Microsoft Takes Wraps Off Age of Empires Online
I still remember playing the first two versions of Age of Empires, it was one of my favorites in my collection of Civilization, Doom, and Duke Nukem, and others. But, then somewhere along the way it fell by the wayside.
Between then and now Microsoft closed down Ensemble Studios, the team behind AOE, and it seemed that the game was destined to vanish to the great bit bucket in the sky. However, that was not to be its destiny as Microsoft decided thatit could re-image the game to suit the new tastes of on-line multi-player, and social (if in style only) gaming.
I had a chance to play the game in early beta, and while it definitely isn’t anything like the Age of Empires that I remember, and played, it was still fun. The graphics are similar to those you find in a lot of the social games that are really popular, meaning they are on the cartoony side instead of the type used in the original game.
The latest incarnation unveiled by Microsoft is strictly a downloadable on-line only game that comes in both free and premium versions. The premium will let you unlock rare gear and new player units, so the idea obviously is to get people’s feet wet with the free version and then entice them to cough up the cash for the premium offering.
Here is Microsoft’s announcement about the game’s availability and followed with an interview with Chris Taylor, the lead developer for the game:
[Cross-posted at Winextra]
A message from John Furrier, co-founder of SiliconANGLE:
Support our mission to keep content open and free by engaging with theCUBE community. Join theCUBE’s Alumni Trust Network, where technology leaders connect, share intelligence and create opportunities.
- 15M+ viewers of theCUBE videos, powering conversations across AI, cloud, cybersecurity and more
- 11.4k+ theCUBE alumni — Connect with more than 11,400 tech and business leaders shaping the future through a unique trusted-based network
Are you an AWS customer? Support SiliconANGLE financially by buying your AWS services from our Marketplace portal page and links: https://siliconangle.com/aws-marketplace/
About SiliconANGLE Media
SiliconANGLE Media is a recognized leader in digital media innovation, uniting breakthrough technology, strategic insights and real-time audience engagement. As the parent company of SiliconANGLE, theCUBE Network, theCUBE Research, CUBE365, theCUBE AI and theCUBE SuperStudios — with flagship locations in Silicon Valley and the New York Stock Exchange — SiliconANGLE Media operates at the intersection of media, technology and AI.
Founded by tech visionaries John Furrier and Dave Vellante, SiliconANGLE Media has built a dynamic ecosystem of industry-leading digital media brands that reach 15+ million elite tech professionals. Our new proprietary theCUBE AI Video Cloud is breaking ground in audience interaction, leveraging theCUBEai.com neural network to help technology companies make data-driven decisions and stay at the forefront of industry conversations.
