A new trailer has dropped for the port of the easy-to-control Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition, before the real-time strategy classic lands on Xbox consoles and Game Pass later this month.
This incarnation of Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition not only packs in all the bells and whistles found in the current remaster, but also includes a control scheme optimized specifically for gamepads. This means that you will soon be able to enjoy Age of Empires 2 on Xbox Series X | S or Xbox One from the comfort of your living room sofa. The latest version also aligns with Games Pass’s emerging cloud gaming service, but it’s impressive nonetheless.
Age of Empires 2 is a classic RTS game in the truest sense of the word. You will play as one of the game’s historical factions and wage war across isometric battlefields in real time. Players construct buildings and defenses, while developing and commanding increasingly vast and complex armies.
If you went back in time to 1999 and told me that one day, you’d be able to play Age of Empires 2 in a browser, I’d accuse you of being the worst kind of liar. Game Pass once again reminds us that, in fact, we live in the future.
Head in the clouds
In addition to controller compatibility, Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition boasts a host of additional features that can’t be sniffed at. In addition to a completely remastered soundtrack and graphical improvements (including 4K resolution), the Definitive Edition includes a full expansion with a host of new factions and campaigns.
The Last Khans expansion gives you access to four new civilizations: Cumans, Tartars, Bulgars, and Lithuanians. There are also three new campaigns for Tatars, Cumans, and Bulgarians, as well as an extensive rework of all the operations in The Forgotten expansion.
To complement all of this, the Game Pass version of Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition also includes every expansion for the game released since the initial launch of the Definitive Edition. Among them are the dawn of dukes, princes of the West, and dynasties of India. As with The Last Khans, each of these expansions includes new civilizations and single-player stories for a total of eight new factions and nine new campaigns. In addition to the content in the vanilla final release.
All in all, it’s a very generous package and well worth checking out if you’re an RTS fan looking to get a taste of one of the genre’s titans. Age of Empires 2 was a staple of my childhood and helped me discover a lifelong love for RTS games. Without Age of Empires, I never would have learned to love the blistering insanity of Starcraft 2’s multiplayer ladder nor the exhilarating explosiveness of Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3.
Age of Empires set the standard for an entire gaming genre, and there’s never been a better time to get to grips with one of the greatest RTS games of all time. Whether you’re on PC, Xbox Series X, or streaming over the cloud, you’ll soon be able to experience the definitive version of this iconic experience for yourself.