The upcoming fourth entry to the Age of Empires real-time strategy series was shown off today at the Fan Preview event, as promised. The highly-anticipated title also received a launch window for the first time, with Relic Entertainment announcing a Fall 2021 release plan for Windows.
As for the gameplay, this is the first time that footage from a player perspective has been released, and today"s reveal covered new gameplay, campaigns, and more. Catch the extended look above.
Many elements from the series" most popular entry, Age of Empires II, seem to be present in Age of Empires IV, at least in the early look given today. Aside from glimpses at the unique looks of each civilization, material gathering, and combat (with a sneak peek at naval elements), some new features like hiding troops in trees for ambushing were revealed here as well.
Age of Empires IV will include eight civilizations at launch, and today"s preview unveiled Delhi Sultanate and Chinese as two new civilizations heading in, which join the Mongols and the English that were announced previously. Four historical campaigns and asymmetrical civilization designs were also confirmed today.
There is good news for those looking to get into the game before the official launch this fall, as Relic is looking to kick off an Age of Empires IV closed beta soon. The developer urged interested players to sign up as an Age Insider on its official website for a chance to gain access. Age of Empires IV is releasing on Steam and Microsoft Store for Windows and as part of the Xbox Game Pass for PC subscription on day one.