Age of Empires: Fan Preview Recap – All Revealed At Today’s Global Community Event

A new era is here! Today we got our first look at the new gameplay footage for the next one. Age of Empires IV during the Age of Empires: fan preview event that showcased the wonderful Age of Empires community, as well as the many games that have made this franchise a pillar of strategic space for two decades. Let’s dive in.

An in-depth look at Age of Empires IV

The preview event kicked off with a detailed look at one of the new playable civilizations from Age of Empires IV, the Delhi Sultanate, and showed one of their most iconic units in action: the War Elephant. Mixed with the gameplay of archers shooting from above at castle walls, lancers engaging in battles, sultanate scholars capturing sacred sites and supporting assaults by war elephants – it all seems very Age of Empires and we couldn’t be happier to see it in action.

The global fair continued with a preview of the Normandy countryside, which also gave us our first glimpse of the new presentation style of Age of Empires IV’s campaigns. Drawing inspiration from the golden manuscripts of the time, the “golden soldiers” project historical events onto current real-world locations, giving us a realistic idea of ​​place in how events unfolded hundreds of years ago. ‘years. It’s very inspired by the BBC documentary style, and it sounds awesome. Prepare to learn more throughout the three other campaigns of Age of Empires IV.

The Normandy Campaign will tell the story of Duke William of Normandy as he battles for control of England against King Harold, starting with the Battle of Hastings and then following his descendants Robert, William II and then Henry I let them keep fighting for what would. to become the England of modern times. All of the classic medieval units were shown here in action, with knights on horseback engaging with pikemen across vast battlefields crowned with a stunning castle siege.

It all looks very epic with many units in the field and the game engine itself displaying well-detailed grass on the fields, intricate stone textures on the castle walls, and detailed unit characteristics of theirs. shields, spears and armor all help to bring an authentic look and feel to this strategy game.

A look through the ages: medieval, feudal, castle and imperial

Following this reveal, we were treated to an even deeper dive into the gameplay in Age of Empires IV, starting with the High Middle Ages and a battle between the English and the Sultanate of Delhi, as we were about to be guided through the four ages of the game. It began by featuring English villagers gathering resources to start building their town center, scouts hunting deer and villagers collecting mutton. Soon a lone scout encounters an enemy fortification, and from there you can guess what will come next: war. It won’t be long before we see Lancers, Archers, and more combat-oriented construction unfold as civilizations begin to age and skirmishes escalate into war as each continues their battle for control of the map.

On the other side of the world, the feudal age featured the Mongols and Chinese civilizations, in stark contrast to the castles and knights shown earlier. Chinese identity is immediately apparent, with unique architecture and costumes, language faithful to the era, and military units clad in traditional clothing wielding intimidating weapons.

The Mongols and the extensive use of tent-like structures, which suit their playstyle, allow them to tidy up their entire village and move around different sections of the map in search of resources. With their focus on stone resources and their ability to move their entire city at will, many new tactics and strategies become possible.

Speaking of new strategies, we’ve taken a look at the new Stealth Forest mechanic, which are unique patches of forest that units can hide in to prepare ambushes. The view inside and inside these forest areas is very limited, which means that armies could move one after another and never see each other! You will know that your units are in stealth woods thanks to the blue outline that surrounds them and their whispered answers.

Then there was a preview of The Castle Age, which now featured an advanced battle of the Delhi Sultanate and English civilization – it was complete on war elephants clashing against giant castles, siege towers crawling towards the before, soldiers clashing with swords along the castle walls … it was all very epic.

Finally, the gameplay video has returned to the Imperial Era as Chinese and Mongols, now with huge epic dungeons, multiple unit structures like barracks and stables, and more refined architecture as they go. are preparing for a Mongol invasion. Massive units marched onto the battlefield, full of trebuchets throwing stones at the castle walls, soldiers sprinting across the field on horseback, honeycombs throwing explosives, signal fireworks fired in the air to boost morale, and more.

Everything we’ve seen so far illustrates how well Relic Entertainment has managed to capture the look and feel of classic Age of Empires gameplay (gather, build, age, and explore) that made the series so unique. . I’m very interested to see how different each civilization will be as we get closer to launch later this year.

A look behind the scenes at Relic Entertainment

After the first look at the gameplay, we went behind the scenes at Relic Entertainment. It’s always great to put a human face on making a game, especially during a global pandemic. Despite the challenges of battling the pandemic, mostly working from home, the team was still able to collaborate remotely to build Age of Empires IV.

One of the things we learned was how much the team relied on working with their “Community Council,” a group of dedicated members of the Age of Empires community who helped test the game. game and providing valuable feedback to shape the game. It’s great to see this recognition and confidence to bring them to the fold.. After all, it’s the community that will be playing this game long after its release and getting their feedback early on will only help improve its potential with the strategy game community.

We also looked at some of the work being done to capture the historical accuracy of the game, from consultants to reenactment events, all designed to make the game as authentic as possible – every sound and unit in the game is informed by history. From this brief rundown alone, it’s clear that the team did a great job of not only capturing the essence of the original games, but the story as well.

Age of Empires Updates: Definitive Editions

The final editions will also receive new updates, starting with Dawn of the Dukes expansion this summer for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition which takes players to Eastern Europe with new campaigns and more. Also, later this year, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition will launch Co-op Historical Battles that will include handpicked Campaign Missions and Historical Battles to play with friends.

Then on April 13, Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition will release its first major update, Civilization of the United States. This new civilization will feature a new hometown, nine new units, an aging new mechanic, and more. American Civilization will be free for a limited time for those who complete a 50 State Challenge. All players need to do is complete up to 3 challenges per day and unlock civilization upon completion of the last challenge. Alternatively, American Civilization can also be purchased directly through Steam or the Windows Store for $ 4.99 USD. Age of Empires III: DE will also have another update scheduled for later this year with African Civilizations; we’ll have more details to share here later this year.

Age of Empires IV Alienware closed beta and sweepstakes

To top off all the news, the first details of the next Age of Empires IV closed beta which will be open to Age Insider members who register AgeOfEmpires.com. Age Insiders can also enter a raffle to win a one-of-a-kind Alienware Battle Battle, featuring a custom Age of Empires Alienware Aurora R11 desktop setup, Alienware 7.1 gaming headset, Alienware 25 gaming monitor, and Moreover! The draw runs until April 24. Click on here for more details.

Visit the virtual village

Now that the show is over, continue your celebration of all things Age of Empires by visit the virtual village! Explore buildings, experiences, learn more about Age of Empires IV and enjoy exclusive video content. Get creative by producing your own avatar medallion, village postcard, or even your own coat of arms. There is much more to discover, so why not take a tour?

We will have more to share on Age of Empires IV in the coming months as we get closer to launch this fall. Be sure to stay tuned here on Xbox Wire for all the latest news and updates on your favorite games on Xbox and Windows 10 PC.