by The Age of Empires franchise team has announced that the real-time strategy game Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is now available for Xbox consoles and on the Game Pass service. This acclaimed game installment is a redesigned edition “from scratch” to fit in an “intuitive and accessible” way to control the Microsoft console.
Until now, the video game was only available for PC. However, Xbox and the Age of Empires team have moved forward to bring “this beloved franchise” to more players “around the world,” the company said in a statement.
In this sense, the game developed by Forgotten Empires, Tantalus Media, Wicked Witch and World’s Edge, You can now play through Xbox Game Pass and therefore their consoles. It is also being brought to Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta), which will allow players to “continue building their empire”, even when they are away from PC or console, as explained by the American company on its website.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is an “innovative” edition that improves the game for users who are more used to using a controller instead of a keyboard, while retaining all the features that veteran gamers “know and love.”
Thus, users will act as rulers armed with Xbox controllers to demonstrate their skill in more than 200 hours of historical gameplay, which covers more than a thousand years of human history in 35 civilizations. “Our passionate community of Age of Empires players has been asking us to bring Age to the console, and we have been listening,” they have moved from Xbox.
To bring the game to the console, a new optimized interface has been implemented. Thus, the Age of Empires team has developed a user interface that allows easy readability and understanding on both PC and console, so that the player can focus on his building strategies.
In addition, players will have an updated tutorial specific to each console and controller, as well as new console-specific automation features to “relieve basic resource gathering functionality.”
Nevertheless, for those players who still prefer to use keyboard and mouse, they can also do it with the console game, since that their tickets are compatible, thus allowing any game option.
New gameplay features have also been implemented to “elevate the Age of Empires experience” for both new and experienced players. In this way, villager automation and “site-based commands” have been added, to balance time and focus when boosting armies.
This new edition of the classic in the real-time strategy genre incorporates new graphics for consoles. Specifically, 4K graphics on Series X and 1,440p on Series S. It also includes an ‘online’ multiplayer mode between Xbox consoles, and optional cross-play between Xbox consoles and PC. In addition to all this, players will be able to enjoy a new fully remastered soundtrack.
Price and availability of Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is currently available on Xbox Game Pass for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta). As for its sale price, it can be purchased for 89,900 Colombian pesos in the Xbox Store.
On the other hand, the Age of Empires II: Deluxe Definitive Edition delivery which includes the expansions ‘The Lords of the West’, ‘Dawn of the Dukes’ and ‘Dynasties of India’, has a cost of 179,900 Colombian pesos or $143,920 for those who have a membership to the Xbox Game Pass service.
*With information from Europa Press
