated scenarios which force you to pick from a select number of races and follow a set goal for the scenario.

But, on the whole, the game is good, just don't go into it expecting a game very close to Master of Magic. Oh yea, and here's to Microprose to make a sequel to Master of Magic. =)

This game is plain fun! The atmosphere and graphics are compelling (if you remember it is a game), there is room for story telling in the game, the AI is decent, you have 12 sides to choose from, loads of magical spells (the effects are fun!), ships, the whole nine yards.

I love that you get a game editor with it and can create your own magic items and heroes and story-line. The game is very well balanced and involves actual strategy.

The simplified economy is a BIG PLUS over MOM which was micromanagement hell and why I gave it up eventually.

There are little details of hte game that go pretty deep, such as the weaponry needed to hit a Wraith or a Dragon, how the alignments and races interact and sometimes desert your army, how best to attack a fortified and walled-in town (loads of fun), choice between tactical and strategic combat. And overall, it flows just so much smoother than MOM ever did. I actually get lost in the story and details much more than I did at MOM, and the AI is not as much of a push-over as the MOM AI was if oyu factor out cheating...

I can't believe I overlooked this game and glad I found it!

This is simply a great game. Easy to learn but lots of play value. Combinations of strategies make it sort of a "rock, paper, scissors" game where no unit (except maybe for heroes) can always beat any other unit. Hero development also has a new twist bringing ability development closer to role-playing games. Simply a great game!

First of all, let me say that I this is one of my favorite fantasy/strategy turn based wargame of all times. The game offers plenty of diversity with twelve races each of which has contains it's own unique units. Granted that there are units in each race that are roughly the same like the swordsman, but each swordsman has slightly different statistics that makes it different from a swordsman of a different race. There are over 100 spells split into seven different spheres, and the spells have great animations that I never grow tired of watching. Heroes in the game are very customizable so that no two heroes need to be the same as often found in other games of this type. Game play/control is not complex and is easily learned. The musical score is enchanting and very well done. Graphics are excellent; the landscape is simply beautiful. There is only one problem that I have with the graphics and that is that the unit figures leave a little to be desired. All in all... this is one of the best games I have played in a long time. Few games can keep my attention for extended periods of time, and this is definitely one of those games.

Although it may not be the most innovative or the most expansive game on the market, Age of Wonders captivates the hearts of gamers withits solid tried-and-true gameplay. Even if the game borrows details from several others, it just improves so much on the gameplay that it's hard not smile. While the game lacks any randomness, it captures the old-school feeling of true feudalism. The color palette is fantastic and I was surprised at the superior quality of the music - excellent, to say the least. The units are well-balanced, and despite the low number of different unit types the game allows for a fascinating amount of strategy, unlike the other games which mainly specialize in getting as many units, items, and characters on-screen as fast as possible.

Even if a game doesn't fill your screen with glittering effects, or doesn't offer you fifteen billion different customizable units doesn't exactly mean that it cannot be excellent. Age of Wonders is.

If you're into the whole "middle-earth" atmosphere (like me), then you're sure to love this strategy game. In addition to a myriad of scenarios and campaign options, this game boasts a wonderful, "Tolkeinite" style story (complete with briefings and journal entries to urge the plot along) and race/character descriptions that anyone who is a little obsessive should love.

It's also a game for people who aren't strategy game pros because it's not that hard to master and anyone with some common sense could figure it out.

I personally love the often complex maps on which the scenarios/campaigns are played on. The gameplay is quite fun with it's alternating turns and automatic/tactical battle options. Just an overall neat game.

P.S. The music is lovely, too!