CaptureAge
captureage.com
What it is
CaptureAge’s CA:DE is a Windows spectating client for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. It renders supported modes with a custom overlay and additional statistics. Documented modes include 1v1, team games, free-for-all, AI games, and Battle Royale. The free version supports playback of CA:DE recordings regardless of patch, full zoom, essential statistics, an integrated creator scoreboard, and a replay browser. Pro adds recording generation, timeline controls, reverse playback, bookmarks, a unit-follow camera, and further statistics and unit breakdowns. Pro costs €5/mo; Pro Plus costs €10/mo and Pro Legend costs €25/mo, with the latter two including custom CA:DE skins users can style with their own CSS and assets. The game must be installed to use CA:DE. The FAQ describes preliminary support for non-Steam versions, including Microsoft Store, and asks users to test Xbox PC versions. Running CA:DE alongside the game demands more from the system than the game alone; the FAQ recommends CA:DE Recordings for best performance. The privacy policy says it may collect email, cookie, IP, browser and device identifiers, and application interactions.
Spec sheet
- What it does
- CaptureAge provides advanced spectating, replay playback and analysis for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Product
- CA:DE is an external spectating client for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition that renders supported game modes with a custom overlay and additional statistics.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Audience
- The download page describes CA:DE as advanced spectating for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, while the product documentation describes Pro for analytical players, casters, and enthusiasts.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Security
- The privacy policy says payment details are forwarded to Braintree and PayPal, are not stored or collected by CaptureAge, and those processors adhere to PCI-DSS.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Privacy
- The privacy policy says the service may collect email address, cookies, IP address, browser and device identifiers, and interactions with the CA:DE application.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Support
- CaptureAge lists support by email at [email protected] and links to Discord, Reddit, and X for news, feedback, and support.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Founded
- 2018Read 28 Sep 2026 · captureage.com
- Analytics
- The privacy policy names Google Analytics and Mixpanel as service providers used to monitor and analyze service use.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Anonymous statistics
- The settings documentation says users can allow anonymous user statistics and that no personal data is stored for this setting.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Architecture
- A developer AMA describes a C++ DirectX 11 renderer with a Chromium and React frontend.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- CA:DE recordings
- CA:DE recordings allow spectating without the game running, reduce performance impact and are designed to remain usable across game patches.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Company headquarters
- LinkedIn lists CaptureAge headquarters in Mechelen, Belgium.Read 15 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
- Company legal facts
- CaptureAge BV is a Belgian private limited company incorporated in 2019 with enterprise number 0734.747.383.Read 15 Oct 2026 · b2bhint.com
- Company size
- The careers site describes a fully remote team of roughly 30–35 coworkers across more than 20 countries.Read 15 Oct 2026 · careers.captureage.com
- Compatibility
- The FAQ says CA:DE has preliminary support for non-Steam versions, including the Microsoft Store version, and asks users to test Xbox PC versions.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Custom hotkeys
- Custom hotkeys are configured by editing persistedState_prod.json, and malformed JSON can reset or blank settings.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Documentation scope
- The help center includes overview, versions, time controls, recordings, skins, statistics, settings, known issues, subscriptions and FAQs.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Free features
- The free version supports patch-agnostic CA:DE recording playback, full zoom, essential statistics, an integrated creator scoreboard, and a replay browser.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Free playback
- The free edition supports patch-agnostic CA:DE recordings, a replay browser, full zoom, essential statistics and an integrated scoreboard.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Game modes
- The documentation lists 1v1, team games, free-for-all, AI games, and Battle Royale among the supported modes.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Game requirement
- The installer requires Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and a legitimate installation with its assets.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Licence terms
- The terms grant a limited personal, non-transferable licence, prohibit redistribution, reverse engineering and hosting, and keep ownership with CaptureAge.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Limit: crashes
- Users report crashes during long replay viewing and cases where CaptureAge and Age of Empires II fail together.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- Limit: display support
- Uncommon and ultrawide resolutions are not well supported, with ultrawide improvements on the roadmap.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Limit: Linux
- Users report that there is no officially supported Linux version.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- Limit: performance
- Running CA:DE live beside the game needs more resources and may perform poorly on computers that run Age of Empires II smoothly.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Limit: replay compatibility
- Community reports say game patches can break older replays or cause desynchronization after only part of a recording plays.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- Limit: screenshots
- The FAQ states that CA:DE has no built-in screenshot function.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Limit: shortcuts
- The FAQ says custom shortcuts are not currently supported through the normal interface.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Limit: subscription pricing
- Reddit discussions repeatedly criticize the €5 monthly subscription and ask for a one-time purchase option.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- Maker origin
- The company says it grew out of the Age of Empires community and now delivers AAA game development services.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Maker partnership
- CaptureAge says it partners with World's Edge at Xbox Game Studios on Age of Empires development.Read 15 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
- Match statistics
- The statistics window provides score, military, economy, technology, society and APM tabs with configurable graphs.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Microsoft Store support
- Non-Steam and Microsoft Store versions have preliminary support and some features may not work.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Notable news
- World's Edge announced CaptureAge collaboration on the Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Chronicles: Battle for Greece expansion released in November 2024.Read 15 Oct 2026 · store.steampowered.com
- Performance
- The FAQ says running CA:DE alongside the game demands more from the system than running the game alone and recommends CA:DE Recordings for best performance.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Performance guidance
- The documentation recommends disabling enhanced graphics, using low settings and 30 FPS, minimizing the game and installing on an SSD.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Praise: analysis
- Community commenters praise CaptureAge for learning from games, detailed statistics and rewind functionality.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- Praise: free edition
- Reddit users repeatedly describe the free product as an amazing improvement over the game's built-in replay viewer.Read 15 Oct 2026 · reddit.com
- Pro features
- Pro adds recording generation, match timeline controls, reverse playback, bookmarks, unit-follow camera, and additional statistics and unit breakdowns.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Pro replay tools
- Pro adds recording generation, timeline jumps, fast-forward, reverse playback, bookmarks, unit-follow camera, economy efficiency and effective APM statistics.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Requirement
- CA:DE requires Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition to be installed.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Security and privacy
- The privacy policy says CaptureAge collects account, device, usage and CA:DE interaction data, uses Google Analytics and Mixpanel, and sends payment processing to Braintree or PayPal.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Skin debugging
- A built-in HTTP server can expose the live interface for browser DevTools inspection while developing skins.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Skin extensibility
- Users can create skin folders or ZIPs containing a skin.json manifest, CSS, SVG and PNG assets.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Skins
- Pro Plus and Pro Legend include custom CA:DE skins that let users customize the interface with their own CSS and assets.Read 7 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Statistics dashboard
- Dashboards show economy, military, APM and resource information, with team-game aggregates and Battle Royale views.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Support channels
- CaptureAge directs users to email support, Discord, Reddit and X for help and feedback.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
- Supported modes
- Documentation lists 1v1, team games, free-for-all, AI games and Battle Royale as supported modes.Read 15 Oct 2026 · captureage.com
Plans and prices
Strong points and limits
Strong points
- Free version includes full zoom and replay browser
- Supports several game modes, including Battle Royale
- Pro adds timeline and unit-follow camera controls
- Pro Plus and Pro Legend include custom skins
Limits
- Requires Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
- Available for Windows only
- Running alongside the game demands more system resources
- Pro costs €5/mo
Who it suits
It suits Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition players, casters, and enthusiasts who want replay viewing and additional match statistics. Pro features are aimed at users who need recording generation or timeline and camera controls.
Verdict
CA:DE offers free spectating and replay tools, with paid tiers adding recording, analysis, and customization features. Check the game requirement and added system demands before using it alongside the game.
Where Specifiction places it
- Game Replay Analyzers#3 of 229.0