Age of Empires 4's next patch speeds up matchmaking, slows down scouts

The next patch for real-time strategy game Age of Empires IV will be available January 19, and it's making some small but impactful changes. In addition to a balance pass on most of the strategy game's civilizations, it's also reducing the amount of time you'll have to wait for a multiplayer game by making its matchmaking system a bit less picky.

The developers at Relic and World's Edge say they've been keeping an eye on matchmaking queue times, and they've found that the system is a bit too discriminating - it can take a few minutes before it settles on another evenly-skilled player. In the upcoming patch, the developers have sped up the time it takes for the matchmaking system to broaden its search to a wider pool of players by 67%.

Not everything is speeding up, however. Scouts across the board are going to be 35% slower while carrying animal carcasses, and the Rus' warrior monks are getting slowed by 25% whilst carrying relics. The devs say this should open up more counter-play options, and it should at least have the effect of making scouts less reliable as a source for food in the early game - they'll be vulnerable if used for this task.

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