We heard your pleas, and we agree that now is the perfect time—we're aging up and heading to the console age!
— Age of Empires (@AgeOfEmpires) October 25, 2022
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires IV are coming to Xbox consoles and xCloud in 2023. Check out the trailer and mark your calendar! #AoE25 pic.twitter.com/YXpTKHCDaf
Age of Empires IV and 2 Definitive Edition are coming to Xbox consoles
UPDATE: Microsoft confirms 2023 releases for two games on console
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is seemingly coming to Xbox consoles, according to a newly discovered rating.
A tweet by Gematsu noted that European rating organisation PEGI has added Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One ratings to its existing Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition rating decision.
According to the entry on PEGI’s database, the game is due to be released on console later today.
Update - Microsoft confirms
Microsoft has officially announced that Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires IV are coming to Xbox consoles and xCloud in 2023.
“For those players who are loyal to keyboard and mouse, we’ve ensured that those inputs are supported in the console version,” wrote World’s Edge’s Emma Bridle.
“We also considered the functionality Xbox players have come to expect from their games and so the game will include optional crossplay between platforms, allowing you to play with your friends on Xbox and on PC. We’re also bringing the game to Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta), allowing players to continue their empire building, even when away from PC or console.”
If true, the news is likely to come during a 25th anniversary Age of Empires broadcast planned for later today.
The presentation will be streamed on the official Twitch and YouTube channels for both Age of Empires and Xbox, and is set to start at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm BST.
A blog post on the official Age of Empires site states that the presentation will feature “announcements, interviews with the team and some surprises”.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition was released on PC in 2019 and is a remaster of the 1999 game, featuring significantly improved graphics, support for 4K resolution and all previously released expansions.
It has already been confirmed that Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition will be released today on Steam and the Microsoft Store.
This new version of Age of Empires IV includes the base game, all updates released so far and an Anniversary Update containing two new civilisations, the Ottomans and the Malians.
Existing owners of Age of Empires IV can claim the Anniversary Update for free.
Further reading
Review: Age of Empires 4 is a brilliant sequel to an RTS classic
Microsoft's long-awaited follow-up plays it safe while streamlining some of the series' more tedious mechanics.
An Xbox port of Age of Empires IV was reportedly discovered back in January, but no further information has been uncovered since then.
VGC’s Age of Empires IV review said the game was “a really good RTS that plays it safe in the shadow of its famous predecessor, but rarely stands out on its own beyond that”.
We added: “The early game has never felt smoother, and the changes to UI and animation are welcome. While the win conditions aren’t endless, the stories of how you achieved them, or failed miserably trying, are.”
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