Age of Empires (video game)
"Age of Empires" was a hit in the German market, where it debuted at #1 on 's sales rankings for the latter half of October 1997. After holding this position in the first half of November, it remained in Media Control's top 5 through the end of 1997. The following year, "Age of Empires" placed consistently in the top 3 through March, when it rose again to #1 in the last two weeks of the month. By the end of May, it had spent 28 consecutive weeks in Media Control's top rankings, with placements of fifth and eighth that month. "Age of Empires" proceeded to become the fourth-best-selling computer game in the German market during 1998's first nine months. It received a "Gold" award from the (VUD) in August, for sales of at least 100,000 units across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Sales in the German market totaled 115,000 units by the end of September, and the VUD raised "Age of Empires" to "Platinum" status, for 200,000 sales, by November. At the 1999 Milia festival in Cannes, "Age of Empires" took home a "Gold" prize for revenues above €15 million in the European Union during 1998. It remained at 14th on Media Control's charts for the German region by January 1999, continuing a 60-week streak on the charts.
Age of Empires III
"Age of Empires III"s multiplayer was the first in the series to be integrated into the game interface and was highly lauded, as was the Home City concept. The topic of multiplayer was touched by GameZone, who said "this game demands multiplayer mode, and Ensemble Studios provided this for the players", while at 1UP, the reviewer commented similarly, stating, "Multiplayer support has been significantly upgraded with a slick interface, support for clans and a number of other useful features." GameSpy commented on the Home City as well, saying, "the 'home city' system creates long-term depth and strategy". EuroGamer, however, stated: "Stop with the gifts! ... You do not need to let me flick to a home city screen every few minutes so that I can select a free unit or resource windfall. I'm not some spoilt toddler that needs to be bribed with endless sweeties." "Age of empires III" uses the ESO server for multiplayer.