How to play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition is a single-player strategy game where players develop a civilization and fight their way to global dominance. The game is part of the Age of Empires series and is released as a remaster of 2005’s Age of Empires III to celebrate the original’s 15th anniversary.

The Definitive Edition features better graphics, a fully remastered soundtrack, two new game modes, four additional civilizations, and several other gameplay enhancements. All previously released add-ons for the base game are included in the package.

Mac users who are interested in playing Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition should be aware that the game does not have native support for macOS. Despite that, you can get the game running on a Mac with the use of Windows emulation software.

On this page, you’ll find a workaround and thorough instructions for running Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on an Intel Mac or an Apple Silicon M1 or M2 model.

The experience of playing a game that wasn’t made for macOS on a Mac will not be the same as playing it on Windows. However, if you own a Mac and want to play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition with some tweaks, you can do so by installing Windows with the help of an emulation tool like Parallels or Boot Camp Assistant (only for Intel Macs).

gameplay

The Definitive Edition stays true to the original’s basic gameplay mechanics while adding some enhancements. Players take control of great civilizations spanning Europe, the Americas, and Asia and try to expand them.

The game takes place directly after the events of Age of Empires II in the early 16th century and continues until somewhere in the late 19th century. In the previous games in the series, knights and swordsmen ruled the battlefield. In the latest game, however, muskets and artillery have taken their place.

A spectator mode has been added to the game. It allows players to jump into a game and watch without playing.

New to this edition are the Inca and Swedish civilizations, as well as the Art of War and Historical Battles game modes. The WarChiefs and The Asian Dynasties expansions to the original game are also included in the remastered version.

The AI ​​has been improved so that it can now handle fine-grained management. It is better at choosing units, being aware of the map, analyzing the enemy army, figuring out how the enemy army is composed, running away from lost battles, and using hit-and-run strategies.

An “extreme” difficulty setting was introduced to the remastered version to make the gameplay even more challenging for the most dedicated fans.

map

The maps in the game have been enriched with more interactive elements, such as random collectable items and more resources, and can be explored in greater depth. In addition to that, the maps also have native settlements that provide players who control them with new units and technology, as well as new trade routes.

Online PvP

Players who want a greater challenge in Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition can go online and compete with other players. There is an updated online multiplayer platform that supports cross-network play.

Regular updates

The developers constantly add new content, features, and events to keep the game fresh and the player community active. A proof of that is the United States expansion pack, which was released in April 2021. Another expansion pack, called The African Royals, was published in August of the same year. This pack enriches the game with not just the Ethiopians and the Hausa civilizations but also with the addition of three new Historical Battles, fifteen new African maps, five new indigenous African civilizations to form alliances with, and eleven new achievements.

A Mexico Civilization Expansion Pack was published in December 2021. Aside from adding the new Mexican civilization to the game, this pack includes ten new achievements and more content for the American culture, as well as various historical war situations focusing on both the Mexican and American cultures.

Knights of the Mediterranean is the latest expansion pack that was published in May 2022. It includes the Italian and Maltese (Knights Hospitaller) civilizations, which further expand the gaming experience.

Visuals and sound

With the Definitive Edition, players can enjoy beautiful 4K Ultra HD graphics, rebuilt 3D structures, and better animations for building destruction. The user interface has been reworked and simplified. The soundtrack of the game has been fully remastered to provide a fresh and contemporary sound experience.

Conclusion

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition is an enhanced version of the beloved 2005 game of the same name. It includes new civilizations, a modern visual experience, and improved gameplay options that guarantee a lot of fun regardless if you play solo, co-op with a group of friends, or compete with other players online. The game is kept fresh and is still actively supported, with the most recent content update dating from May 2022.

Can you play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac?

Despite not having official macOS version, Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition can be played on Apple computers. For that you will need to install Windows OS on your Mac with the help of Windows emulation software like Parallels or Apple’s own Boot Camp Assistant. Once you’ve done that, you can download the game and play it on your Mac by running it on your newly created Windows environment. Playing the game there is very much like doing it on a Windows PC.

How to download Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac

Despite the fact that there is no official support for macOS, Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition can still be played on Macs. What you need is specialized Windows emulation software such as Parallels or Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows Operating System on your Mac. After doing that, you will be able to use the Windows environment on your Mac computer in order to download and play the game. The experience should be comparable to that of playing the game on a computer running Windows.

How to Play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac

To play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac you have to install a Windows OS on your Mac. The easiest way to do that is to turn to professional Windows emulation programs Parallels or Boot Camp Assistant.

First, however, you will need to get the game.

Next, you need to choose a method to play:

methods	Who is it for?
Boot Camp	For those who don’t mind sacrificing visual fidelity and performance to get a native experience. 
Parallels Virtual Machine	For those willing to let their mac run hot in order to get adequate performance in a native experience

How to play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac M1

It is possible to run Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on a Mac M1 with the help of a software tool called Parallels. This is a Windows emulation tool that enables users of Macs to run games that are only available for Windows on their computers and to have a gaming experience that is typically adequate enough for them to be able to play the game without serious problems.

Sadly, Boot Camp Assistant is incompatible with Mac M1s, thus, Macs that are powered by Intel CPUs are the only ones that are able to use this application.

Play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac with Parallels

You can play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac (M1 and Intel models) by installing Windows on your Mac with Parallels. Read our detailed guide.

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac with Boot Camp Assistant

You can play Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition on Mac (Intel models only) by installing Windows on your Mac with Boot Camp Assistant. Read our detailed guide.