As per the title. If I play this game, it will only be for the campaign, and I dismissed it as something I didn't have much interest in as I couldn't get into the one from one of the previous ones (can't remember which one). To be honest, I didn't try that one too much, probably should have given it more of a chance.

Anyway, the thing is that now that I saw it again on the flash deals, I feel that outright dismissal as a "poor story, scenario/multiplayer oriented game" without anything solid to back that up was unfair. So I'm asking the forum instead.

There are 2 campaigns in AOW3, each including several big, long maps instead of numerous short ones. I'd say 4 maps in a campaign? The consequence of those big maps "telling a story" is that they create a heavily scripted play.

Personally, I like them. For reference, I'm also one of those loonies looking mostly for single player campaigns in my strategy games, and I liked AOW1 and 2 campaigns (Especially AOW2, in fact. "Wizard's Throne" is quite good IMO), but disliked the campaign from Shadow Magic.

hmm... thanks. I'll have a look at the campaign from AOW2 and give it a fair shot, if I like it I'll move on to the third one.

I can't be sure which AoW I played, I only have the cover art from the box in my head. But I feel it might have been Shadow magic... maybe.

It's good and it's pretty hard even on normal. I'm not sure how much they patched it since May but in AOW3's campaign, you can't exactly turtle and wait till you get the best units and attack, you'll get owned 30 turns down the road. You have to blitz as fast as possible before the AI gets any chance at all to get strong.

Honestly couldn't tell you. I haven't played a vanilla main campaign in a TBS/RTS since probably Red Alert... some 97 years ago. I see a *CUSTOM MAP* button and it gets clicked.