Developer Relic Entertainment finally gave Age of Empires fans their first real look at the upcoming Age of Empires 4. The April 10 fan event provided glimpses at the strategy title’s gameplay across four ages. It also provided info on how many civilizations will be included at launch and what’s planned to come after. It also showed off parts of the Norman Conquest campaign, one of four in the final game.
The almost 6-minute trailer, which can be seen above, is all gameplay and no filler, showing four of the game’s eight civilizations in action across four ages. The Delhi Sultanate fights the English in both the Dark Age and the Castle Age, while the Mongols fight the Chinese across the Feudal Age and the Imperial Age.
Along the way, the in-engine gameplay trailer provides shows AoE 4‘s breadth of combat scenarios, giving glimpses at everything from skirmishes and ambushes to larger confrontations and full-scale sieges. Of course, base-building, hunting and gathering, and commerce get their spots in the limelight as well.
The Norman Conquest campaign is one of four campaigns that will be available when the game launches. It begins in 1066 and deals with King Harold and Duke William of Normandy’s battles as they vie for control of the throne and “civil war erupts.” Though Age of Empires campaigns have always played out against the backdrop of history, it’s unclear if all of the major players of this particular campaign, including the French and the Vikings, will be separate civilizations.
The entire showcase can be seen in the video above, which gives even more in-depth information on civilizations and gameplay elements, including the motion capture used to detail individual unit animations and the “modern documentary style” present in the game.
Relic said they would share more about Age of Empires 4‘s other four civilizations sometime soon and that the game will get more after launch, though that’s all we know at this point.
While this is the first real glimpse fans have gotten at the long-awaited sequel to Age of Empires 3, which launched more than a decade ago in 2005, Relic said they have been working with the AoE community throughout development to make a game that long-time fans want to play.
Age of Empires 4 was announced in 2017, and its first gameplay trailer, albeit short, was revealed at XO 2019. It is scheduled to release in fall 2019 and does not have a firm release date for that window. It will launch for PC; no other platforms have been announced. There will also be a multiplayer component alongside the game’s single-player modes.
On top of all of that, Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition and AoE 3: DE will be getting some attention this year as well.
