The general discussions forum is the place for all your questions about Age Of Empires III (demo). But we have lately encountered the same question asked several times. This is why I have created this FAQ. FAQ means Frequently Asked Questions.

Before posting a question, please make sure you have read this FAQ. Reading this FAQ can save your time and our effort. If this FAQ doesn't answer your question, try the Search engine on the forums. You can search for topic titles, but also post content and usernames. If that doesn't bring any results either, then you are free to post your question.

Standard Questions
1. What is the official release date?
2. Will it run on Windows 98SE, ME or 2000?
3. What is the multiplayer engine?
4. How can I make the game run faster?

Hardware
5. What are the system requirements?
6. What videocard do I need to run Age Of Empires III?
7. I have encountered bugs, now what?

Gameplay
8. What is the population limit?
9. How many campaigns will there be?
10. What kind of singleplayer gametypes are there?
11. Are there formations in the game?
12. What are native civilizations?
13. What is the explorer unit?
14. Can I play custom scenarios and random maps online?

1. What is the official release date?
The official release date is 25th of October 2005. This is for North-America. The Netherlands release date is in the first week of November 2005.

2. Will it run on Windows 98SE, ME or 2000?
No, Age Of Empires III will only run on Windows XP and Windows 2000. Windows 2000 is not supported, but the retail version will allow Windows 2000 users to install the game anyway.

3. What is the multiplayer engine?
Like Age Of Mythology, Age Of Empires III will be played online on ESO. This will be ESO2, an improved version with more options and better stability.

4. How can I make the game run faster?
Close all running applications. Examples are: MSN Messenger, WinAmp / Windows Media Player, Internet Explorer etc. If you are an advanced user, you can also shut down unnecessary Windows processes by pressing CTRL+ALT+DEL.

5. What are the system requirements?
The official system requirements are stated by Microsoft:
Windows 2000 or Windows 2000
1,4 GHz processor speed
256 MB RAM Memory
Videocard supporting DirectX 9.0c

6. What videocard do I need to run Age Of Empires III?
We have tested the demo on several videocards. For stable performance, we suggest you a videocard with at least 128 MB ram. Videocards from the Geforce FX series (FX5200, FX5600 etc). will run the game, but on low/medium settings. Excellent cards for Age Of Empires III are: Geforce 6600GT, Geforce 6800 series, ATI Radeon x600 or better, ATI Radeon 9600 or better.

7. I have encountered bugs, now what?
You can either report them to Ensemble Studios (www.agecommunity.com) or post them on our forums in the Bug Report area.

8. What is the population limit?
The population limit is 200. You might think that this is a step backwards, but it is not. Remember that most units only cost 1 population, and some units (ships, native warriors etc) cost no population at all. Armies can consist more units than they could in Age Of Mythology.

9. How many campaigns will there be?
Like in Age Of Mythology, there will be only one campaign. Instead of making several small campaigns like ES did in Age Of Empires 2, they have decided to create one single giant campaign. The campaign is rich of cinematics and advanced story elements.

10. What kind of singleplayer gametypes are there?
You can play Campaign or Skirmish. Skirmish can be devided into two groups: Supremacy and Deathmatch. If you don't understand those terms, you can look them up in our AoE dictionary.

11. Are there formations in the game?
Yes and no. The basic formations like in Age Of Kings are still in, but the promised formations which would affect the tide of battle are removed. Formations have no purpose, they just look better. Formations can be turned on in the options menu by checking on advanced controls button.

12. What are native civilizations?
Native civilizations are the civilizations the players cant choose. They are neutral and they appear on skirmish games. You can build an outpost in their village to start an alliance,. This alliance will allow you to create their unique native warriors. Native warriors take no population space, but they have certain build limits.

13. What is the explorer unit?
The explorer unit isn't just a scout like in previous Age games. The explorer is the leader of your settlement. He can be compared to the strong greek heroes in AoM. The explorer has 1000 hp and the ability to instantly kill units. The explorer can't die, but it falls unconsious when the hp is reduced to zero. The owner can get it back by either paying the enemy a ransom or by walking trough him with soldiers.

14. Can I play custom scenarios and random maps online?
No, Ensemble Studios didn't have the time to add this feature. It is disabled for now, but they have promised us that a future patch will add this functionality.

__________________
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/588...line6cb9wb.jpg