Age of Empires II (Retired) vs Euro Truck Simulator 2
Age of Empires II (Retired) is a strategy game from Skybox Labs (2013) while Euro Truck Simulator 2 is an open-world racing game from SCS Software (2012).
Quick answer: Euro Truck Simulator 2 rates higher, 8.8 to 8.1 on the GamingPickz Score.
What each one is
Age of Empires II (Retired) is filed under Strategy. In contrast, Euro Truck Simulator 2 under Open-World and Racing.
Age of Empires II has been re-imagined in high definition. With the release of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, this product will not be updated further.
Travel across Europe as king of the road, a trucker who delivers important cargo across impressive distances! With dozens of cities to explore, your endurance, skill and speed will all be pushed to their limits.
Story, characters and reception
No Wikipedia detail on file.
Reception
Reception The game was generally well received by critics, holding a score of 79/100 on Metacritic , indicating "generally favorable reviews". In a review for Destructoid , James Stephanie Sterling praised the game's accessibility, noting how easy the GPS and map features were to use, as well as the option to stream European internet radio, and the multitude of control options available. They also praised the graphics, stating that "[f]rom the shape of… (Wikipedia)
At a glance
| Age of Empires II (Retired) | Euro Truck Simulator 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 8.1/10 | 8.8/10 |
| Steam rating | Overwhelmingly Positive (96%, 102,820) | Overwhelmingly Positive (97%, 940,049) |
| Critic aggregate | 68/100 | 79/100 |
| Price | $19.99 | $19.99 |
| Install size | — | — |
| Steam Deck | verified | verified |
| Released | 2013 | 2012 |
| Developer | Skybox Labs | SCS Software |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Age of Empires II (Retired) vs Euro Truck Simulator 2, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Age of Empires II (Retired)Strategy gameEuro Truck Simulator 2Open-world racing gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Age of Empires II (Retired)Strategy, RTS, MedievalEuro Truck Simulator 2Driving, Transportation, SimulationThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Age of Empires II (Retired)Score 8.1 · 96% on Steam · 68 criticEuro Truck Simulator 2 ✓Score 8.8 · 97% on Steam · 79 criticThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Age of Empires II (Retired)102,820 reviews · 3 add-onsEuro Truck Simulator 2940,049 reviews · 108 add-onsReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Age of Empires II (Retired)$19.99Euro Truck Simulator 2$19.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Age of Empires II (Retired)VerifiedEuro Truck Simulator 2VerifiedValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Euro Truck Simulator 2 takes 1 of the marked rounds to 0. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueAge of Empires II (Retired) and Euro Truck Simulator 2 on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The higher-rated of the two: Euro Truck Simulator 2 (GamingPickz Score 8.8)
- The safer bet by weight of reviews: Euro Truck Simulator 2 (940,049 reviews)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
MultiplayerAdventure
Where they differ
StrategyRTSMedievalClassicHistoricalBase-Building
DrivingTransportationSimulationOpen WorldAutomobile SimRealistic
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Age of Empires II (Retired) is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Euro Truck Simulator 2 is relaxed, easy to pick up.
System requirements, side by side
| Age of Empires II (Retired) | Euro Truck Simulator 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum GPU | Direct X 9.0c Capable GPU | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 |
| Minimum CPU | 1.2GHZ CPU | Intel Core i5-6400 |
| Minimum RAM | 1 GB | 8 GB |
| Install size | — | — |
Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Age of Empires II (Retired) · Euro Truck Simulator 2.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 0 accessibility features for Age of Empires II (Retired) and 9 for Euro Truck Simulator 2. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Age of Empires II (Retired) and Euro Truck Simulator 2 in scope?
Age of Empires II (Retired) has drawn 102,820 Steam reviews and ships 3 add-ons. Euro Truck Simulator 2 has drawn 940,049 Steam reviews and ships 108 add-ons.
Is Age of Empires II (Retired) or Euro Truck Simulator 2 better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Euro Truck Simulator 2 rates higher (8.8 to 8.1). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Age of Empires II (Retired) or Euro Truck Simulator 2?
Age of Empires II (Retired) is cheaper right now at $19.99, against $19.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Should I get Age of Empires II (Retired) or Euro Truck Simulator 2?
Euro Truck Simulator 2 rates higher, 8.8 to 8.1 on the GamingPickz Score. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
How we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.