The 15 Best Games Like ‘Age of Empires’

Way back in 2001, 0 A.D. began as a total conversion mod for the second Age of Empires game before the creative team decided that this was too limiting and moved to an in-house engine to make their own standalone game. The result is a game that’s incredibly immersive and addictive that allows you to build a base, train an army, and engage in battle. The game’s focus is historical accuracy, down to the languages of civilizations and the accuracy of armor, weapons, and more items from between 1 AD and 500 AD, which is when the game is set.

Made by Ensemble Studios, the same developers that brought you Age of Empires, this is Age of Mythology. As the name suggests, it’s a spin-off from the Empires series and shifts the focus to Greek, Egyptian, and Norse mythology, taking place in Atlantis. If you’re a fan of the gameplay of AoE but want to switch things up slightly, the different monsters and Gods here will surely do that for you. The naming convention of this top recommendation and the gameplay similarities combine to make this one of the games like Age of Empires.

Developed by Plausible Concept and published by Raw Fury, Bad North is a game that stands out in the real-time strategy genre. First of all, its art style is not like much else around, almost reminiscent of a cozy game. But not much that happens in Bad North is very family-friendly. The game’s emphasis is on battling and it does so brutally, forcing you to defend against vicious Viking invaders. It’s not the easiest game out there and choosing to play it means losing over and over again before getting a victory, but that only makes the victory that much sweeter.

For those of you that like building towns above everything else in Age of Empires, Cities: Skylines takes that concept and makes it the point of an entire game. You’ll have to consider things like public transport, taxation, road placement, and more as opposed to just having a nice skyline to look at. It can be an addictive feeling to build an entire city only to realize you didn’t consider the economy enough and to do it all over again. While this game is closer to a city builder, its sim elements still have a ton of appeal to fans of games like Age of Empires.

The Command & Conquer series is a wacky version of a real-time strategy game where the weapons you use include war elephants and twin flamethrowers. This remastered edition includes remastered versions of both 1995’s Tiberian Dawn and 1996’s Red Alert. If you want a newer game to play, then Red Alert 3 takes things up a notch in most categories too.

Developed and published by Madruga Works, Dawn of Man is a game that sees players trying to advance their civilization from the Stone Age to the Iron Age, which involves fighting off raiders while trying to kill mammoths and cage lions. But there are natural threats too, like blizzards and storms. Keeping your group of prehistoric settlers well-fed and warm throughout it all is key.

Where Empire Earth stands out on this list is that it spans around 500,000 years of world history, starting in the prehistoric era and can go all the way up until the nano age, which the game records in the near future from 2100 AD – 2200 AD. Thanks to a great map editor, you can pretty much build your civilization however you like, which helps when you’re doing it after constant battle throughout hundreds of thousands of years.

As impactful in the genre as we already mentioned Age of Empires is, it was always going to have games that were heavily inspired by it and one of those is Empires Apart. This game is far from just a copycat though. It’s a genuinely great alternative that feels different enough from the Age of Empires series for you to try but enough in that vein that it gives you the same feeling.

Northgard is one of the better modern RTS games. It’s Viking-themed and puts you in charge of multiple Viking clans, forcing you to gather resources and build up your village, taking out threats and all the while, preparing for a harsh winter that will wipe out anyone who took it lightly. Other than surviving, thriving here can look like multiple things, whether that’s being the last clan standing or fame. Combat is a big part of the game here, but it’s all of the other mechanics that make it a worthy effort.

Just like Age of Empires, Rise of Nations: Extended Edition is another titan in the real-time strategy genre. The game’s focus is on interacting with your own and potential enemy's territory. You can only build in your own or your friends’ territories. While that may sound limiting, as territories expand, tensions will naturally flare and that’s how the combat comes into play.

For those that like the strategy part of Age of Empires and want to take things up a few notches, Civilisation VI does exactly that. The factors that come into play here are extraordinary and even overwhelming if you don’t know what you’re dealing with. Espionage, diplomacy, religion, military, science, and more are all on the table here, meaning that you’ll make countless decisions when making moves. The sheer amount of content here will make for a good time for a long time.

For fans of Age of Empires and real-time strategy games that also have a love of Star Wars, Galactic Battlegrounds is the crossover event you didn’t even know you wanted. This game, also developed by Ensemble Studios, is essentially an Age of Empires spinoff that’s Star Wars-themed. You can play as the "Rebel Alliance," the "Wookies," and more, with each faction getting its own campaign that plays out slightly differently.

Released in 2014, Stronghold Crusader 2 is set in the Middle East during the Crusades and that comes with some caveats. For one, farms can only be built on oasis grass, meaning there’s a limited amount of land that you’ll have to fight for. This game also boasts a good co-op mode, where two players can share resources and fight common enemies.

Another big crossover event like the aforementioned Star Wars game is this one, although it’s not made by the same developer that made Age of Empires like Galactic Battlegrounds. The Battle for Middle-earth II is pretty much your average RTS game with The Lord of the Rings elements infused, which is exactly what fans would want. You build structures, gather resources, provide defense, and aim for victory every time. One fun aspect here is that Gollum is an NPC and if you kill him, you’re rewarded with the "One Ring."

Last but not least, Tropico 6 sees players take on the role of El Presidente, the leader of "Tropico," a fictional Caribbean Island. As well as your standard real-time strategy elements like building structures and looting, there are some unique and interesting political decisions to make here. For example, giving inspiring speeches is something you can do, plus you can send your spies and pirates out to steal world monuments like Stone Henge or the Statue of Liberty.