Online AOE Guide

Again a game related post.. Thought of trying this long before.. Finaly into it, I would say more into it..for about a week..Playing Age Of Empires 2 and 3 and Asian Dynasty expansion online daily.. Got some friends from India and abroad too.. This is post is just a shot tutorial for playing Age of empires 2 and 3. Here it goes…

Things you need.

1. Of course Age Of Empires Game
2. Hamachi
3. AOE loader (only for AOE3)

AOE Games:

As far as I know there are two versions of AOE 2, having same version with both peers is mandatory for online play.

1. AOE 2 - Age of Kings (Red) : CD2.0
AOE 2 – Conquers expansion (Blue): CD1.0

2. AOE 2 - Age of Kings (Red) : CD2.0a
AOE 2 – Conquers expansion (Blue): CD1.0e

For AOE3, you have three editions: Age Of Empires 3 (Basic) and two Expansions: The Asian Dynasties and The War Chiefs. For AOE 3, it is always better to update whatever edition you are having through net. So make sure the editions and versions of the peers are same.

Hamachi:

Hamachi is a VPN internet application which makes one to connect to peers as if you are connecting in LAN. Just install it from here and power it on. You will be given an IP something like 192.168.xx.xx. Choose your own Nick name, and create your own network for your friends, or better join my network
Username : booaoe
Password : password

You can chat with your peer friends to setup all using hamachi.. That’s it, nothing else, if you want to play AOE 2

AOE3 Loader (Only for AOE3 users):

As AOE3 has problems in seeing the internal IP provided by hamachi, this small comes for rescue. Just download this loader from here. Run it and choose the hamachi IP like 192.168.xx.xx and start game and choose the game you want.

Now for AOE2 and AOE3 you are in the game, go to Multiplayer and LAN settings as if you are playing in LAN and host a game and wait for the peers to join or join the game of your peer and enjoy gaming.

Troubleshooting Tips:

1. Make sure all your peers are in sync with the editions and version you are playing. Make sure all peers have updated for AOE3.
2. You should be seeing the hamachi IP 192.168.xx.xx in the Peers joining screen. If you are some other IP, check if you have selected hamachi ip in aoe3 loader.
3. For AOE2, if you are not seeing hamachi IP, goto, control panel -> network connections. Select Advanced -> Advanced Settings menu. Make sure hamachi Connection is in ordered first above all other connections.
4. If you have problem in finding the game of the peer who has hosted, try to connect using IP of the peer instead of searching the game present in the network.
5. If you get CRC Version Mismatch error, try different Crack. I had the same problem for Asian Dynasties expansion, and I used this crack to solve it. Download it from this rapidshare link.

I would like to thank Quang, a Vietnam guy who helped me patiently for my first online gaming. And this 14yr old kiddo, Denis from Israel, who helped me for AOE3 setup. And he is a Photoshop geek too… the pic posted in this blog is done by him.. hats off to Denis.. Denis, I think its enough!!

So dudes, come lets play aoe2/3.. join my network :
usename : booaoe & password : password