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[64bitmodels]

I wanna try out these strategy games that PC is so well known for but i don't know which one to start with, there's civilization 6 and Age of Empires 2 that i wanna play. Which one is better? I'm leaning towards Civ 6 as it's on sale for 6 dollars til April 17.

 

[Antwix]

Really hard to say which is "better". Sure, they're both strategy games but one is completely real-time and one is turn-based. That being said, AoE is much easier to understand for a brand new player.

EDIT: regarding price, AoE2 goes on sale quite a bit for $5 on steam.

 

[Henry Panic]

I wanna try out these strategy games that PC is so well known for but i don't know which one to start with, there's civilization 6 and Age of Empires 2 that i wanna play. Which one is better? I'm leaning towards Civ 6 as it's on sale for 6 dollars til April 17.

Black & White or Panzer Zwei is where you should start.

 

[Unknown?]

Rise of Nations!

 

[ThatStupidLion]

Brood war and Heroes of might and magic 3 is where you should start

 

[64bitmodels]

EDIT: regarding price, AoE2 goes on sale quite a bit for $5 on steam.

Definitive edition or 2013 release?

 

[Hoppa]

AoE for me. I never had a PC growing up so first tried these games an adult. Civ just has so many menus and windows and text descriptions I just never felt engaged enough to properly get into it

 

[brian0057]

Age of Empires for me and it's not even close.
I grew up with this series and it's one of my favorite franchises ever.

 

[SeraphJan]

This is apple vs orange

For me its Civilization, deeper mechanic for Single player

Age of Empire IMO is best played multiplayer

 

[Antwix]

Definitive edition or 2013 release?

Definitive edition. Although I just looked at the price history and it doesn't often go that low. Usually around $6-8 though.

 

[GladiusFrog]

Been in love with Civilization since I was a young lad, I love the sense of scale and longevity of the games.

Ayy lmao, where is Civilization VII?

 

[vaibhavpisal]

Umm, both are hard to get into. Civ 6 more so than AOE. Both are awesome when you get them.

Start with an RTS game that still has a community. Single player they are not so much fun. Then if you like it then consider 4X games like Civ.

 

[LRKD]

I've never played Civ, it always seemed like a very different game from AoE, and didn't look like I would enjoy it. I love AoE and it's rip offs though, they're good fun!

 

[Tams]

I prefer Age of Empires, but it fell of a cliff far harder than Civilization did.

 

[flying_sq]

Civ can be fun, but it takes up way too much of my time, I would play a game in between playing other games. I've been playing AOE since the launch of AOE2, the custom maps people made were awesome back then. Today I think it has become like Starcraft MP, most of the people who still play it are way too into it, and are all about the "meta". If you want something more laid back, AOE3, plus the campaign is pretty fun. I have AOE2DE, and I don't really play that much. I think I played enough of it when it was new. Plus it's kind of disappointing seeing the graphics today.
HOWDOISTARTTHISTHING

 

[Shubh_C63]

If you haven't played AoE then why not try Warcraft 3 or Starcraft 2 MP(free). WC3 is really costly now.

 

[Rentahamster]

Better is subjective. Age of Empires 2 is super old, dude. Did you mean to say Age of Empires 4?

Civ is known to be very addictive and it's my personal favorite, but I like both series. The real question you should ask yourself is -

Do you like turn based strategy better? If so, get Civ.
Do you like RTS better? If so, get AoE.

 

[The_Mike]

Try a free GP month or cheap month or whatever.

You can play both games there.
I bought civ cheap dirt now even though its on gamepass.

Civ is the better game, but it suffers alot on console. On pc you can move your mouse over the different rewards from research, but you lack alot of info on consoles so I can imagine it can be hard to learn there.

 

[BennyBlanco]

I adore both series but if I had to choose, Civ

 

[amigastar]

I'm all for Civilization VI. Never could get into RTS games. Turn based games are just so damn relaxing and fun.

 

[MadPanda]

Brood war and Heroes of might and magic 3 is where you should start

You're a man of great tastes. I wish we could get a remaster or a remake of homm3.

 

[MadPanda]

OP, civilization is amazing when you play it online, but offline it gets boring pretty quickly as AI isn't good at all.

I used to play aoe a lot back in the day and loved it, but haven't played it for years so can't comment on its current state.

 

[diffusionx]

They're totally different games. Decide first if you want to play turn-based or real-time, and then play Civ 6 if the former and Age if the latter.

 

[The_Mike]

I'm all for Civilization VI. Never could get into RTS games. Turn based games are just so damn relaxing and fun.

Until you meat gandhi.

 

[Unknown?]

Until you meat gandhi.

You have to turn Gandhi into steak?

 

[Rentahamster]

To help your decision, here are some content creators that I personally find entertaining for each game.

AoE4

https://www.youtube.com/@BeastyqtSC2

https://www.youtube.com/@AussieDrongo

Civ 6

https://www.youtube.com/@UrsaRyan

https://www.youtube.com/@boesthius

https://www.youtube.com/@PotatoMcWhiskey

 

[InterMusketeer]

Civ 6 is complex but also pretty chill. It's turn-based so you can take your time and weigh your options. AoE is more action packed, but also demands more from the player. You should learn hotkeys, build orders etc. and all of it needs to be done quickly if you want to survive against harder AIs or players.

I like both, but play Civ more. It doesn't require constant attention so you can play while watching videos or something. Civ also has a fantastic soundtrack.

 

[winjer]

Do you prefer turn based 4X?
Or do you prefer an RTS?

 

[The_Mike]

You have to turn Gandhi into steak?

Yeah he's well done at 300.000 degrees which is around the hottest spot in a detonated nuclear bomb

 

[Fart Knight]

C&C remastered.

 

[64bitmodels]

Do you like RTS better? If so, get AoE.

only RTS i have played is pikmin if that counts..I do think real time will be more fun, if not because i already know so many turnbased strategies. I'll hold off and wait until AoE2 goes on a deep sale then. thanks everyone!!

Better is subjective. Age of Empires 2 is super old, dude. Did you mean to say Age of Empires 4?

Sequels tend to be the best in the franchise... is AoE4 superior to AOE2 though?

 

[Rentahamster]

only RTS i have played is pikmin if that counts..I do think real time will be more fun, if not because i already know so many turnbased strategies. I'll hold off and wait until AoE2 goes on a deep sale then. thanks everyone!!

Hard to go wrong for 6 dollars. I hope you enjoy it. Looking at my Steam stats, I have 1,000 hours on Civilization 5, and 2,000 hours on Civilization 6 lmfao. Are you getting just the base game or all the DLC expansions too? I like all of the DLC, but it might be a little overwhelming if you start a new game with everything enabled. Whether or not you buy all the DLC too, I might suggest that you try to play a few vanilla games first and figure things out a little before enabling the DLCs that expand the gameplay mechanics.

Sequels tend to be the best in the franchise... is AoE4 superior to AOE2 though?

AoE2 was amazing for its time, and there are still many people playing it, but I think AoE4 is overall a better game for modern times.

 

[Agent_Nobody]

A lot of RTS is strategized around straight up speed with efficient build orders and never wasting time (if you’re waiting for something and not doing anything and it’s not the beginning of the game you’re doing something wrong).

4x games are much more laid back.

 

[LordOfChaos]

Age of Mythology, biatch

Of those I'll go with Empires, like the real time element more than turn based

 

[Agent_Nobody]

Could always go with the best of both worlds with a Total War game.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

I prefer Ages but different games

With how low I have seen prices my choice would be

 

[IDKFA]

Civ and it's not even close. AoE is an average at best RTS and Civ is one of the greatest strategy franchises ever made.

Anybody who says AoE has no taste and/or doesn't understand Civ.

 

[The Stig]

totally different games. I like both.

 

[ChoosableOne]

I prefer Civ but not the latest one. They are very different games though. If you like fast, competitive mp games pick age of. If you can manage to getgud with it, it's great and satisfying. If you have time(2-3 days for just one playthrough) and like turn based games, go with Civ, preferably 3-4-5.

 

[xpresstuning]

Sequels tend to be the best in the franchise... is AoE4 superior to AOE2 though?

Nope. AoE II: Definitive Edition is much more polished, but that's because it's on its second remaster and had like 20+ years of refinements. It's basically eternal at this point and is one of, if not the best real-time strategy games ever made. It's also far more popular than any AoE game, including the 4th one. Overall, it's a much better game to start with. So if you must pick one real-time strategy game to start with, it's AoE II: Definitive Edition.

Civilization 6 is a completely different genre. Haven't played it since it released because it consumed my time completely, dunno how it fares today. But i know it's a good starting point.

Pick both at your leisure.

 

[Sakura]

AoE2 personally.
Civ is basically just a board game.

AoE2 was amazing for its time, and there are still many people playing it, but I think AoE4 is overall a better game for modern times.

Maybe you aren't aware of AoE 2 Definitive Edition? It only came out a few years ago and has already received 3 new expansions, with a 4th one, Return of Rome, currently in the works. It's a pretty active game, even more so than AoE4.

 

[Rentahamster]

Maybe you aren't aware of AoE 2 Definitive Edition? It only came out a few years ago and has already received 3 new expansions, with a 4th one, Return of Rome, currently in the works. It's a pretty active game, even more so than AoE4.

I am, but it still looks dated, and that could be a major factor for some people. Gameplay wise, they are very similar except for some features like asymmetrical civilization design in AoE4 and the landmark system in AoE4. In terms of development, AoE4 is on a seasons system and does get scheduled, periodic updates.

For history buffs, the cinematic cutscenes of the AoE4 single player campaign are also very well done.

 

[Mozzarella]

Age of Empires for me.
Big fan of the franchise, i used to play it a lot, i like 2 and 3.
Age of Empires 2 is a masterpiece of RTS.
Age of Empires 3 is pretty solid too, but i feel it doesnt have the same depth and variety of 2.

Civilization i only played 4 and 5, good series, but i didnt invest much time in them.

 

[GunganKing]

Civ is a bit more involved game, as all turn based strategies are, but AOE was truly revolutionary for its time

 

[Majukun]

Grew up playing age and thinking civ was lame, now I don't think age is lame but I much prefer turn based more in depth strategy

 

[StueyDuck]

Civ easily...

Obviously personal opinion

 

[Hudo]

They are really not comparable at all even though Age of Empires was heavily influenced by Civilization. Age of Empires is a classic RTS game with an "Age Up" mechanic, which is the main thing it took from Civ. Civ is THE 4X game: It's turn-based and it's more more on a macro/global scale.
So it kinda depends what you want. If you want to play an RTS, then yes, Age of Empires II is probably the best RTS ever made. Whereas if you want to play a good global-strategy game/4X game, then you can't really go wrong with Civ. I do prefer the older Civ games to the newer ones (Especially Civ II and Civ III).

Edit: An interesting evolutionary take on the Age of Empires formula can be seen in Rise of Nations, which leans a bit more into the 4X side of things. I think that they succeeded but the overall speed is lower and the controls and unit responsiveness could've been a bit less janky. Then you have Brian Reynolds' (who also worked on Civ) take on the Age of Empires formula with Empire Earth I & II, which is essentially: "Just add more stuff, man. Like, A LOT MORE STUFF, MAN."

On the Civ side, I think that particular formula was perfected with Alpha Centauri, which also allows you to do more with the environment itself. You can also take a look at the old SimTex games (Master of Orion/ Master of Magic) to get another spin on the classic 4X formula. There's also Colonization, which is a variation of the Civ formula but more down-scoped/focused on the conquest/colonization of the Americas. But I haven't played Colonization, since that whole setting doesn't interest me. Also: If you happen to like the Master of Orion games and you also like Dune and you'd want more complexity, try Emperor of the Fading Suns.

 

[winjer]

Civ has much more depth and complex mechanics. It's bug issue is that the AI is dumb as shit.

 

[Shake Your Rump]

I played Civ 6 for a few hundred hours. The AI is absolutely awful, and the gameplay get tedious. I decided to try Civ 5 about a month ago. I already have hundreds of hours clocked as it is far superior to Civ 6. It actually feels like a Civ game, and the AI is vastly more interesting and capable.

Civ 6 gameplay is building individual cities. Civ 5 gameplay is building an empire.

 

[jonnyp]

I played Civ 6 for a few hundred hours. The AI is absolutely awful, and the gameplay get tedious. I decided to try Civ 5 about a month ago. I already have hundreds of hours clocked as it is far superior to Civ 6. It actually feels like a Civ game, and the AI is vastly more interesting and capable.

Civ 6 gameplay is building individual cities. Civ 5 gameplay is building an empire.

So true. Civ 6 is a bitter disappointment and I quickly returned to Civ 5.