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Age of Empires Online

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games
Age of Empires Online
Age of Empires Online cover
Developers
Robot Entertainment
Gas Powered Games
Publishers
Microsoft Studios
Engines
BANG!
Release dates
Windows August 16, 2011
Taxonomy
Monetization Free-to-play, DLC
Microtransactions Currency
Modes Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing Real-time
Perspectives Isometric
Controls Multiple select, Point and select
Genres RTS
Art styles Cartoon
Themes Africa, Classical, Egypt, Europe, Middle East, Historical
Series Age of Empires
Age of Empires Online on MobyGames
Age of Empires Online on Wikipedia
Age of Empires 1997
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings 1999
Age of Mythology 2002
Age of Empires III 2005
Age of Empires Online 2011
Age of Empires II (2013) 2013
Age of Mythology: Extended Edition 2014
Age of Empires: Castle Siege 2014
Age of Empires: Definitive Edition 2018
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition 2019
Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition 2020
Age of Empires IV 2021
Age of Mythology: Retold TBA

Warnings

For Games for Windows - LIVE on Windows 8 or later, install the latest Games for Windows - LIVE software.
This game requires a constant internet connection for all game modes.

Age of Empires Online was a free-to-play online multiplayer online real time strategy game originally developed by Robot Entertainment until February 24, 2011, when Gas Powered Games took over, and published by Microsoft Studios. Part of the Age of Empires series, the game has players develop an ancient civilization from rise to fall. Players also develop their own capital city for each of the game's six civilizations, all which continue to exist even when offline.

The game was released on August 16, 2011 via Games for Windows - LIVE, with a Steam release on March 27, 2012.

Further game development ceased on January 3, 2013. On August 22, 2013, Microsoft announced that the Games for Windows - LIVE Marketplace would be shut down, only allowing for current or former players to download the game. Servers were shut down on July 1, 2014.[1][2] However, in 2017, Age of Empires Online was revived by an independent development team using Microsoft's publicly-released developer kit for the game in the form of Project Celeste. Re-released using a non-commercial license from Microsoft, it includes all features and functions, including single-player and multiplayer modes, from the original release, plus balance improvements, bug fixes, and new content, which includes the Roman civilization that was previously being developed prior to the game's end of development.

General information

Official website for the series
Official Discord server for the series
Official forums
Steam Community Discussions
Project Celeste Discord

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
Icon overlay.png
Always online (requires a constant internet connection to play)
Windows
Games for Windows Marketplace (unavailable)
Icon overlay.png
[3]
Windows
Steam (unavailable)
Icon overlay.png
Always online (requires a constant internet connection to play)
Windows
All official versions required Games for Windows - LIVE DRM[Note 1] and a constant internet connection for all game modes.
No longer listed on Steam but can be installed by pasting this URL into a web browser: steam://install/105430. Additionally, Project Celeste, which is required to play the game today, provides a standalone version for download.

Monetization

DLC and expansion packs

Name Notes
Premium Egyptian Civilization Pack
Windows
Premium Greek Civilization Pack
Windows
Defense of Crete Booster Pack
Windows
Pro Persian Civilization
Windows
Skirmish Booster Pack
Windows
Premium Celtic Civilization Pack
Windows
Summer Exclusive
Windows
Empires Online Domination Pack
Windows
Pro Civilization Command Pack
Windows
Steam Starter Pack
Windows
Celebration Grab Bag
Windows
Empire Booster Bundle
Windows

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Spartan\Users2\NewProfile2.xml
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/105430/pfx/[Note 2]

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
Steam Cloud

Video

Video settings.
Video settings.

Graphics feature State WSGF Notes
Widescreen resolution
Multi-monitor
Ultra-widescreen
4K Ultra HD
Field of view (FOV)
Windowed
Toggle in settings or with Alt+ Enter.
Borderless fullscreen windowed
Set resolution in-game then toggle in settings or with Alt+ Enter.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
Anti-aliasing (AA)
Choice of Off, Low or High.
Vertical sync (Vsync)
60 FPS and 120+ FPS
High dynamic range display (HDR)
See the glossary page for potential alternatives.
Color blind mode
UI options, Friend or Foe Colors; player is blue, allies yellow, enemies red.

Input

Audio

Audio settings.
Audio settings.

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
SFX, Ambient and Music.
Surround sound
Subtitles
Dialogue is text-based.
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
Always mutes (no option to override).
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
Some incidental dialogue, but is otherwise text-based.
Traditional Chinese
French
German
Italian
Spanish

Network

Official release required a Microsoft account (local profiles were not supported).
Project Celeste account required for online play today.

Multiplayer types

Type Native Notes
LAN play
Online play
Official servers have been shut down; Project Celeste required to play the game today.

Connection types

Type Native Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
All player-vs-player matches are peer-to-peer.[4]
Dedicated
Self-hosting
Direct IP

Issues fixed

Crash to desktop when loading

For some players the game may crash to the desktop after loading.
Task-switch while loading game[citation needed]
  1. Run the game.
  2. Switch away from the game window with Alt+Tab .
  3. Wait for the game to load in the background.
  4. Return to the game when it finishes loading (background music will start playing).

"Missing a valid product key" or "Enter the product key for your game" prompt

Install Marketplace client[5]
  1. Install the Games for Windows Marketplace Client.
  2. Run it and sign in with the same account you are using to play Age of Empires Online.
  3. Run Age of Empires Online and you should now skip the product key step.
  4. If you are still prompted for a product key, open the Marketplace client and do the following:
  5. Click Downloads at the top, then choose Full Games on the sidebar.
  6. Click on Age of Empires Online, then click on View Game Keys.
  7. Enter the LIVE Access Code shown into the game. It should accept the key and continue normally.
Accept new license agreement[citation needed]
  1. Sign into Xbox.com and accept the new licence agreement.
  2. The game should now no longer ask for the product key.

Game doesn't start after clicking Play (no error message)

Install Games for Windows Marketplace Client[citation needed]

Install the Games for Windows Marketplace Client.

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
Direct3D 9.0c
Shader Model support 2.0
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows

System requirements

Windows
Minimum
Operating system (OS) XP SP3, Vista, 7
Processor (CPU) Dual Core, 2 GHz or higher
System memory (RAM) 1 GB (XP, Vista Home Basic); 1.5 GB (Vista Premium/Ultimate, 7 32-bit); 2.5 GB (7 64-bit)
Hard disk drive (HDD) 5 GB
Video card (GPU) 128 MB of VRAM
Shader model 2 support
Other Broadband internet connection

Notes

  1. Games for Windows - LIVE DRM features: SSA activation, requires a Microsoft account - local profiles are not supported.
  2. File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/105430/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (105430) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.

References