If you haven't heard of the
Age of Empires, you've been living in the Dark Ages, but that's cool because with this edition you really can live in the Dark Ages.
First came Age of Empires (Game of the Year 1997), closely followed by an add-on to increase the time span to encompass civilisation from its very dawn to the dominance of the Roman Empire. Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings covers the post-Roman Middle Ages--the Conquerors add-on provided the conquistadors and Attila the Hun.
These Microsoft games are a tour de force of exploration, organisation and, of course, battle campaigns. Along the way your population must construct buildings and boats, and learn to trade and make technological advances. Manuals for all four games are included, plus fold-out charts with wonderful artwork of the tools, weapons and personnel at your disposal ("I'll take an onager, some fervour and a brace of heavy camels today, please").
This well-presented Collector's Edition would make an excellent gift for anyone with a penchant for epic games who has so far, inexplicably, missed this series. But it also represent good value for those with an incomplete set and the ultimate collectable indulgence for serious fans because, unique to this collector's edition, is a sound track CD of surprisingly cool mood music taken from the games. --Mark Whitehorn