I haven't played AoE in over a decade, but looking at the original graphics in the article, it looks exactly like I remember. Nostalgia often is not kind to games we used to love (haven't played Goldeneye/Perfect Dark in a while? Don't bother), but AoE, even looking like a 1997 game, still looks just fine.
Maybe it's because so many F2P mobile games copied their art style directly so it looks like it could be a mobile RTS from 2015 that's kept that art style so relevant.
Maybe it's because so many F2P mobile games copied their art style directly so it looks like it could be a mobile RTS from 2015 that's kept that art style so relevant.