I know there’s the definitive editions, but I don’t think it makes sense to pay $20 for a 25 year old game just for the better graphics when I prefer the simplicity of the old graphics.
Any download I’ve found just doesn’t work on newer graphics drivers. It’s sad to think this game may just be dead and unplayable forever now, lost to time.
Open source clones are appreciated too. I’ve heard of openage, but I don’t think that one’s finished yet, right?
At least with AOE2 DE, the AI saw a pretty big improvement. And the mechanics were updated in minor but impactful ways. Having the ability to queue several research options was one such minor improvement I appreciate. I was skeptical about the Definitive Editions at first too, since I own the originals, but I would consider them worth purchasing.
Now, you could always try using an older computer running a previous version of Windows, but that’ll probably set you back ~$40. I bought a laptop not too long ago and the owner gave me his Windows XP CDs alongside it.
If you’re okay playing different (simpler) RTS game while you weigh your options, I have grown to like The Fertile Crescent quite a lot. The early release version I played on itch clearly had a lot of work left to do, but it has a solid foundation and runs on Linux. You might like it.
Fertile Crescent, that looks pretty cool. Looks like it plays similarly to aoe. I want to know what that massive ziggurat thing does in the trailer. Thanks for the recommendation.