Age of Empires III: Target-line parameters and troubleshooting shortcuts

You can use target-line parameters to customize the Microsoft Age of Empires III startup process. Additionally, you can use target-line parameters to resolve certain problems that may occur when you try to start or play the game. This article lists the target-line parameters and describes how they work.

Start menu commands

When you install Age of Empires III, shortcuts for the game are created on the Start menu.

To view these shortcuts, click Start, point to All Programs, point to Microsoft Games, click Age of Empires III, and then click the Diagnostics folder.

The following shortcut commands are located in the Diagnostics folder:

• Age of Empires III (no sound): Use this command to start the game without sound. This command adds the following parameter to the game startup target line:
  +nosound
• Age of Empires III (no video): This command starts the game without playing the introductory movies. This command adds the following parameter to the game startup target line:
  +noIntroCinematics

Additional startup parameters

To start the game in a window, add the following parameter:To manually add parameters to the target line in the Age of Empires III shortcut, follow these steps:

1. Right-click Start, and then click Open All Users.
2. Double-click the Programs folder.
3. Double-click the Microsoft Games folder.
4. Double-click the Age of Empires III folder.
5. Right-click the Age of Empires III shortcut icon, and then click Properties.
6. Click the Shortcut tab.
7. In the Target box, press END, press SPACEBAR, and then type the parameter that you want to use. If you want to use an additional parameter, press SPACEBAR, and then type the next parameter.
   
   For example, the following target line includes two parameters:
   "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Age of Empires III\age3.exe" +nosound +noIntroCinematics
   Note Parameters are not case sensitive. Additionally, the path must be enclosed in quotation marks.
8. Click Apply or OK.
9. Insert the Age of Empires III CD 1 into the CD drive. If you press the SHIFT key when you insert the CD, the game does not automatically start.
10. Start Age of Empires III by using the shortcut that you modified.