The original Age of Mythology came out in 2002 and this weekend I had access to the pre-release BETA of Age of Mythology: Retold to test it out.

I had NEVER played Age of Mythology ever (not even the original version released in 2002) and I have never seen anyone else play it in a video or whatever. I have played all the other Age of Empire Games, but not AoM so, it was interesting to see how it goes.

The strange reason I hadn’t played Age of Mythology was because I was in South America at the time and had just got married and started our first business that same year so, the game wasn’t really on my radar… too busy conquering the real world.

Attacking armies with myth units in Age of Mythology: Retold - Woodward Games

What is Age of Mythology: Retold?

This is the NEW updated version of the same 2002 game, but with extra features, some gameplay tweaks and now looks much better for a modern audience.

From my understanding from the limited gameplay I have done, it’s like Age of Empires … but with superpowers.

Minor Gods Ares and Hermes in Age of Mythology: Retold - Woodward Games

When you go up an age, you get to choose one of two minor gods. For example with the Greeks you might choose between Ares and Hermes. Ares is the god of battle and slaughter and his improvements strengthen the weapons of human foot solders. His superpower is Pestilence (which you can aim at your opponent’s village) and his myth unit is the Cyclops which you can add multiple units of to your arming using “god favor” that accumulates over time with certain actions. The fun thing about the cyclops is that these giants hurl enemy units at other enemy units or buildings. Watching these little soldiers go flying across the battlefield is quite funny to see.

Minor Gods Hera and Hephaestus in Age of Mythology: Retold - Woodward Games

Contrary to the original edition where you could only use these god powers once, in this 2024 version the god powers are rechargeable. For example, with the Norse Pantheon, the more you battle, and the more damage you do, the more the God favors you, which in turn recharges the God powers. With the Greeks, your gain power when you have villagers worshipping at the temple. Some of the really fun god powers that can be used include earthquakes, lightning, tornados, and meteors (there are more which I will add later).

Myth units Collosus and Hydra in Age of Mythology: Retold - Woodward Games

What is in the PREMIUM edition of Age of Mythology: Retold?

Premium Edition owners have access to:

  • The first 5 missions for the Fall of the Trident campaign!
  • Three of the four Pantheons, including Greek, Norse, & Egyptian!
  • Test your skills in Skirmish or Multiplayer in a wide variety of the maps!

Apparently, the cheat codes from the original game can be used in the Retold version. I am yet to experiment with this.

Greek buildings in Age of Mythology: Retold - Woodward Games

When will Age of Mythology: Retold come out?

Age of Mythology: Retold comes out on Xbox and PC on September 4th 2024. If you preorder the game, you get to play up to 7 days beforehand.

Age of Mythology: Retold Closed Beta

For those with the Premium Edition of Age of Mythology: Retold, you were able to participate in the Closed Beta Weekend from Friday July 12th. You got some floating text going over the screen to show it is BETA (with your GamerTag), but I didn’t notice it when I was in the thick of battle.

Statue of Poseidon in Age of Mythology: Retold Campaign - Woodward Games