We haven't learned much about Age of Empires IV since it was revealed in 2017. Still, we've finally gotten a look at the game, which includes playable civilizations like the Mongols and the Delhi Sultanate. In a "Fan Preview" gathering, Microsoft and developer Relic Entertainment showed off a lot of gameplay footage and new features and civilizations coming to the series. The game will be released in the fall of 2021.
The previous key entry in the long-running historical strategy series came out in 2005. The new game seeks to expand on that formula while incorporating features made possible by 15-ish years of technological advancements. This includes everything from the obvious — like 4K and HDR — to more strategy game-specific updates, such as modern pathfinding that can handle many units.
Relic Entertainment
According to the game's creators, the game's initial release would include eight civilizations. So far, we know about four of them: the Delhi Sultanate will make their debut in the Age of Empires, while the Mongols (who will receive a significant upgrade), Chinese, and English will all return. There hasn't been much knowledge about each civilization's unique abilities and traits so far. However, we did learn that the Delhi Sultanate will have elephant units and that the Mongols will be able to pack up and move their towns and houses (which is mind-blowing to see in action).
Relic spoke a lot about bringing asymmetry to civilizations during a Q&A; the team wanted to ensure that each played differently, with randomly generated maps catering to various civilizations' strengths and weaknesses. A map with a lot of chokepoints, for example, could benefit the Mongols with their highly mobile units and cities. In contrast, a map with a lot of chokepoints could help the English with their defense-heavy teams. There will be similar teams of groups, but the developers wanted to make sure that players could change their gameplay style and even play a specific civilization if they liked the mechanics.
The game's developers have discussed how campaigns, which serve as a sort of story mode in the Age of Empires, have evolved. They announced that the game would feature four movements but only gave information on the Norman conquest. We might not be history buffs enough to know much about it, but it seems that the game will try to teach me. According to the team, campaigns will provide documentary footage and commentary about the real-life historical events that you'll be playing in.
An exciting wait
All the fans are looking forward to the tech tree developments in Age of Empires IV. Of course, we would like more details, particularly given how long it's been since the announcement. What other cultures will we have the opportunity to play with? What are your expansion plans for the future? Will there be any entertaining cheat codes? For the time being, these questions remain unanswered, but it doesn't seem that we'll have to wait for an entire generation to find out. When it comes out, we are looking forward to discovering that we have forgotten all about how to play the game and being crushed by an easy AI.
In the fall of 2021, Age of Empires IV will be available on Windows 10 PCs via Steam, the Microsoft Store, and Xbox Game Pass for PC.