Way back when I reviewed the original Age of Mythology I found myself playing a game that not only hooked me but also revitalised my enjoyment of the series after a dampening sense of tank rush blues from Age of Kings. I played through the full campaign several times at different difficulty levels and found a game that I enjoyed immensely, so much so that I didn't put it down and made a subsequent review late (I am ashamed of myself!) Though not perfect it scored a respectable eight out of ten and I felt it was easily the best of the series so far. The news of an expansion pack release, Age of Mythology: The Titans, I greeted with happiness, especially as I hoped to get to review it - I even reinstalled the original ahead of time and replayed sections of it just to refresh my skills. So how does it fare compared to the original? Pretty darn good, let me tell you.

The Titans is not so much an add on pack as it is the next chapter in the story of the fight of three races and their heroes against the Titan menace, which almost ruined their world and destroyed Atlantis. We find ourselves with Kastor, the son of the hero Arkantos, who we followed during the previous game. His band of loyal followers are attacked by forces they believed to be allies, with no resources to build a decent defence let alone a counter attack all they can do is flee and live to fight another day. Following the guidance of a priest they enter into an ancient building only to find themselves teleported from the lands of the Norse to the Mediterranean lands of the Greeks. Krios the priest that led them through the Sky Gate tells them that it was not their Gods that had shown them the way from harm but rather the original benevolent Titans. Kastor, not being present with his father during the original campaign, does not know the background of the Titans and as their Gods seemingly have departed them decides to offer thanks and praise to those that look over them now. Slowly they begin to rebuild old Titan temples and the imprisoned Titans grow in strength, all the time diminishing the powers of the Gods that all others worship.

A Greek force scouting the area observes the behaviour of the Atlantian force until they realise that they are resurrecting the Temples of the Titans. In a bid to stop them from undoing all that they fought for in the recent campaign they send out a force to stop Kastor, not realising that it is he who heads the invading Atlantian force. Believing he is under attack once again by his allies, Kastor sets out to stop all those that would oppose him and the benevolence of the Titans. Kastor and his forces gradually fight their way through the lands of Greece, Egypt, Norsica and finally to the pinnacle of the fabled Mount Olympus itself. There he sets foot in a realm that no mortal is supposed to set foot in and destroys the temples of the Greek Gods. The powers of the Gods are totally unbalanced and the Titans begin to rise from their imprisonment in Tartanus and wage a campaign for the destruction of mankind.

At this time the priest Krios shows his true colours and changes into a scaly winged humanoid that revels in telling Kastor just what he has done to help end his race. As he departs, Arkantos appears and tells Kastor and the newly arrived heroes from the previous game that to stop the Titans they will have to use the power of Gaia, a Titan that heals where Kronos destroys and who will fight to save mankind as a champion against his evil. Naturally things are not as straightforward as that and you will spend the remainder of the game trying to slow the advance of the Titans, destroying their lesser minions until Gaia can be summoned to take on Kronos.

Once again I have found myself in control of a game that I totally enjoyed from the word go. The storyline that underpins the whole experience is written in a style that perfectly matches the near laid back nature of the gameplay and that means that you find yourself taking time to do things in a similar fashion and appreciating the finer points of the game engine. Built on the same wonderful technology of the previous game, the graphics and animations are first rate with this being every bit a vibrant world to play through as the initial campaign. This time around there are couple of different styles of locations, most notably the level set atop the Mountain of Olympus, mythical home of the Gods and from where Zeus watched over the world. Last time saw us descend to the depths of the underworld and to the gates of Tartanus and the strange lava filled world that was the Titans' prison; this time things are more cloud filled and dreamlike. This level also sees the use of Myth units come to the fore and play a bigger role in general, by giving you fewer to choose from but generally they are more powerful than previous incarnations.

The focus surrounding the Titans also provides many new avenues for you to explore, especially with the god powers that you will receive during the course of the game. Although these range in vastly the same way as the original powers they provide some new toys and this keeps gameplay fresh for a little while longer. In addition, the Titans will provide you with some new upgrades and unit specialisations and this can totally alter the way battles with myth units are fought.

Naturally not everything comes up smelling like the roses in the hanging gardens Babylon. The AI for any of the Age of series has always been more artificial than intelligent and the same is true for Titans. Once you have secured your base most if not all of the missions can be completed by being very sneaky or simply suicidal with one of two units. One in particular set in Egypt that sees you having to capture several artefacts can be done with minimal effort and a few cavalry; you simply have to be creative with how you get past the defensive walls surrounding a couple of them but it should present no trouble. Skirmish play only really serves to highlight this further and unless you are playing at the highest difficulty levels you will probably find yourself unchallenged. Despite there being new god powers and new myth units there are seemingly few reasons to use them for anything other than novelty's sake.

The core units you get, and there are only three of them (Cavalry, Archer and Soldier), are more than adequate for dealing with any situation unless you are facing a harder skill setting in which case the three classes of counter units, those that are good against one particular type of unit only, will normally see you overcoming all problems. At no point does there seem to be a reason to shell out the extra cost in resources to produce units that are only really as good as the equal cost of normal troops, and seeing as the cost equivalent in normal troops will outnumber enemy myth units by two or three to one then there never really seems any point. The last point of contention with Titans is not so much a gripe but more of a questioning point that has had me scratching my head. The original game Age of Mythology took up around 900Mb but this expansion pack takes up around 1.4Gb but has fewer levels and less content, as it uses much of the original game code - so what has all that memory been taken up by?

Graphically this title is even better than the original; there are some excellent animations and effects that accompany the god powers, units, combat and the game world in general. The cut scenes are once again all done with the core of the game engine just as in AoM and capture that feeling of the old Greek legend films with the stop go animation. The game world is the one aspect of this game that steals the show, as never before in the previous Age of series has there been such a beautiful world to play through. There are so many small touches that you don't instantly notice them but they go together to make this all round one of the most natural environments to play in.

Sound is again totally from the top draw with no exceptions. Even the oft annoying confirmation grunts and utterances from your worker units are pleasant to the ear and I have to confess that I found myself mimicking them and repeating them when I heard them. The music is possibly the one area that excels far and above all other offerings from the sound in this title; it sets not just the scene but also the atmosphere of the game in a way that makes everything feel just right. Within minutes you feel yourself relax into the game and become happy to play at its pace rather than your own, take it easy and enjoy the game and the fact that everything is green and lush. The score puts the right focus on every event that happens from the basic background melody that plays when you are simply exploring the world to the more serious and driving sounds of battle, nothing sounds anything less than cinematic in every instance.

Nothing really needs to be said about the control of AoT as it is exactly the same as AoM in every way shape and form. In fact if you have played any of the Age of series then you will be able to happily jump into this title and play without any trouble whatsoever. Instantly accessible, simple and easy to use sums it up entirely. Having enjoyed the previous game immensely I was glad to discover that Titans maintained the high standard set by the original and continued the story perfectly with no real recap needed. It felt like a pair of comfortable slippers, you simply slipped into it and got on with it. I have played through the entire game a couple of times and enjoyed myself immensely.

Age of Mythology: The Titans is not the most challenging game ever created, nor is the pace of play that fast or furious; it is a game for those that like to take their time, enjoy the experience and do things at their pace rather than one dictated by an over zealous opposing AI or random string of scripted sequences that force the storyline or mission progression. The Age of series has finally come of age, finding in its maturity that it can do things at the pace it wants to, providing a decent storyline with compelling gameplay, wonderful graphics and excellent audio. Titans is the perfect companion to Age of Mythology and will give everyone that was a fan of the original many hours of enjoyment.

Reviewed by AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).