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Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition News

Get a Sneak Peek of Age of Empires IV Season Five with the PUP!



LIVE NOW! The Age of Empires IV Season Five Public Update Preview (PUP) is available now through May 15th!

[expand][h2]How to Access[/h2]

To get started with the PUP build, owners on Steam can download the  Age IV  PUP by following the instructions below: 

  1. Navigate to your Steam library and right click on  Age of Empires IV .
  2. Select Properties… at the bottom of the menu .
  3. Select the BETAS tab on the left.
  4. In the Select the beta… dropdown menu, select future_live .
  5. The build will begin downloading – once complete, you are ready to play!
      Please note that during the PUP, you will be required to launch the Content Editor from the Age of Empires IV section of your Steam Library as well. More information here.
Please note that replays in the PUP build are not compatible with the retail version. Players in the PUP version will only be able to match with those also on the PUP build. To revert back to retail, simply change your beta branch (step 4 above) back to “None.” 

We hope you join us for this fun-filled experience, and we can’t wait to hear back from you![/expand]
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From May 4th through 15th, owners of Age of Empires IV on Steam will have an opportunity to dive into all the amazing content, updates and changes coming in Season Five!

The Age of Empires IV Public Update Preview (PUP) presents an opportunity for our incredible players to get hands-on experience with exciting changes ahead of major updates. They also provide an opportunity to give feedback and help us prepare for upcoming major releases. PUP builds will generally contain new features, content, balance changes and bug fixes.

[h2]A New Game Mode, Team Voice Chat, Trade Updates and More! [/h2]
Among the content highlighted in this PUP is Empire Wars, a new, quick-to-action game mode where players start with a burgeoning empire, ready to dive into combat or advance to the next Age! Players begin the match with a variety of pre-built buildings and villagers already tasked on resource collection.

Not only that, but you’ll be able to try out three news maps before they officially go live, including Golden Heights, Migration, and Volcanic Island!

The Season Five Public Update Preview will also include:
  • Team Voice Chat – strategize with your friends in-match with the new team voice chat! Or use the speech-to-text feature to more easily send communications to your team!
  • New trade updates based directly on community feedback!
  • New unique options for every civilization! From unique tech and unique units, we’re making design changes so that each civilization’s personality shines through!
  • Additional support for mods that make it easier for everyone in the lobby to start the match.
  • … and a whole lot of bug fixes & balance changes!

This build also contains a number of graphics optimizations, visual upgrades, and performance-related improvements. These kinds of system-based changes, paired with new features, can result in edge case bugs – please report any crashes or issues in the Steam Forums. One of our primary focuses this PUP is to harden our tech and ensure we’re ready to go when it’s time to officially release Season Five!

[h2]Getting Ready for the PUP [/h2]
Alongside the PUP’s start will be Release Notes covering the available content and spectacular changes coming to Age IV!

⚠️This is a preview build of an upcoming update to Age of Empires IV. Some features in this preview are not yet final.

While all feedback will be collected, this PUP is primarily focused on gathering and acting on telemetry and reports related to stability ahead of the major Season Five update.

Please note that Events, Rewards and certain Seasonal activities and surprises may not be present in the PUP.

[h2]Something Monstrous and Mysterious Arrives On Land & Water Soon! [/h2]
While we aren’t previewing all seasonal and event content as part of this PUP, we’re excited to let you in on some of our upcoming plans! Season Five will see the return and expansion of a concept we explore in our second season; our events will be a lot of fun and a little bit mysterious, asking you to scour the land and seas in search of these rare creatures!



Map Monsters are ready to make a splash at our Pool Party event, and you’re invited to join in on the fun next month!

Celebrate the Return of Rome By Pre-Ordering Now!



Where were you in 1998? Perhaps listening to Cher’s Believe, watching Titanic, playing with your Tamagotchi and relaxing on your inflatable couch? Or were you playing the Age of Empires DLC The Rise of Rome? This beloved evolution of the first Age of Empires game has taken on a new form and joined the Definitive Edition era in the Return of Rome DLC for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition.

Yes, you read that correctly, Age of Empires content available in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. Bringing the civilizations and action of ancient worlds to AoE II: DE. Purchasers will be able to switch to Return of Rome in the game’s main screen and take on fresh challenges.

[h2]What can you expect from this new and innovative DLC? [/h2]
  • 3 new campaigns created specifically for Return of Rome. Sargon of Akkad (Sumerians), Pyrrhus of Epirus (Macedonians) and Trajan (Romans). With new missions to tackle and stories told through the familiar AoE II: DE style, you’ll be able to live more moments from history.
  • All 16 original Age of Empires civilizations from the Assyrians to the Yamato. Get to grips with the civilizations that started the Age of Empires journey.
  • One new civilization, the Lac Viet. In honor and recognition of Rise of Rome’s phenomenal popularity in Vietnam, we’ve added a new civilization with Return of Rome. Adding something new for established and beginner players.
  • New D3 Game Mode. D3 is an homage to a fan favorite rule set that is now fully integrated into the game.  This rule set reduces rush tactics and allows players to start their early game more robustly, only allowing fighting with a single unit until entering the Bronze Age, ensuring players reach later Ages for equal battles.  This rule set also bans walls and towers, making for exciting match ups later in the game.
  • The Roman civilization will be playable in the main AoE II: DE title. If you’ve ever wondered how the Romans might fare against the Aztecs, now’s your opportunity to find out.

Catch a glimpse of what Return of Rome has to offer in our teaser trailer:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h2]How to Pre-Order[/h2]
Return of Rome is available to pre-order now on Steam! This innovative DLC is available as a standalone purchase, or as a bundle with Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. Rome is calling. It’s time to return.
Pre-order the Return of Rome today and be ready to conquer your opponents and forge a new Roman Empire on May 16, 2023!


https://store.steampowered.com/app/2141580/Age_of_Empires_II_Definitive_Edition__Return_of_Rome/

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/31630/Age_of_Empires_II_Definitive_Edition__Return_of_Rome_Bundle/

Server Maintenance - Wednesday, April 26



WHAT: Server Maintenance (Matchmaking Servers)
WHEN: Wednesday, April 26 @ 2:00p PT / 5:00p ET / 21:00 UTC (Countdown)
EST. DOWNTIME: 1-2 HOURS

[h3]GAMES & PLATFORMS IMPACTED[/h3]
[h3]OBJECTIVES[/h3]
  • Routine server updates and maintenance.

[h3]DETAILS[/h3]This coming Wednesday, April 26th, the platform team will be taking the multiplayer servers down for regular maintenance. Please note:

  • Ranked matchmaking will disabled exactly one hour before the maintenance window to prevent disruption to newly-formed matches.

  • Any matches still in progress at the start of the maintenance window will be disrupted when it begins.

  • DURING THE MAINTENANCE WINDOW, YOU WILL STILL BE ABLE TO LAUNCH THE GAME, BUT WILL NOT BE ABLE TO MATCHMAKE OR ACCESS ANY ONLINE FEATURES.

To prevent any interruptions, we recommend wrapping up any games at least 10 minutes before the maintenance window. The downtime is expected to last between 1 and 2 hours. You can watch this thread with any changes to the schedule as they arise, as well as the all-clear when the maintenance is complete.

Thank you for your patience!

Интервью с ведущим геймдизайнером Брэндоном Кастилом: О разработке Tempest Rising, кризисе RTS и наследии Command & Conquer

Последние лет 15 жанр стратегий в реальном времени (RTS) находился в коматозном состоянии. Объяснений происходящему — масса, а диспозиция выглядит следующим образом. Приблизительно в середине 2000-х жанр достиг своего пика и начал стагнировать. Попытки расширить аудиторию и резко увеличить продажи привели к появлению на свет довольно странных экспериментов, которые только отпугнули игроков. 

Celebrate Villagers with Age of Empires IV!



Who doesn’t love the Age of Empires Villagers? You’re in luck – we’ve got a fun event planned to celebrate ALL the Villagers in Age of Empires IV starting today, April 20th through May 18th! So grab your favorite villagers and chop some wood, go mine for gold, or collect food from berry bushes and play some fun challenges and earn exclusive rewards during the Villager Appreciation Celebration Event!





[h2]Login Rewards[/h2]
Plus, just in case you missed them in Seasons One and Two, here’s another chance to earn these login rewards!



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We hope you enjoy the Villager Appreciation Celebration Event and are looking forward to the next one!

Don’t forget to keep sharing your feedback on Seasons with us in the forums – we’d love to hear your feedback!