Microsoft and World’s Edge have confirmed that Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires 4 will be coming to Xbox next year.

Microsoft has confirmed that more Age of Empires games will be coming to Xbox in 2023. Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires 4 are both planned. The real-time strategy franchise from Microsoft subsidiary World’s Edge was one of the earliest successful RTS franchises. The first game was released back in 1997. Fans have long been calling for strategy games to be brought to Xbox. Now Microsoft has officially confirmed that the franchise is finally making the jump to console.

World’s Edge Customer Voice Director Emma Bridle officially revealed Tuesday morning that Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires 4 will be coming to Xbox.

The release date for Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition has been set for January 31, 2023. And Episode 4 is also scheduled to come to Xbox next year. Bridle also announced that the Xbox versions would be compatible with mouse and keyboard controls. This will make them suitable for cross-platform play with the PC version. The games will also reportedly be released on the Xbox Cloud Gaming platform.

Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition was released in November 2019 as a remastered version of the classic PC strategy game. Age of Empires 2 is among the most popular games in the series. The 1999 strategy game still has a cult fan base to this day. It is also a popular game among modders. Fans have created campaigns based on popular (and stylistically controversial) games such as Doom.

The latest in the franchise, Age of Empires 4, was released late last year to critical acclaim. It was also the game most praised by fans. Among the most positively received areas, the diversity of civilisations is usually highlighted. Age of Empires 4 was also the success of an award last year, winning Best Simulator/Strategy Game at the 2021 Game Awards.

Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires 4 are new addition to the franchise, as Age of Empires will be released for the first time on Xbox consoles.

Despite being published by Microsoft, Age of Empires games have never been released on the publisher’s home console. The franchise has remained PC-only for most of its life, with only a few spin-offs, such as Age of Empires: The Age of Kings, being released for PS2 and Nintendo DS. The arrival of Age of Empires on Xbox marks a significant new step for the iconic strategy game.

Source: Microsoft