Age of Empires IV

Age of Empires IV continues the historical real-time strategy series with its own civilization mechanics. Players grow a settlement into a fortified city, gather food, wood, gold and stone, and invest these resources in technology, production and armies. Victories depend on a good economy, map exploration and the interplay of infantry, cavalry, ranged and siege units.

Developed by Relic Entertainment and World's Edge, the game combines staged historical campaigns with free-form battles and competitive multiplayer. The civilizations differ in architecture, development paths and special units. The later-introduced Anniversary Edition belongs to the same base game and is not a standalone sequel.

The base game was released on Oct 28, 2021 for Windows PC via Steam and Microsoft Store. Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S received specially adapted console versions on Aug 22, 2023. Since Nov 4, 2025, Age of Empires IV has also been available natively for PlayStation 5.

The scope grew after launch through new civilizations, maps and standalone expansions. On PS5 launch day, Dynasties of the East arrived with the Crucible mode. New DLCs change the feature set of the continuously supported base game, but not its original release date.

Age of Empires IV has been released natively for PC (Windows), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5. PC players can use Steam or the Microsoft Store. The console versions offer an interface adapted to gamepad controls, automation features and special learning options. On Xbox, you can also use mouse and keyboard.

Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S received their own versions in 2023. The PlayStation 5 version followed in 2025. A native release for PS4, Nintendo Switch or Switch 2 has not been announced. Expansions each require the matching version of the main game.

A match usually starts with a few villagers and limited supplies. Whoever efficiently gathers food, wood, stone and gold develops their settlement, expands production and assembles an army. As you advance through the historical ages, new units, buildings and technologies are unlocked. The economy keeps running in real time, while exploration and battles take place elsewhere on the map.

The civilizations follow different strategies. Mongols can change their position more flexibly, while the French rely, among other things, on strong cavalry and trade. Siege weapons, fortresses, waters and chokepoints determine whether attacks succeed. Unit types and economy must therefore be planned together, rather than simply training as many soldiers as possible.

Age of Empires IV has been expanded through several major expansions. The Sultans Ascend, Knights of Cross and Rose and Dynasties of the East add playable civilizations and content. Dynasties of the East brought the Crucible roguelite mode to the game on Nov 4, 2025, in which changing objectives, enemy waves and unlockable advantages change the matches.

Yue Fei’s Legacy followed on May 7, 2026. Since Oct 29, 2026, Raiders of the North is available. The expansion brings Vikings and Scots, two additional landscape biomes and four new Crucible missions. The DLC is required for the additional civilizations and missions.

The two-player co-op, new boons and progression systems are instead part of the general overhaul of the Crucible. If you already own Dynasties of the East, you can now also play its existing missions together. Raiders of the North adds four challenges of its own.

For Windows, Steam lists these minimum requirements: Windows 10 or 11 64-bit, a processor with AVX support, such as Intel Core i5-6300U or AMD Ryzen 5 2400G, 8 GB RAM, Intel HD 520 or Radeon RX Vega 11, DirectX 12 and 50 GB free storage space.

A faster six-core CPU is recommended, for example Intel Core i5 at 3.6 GHz or AMD Ryzen 5 1600, plus 16 GB RAM and a GeForce GTX 970 or Radeon RX 570 with at least 4 GB video memory. For very large battles, spare capacity for calculations and graphics is useful. Current requirements from the respective store take priority over older promotional material.

At the Xbox launch, Age of Empires IV offered four campaigns with 35 missions. They combine played historical conflicts with documentary explanations and cover around 500 years of history. Campaigns are also suited to learning about economy, army building and the strengths of individual civilisations.

At the PlayStation 5 launch in November 2025, World's Edge named five campaigns with 43 missions in total, including expansion content. This later figure cannot be equated with the base content of 2021 alone.

Age of Empires IV includes battles against computer-controlled opponents, cooperative matches and competitive multiplayer with ranked ladders. Steam lists matches with up to seven other players. The Xbox version supports different group sizes depending on the console generation.

The Dynasties of the East expansion brought Trial by Fire in 2025: a roguelite RTS mode with changing enemy waves, objectives and upgrades. For the Raiders of the North expansion, a cooperative Trial by Fire mode for two players is announced for October 2026.

The PC version traditionally relies on mouse and keyboard. The Xbox and PlayStation versions have specially designed controller interfaces with radial menus and simplified commands. On Xbox, the Villager Priority System makes it easier to automatically assign villagers to resource tasks.

The build menu of the Xbox version suggests suitable buildings and can send workers to construct them. On PS5, automation features and simplified tactical controls are also added. These changes are part of the permanent control concept and do not change the core of the real-time strategy gameplay.