Age of Empires 4came out in October of last year, and fans have been generally pleased with the latest entry in the iconic series.Age of Empires 3released way back in 2005 and the franchise was considered dead for many years, so naturally, there was a lot ofskepticism in the lead up toAOE4’s release.
However,Age of Empires 4has apparently been a big success for Microsoft. Despite beingavailable on Xbox Game Pass, it has frequently been a part of Steam’s Top Sellers list, and it currently holds the record for having the highest number of concurrent players in the series. There has always been a demand for a console version ofAge of Empires 4, and a new code name suggests an Xbox port is currently in development.
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Twitter user Aggiornamenti Lumia states that “Cardinal,” a code name forAge of Empires 4, is now available for testing in the Xbox insider hub. Lumia speculates that the letters XIP could stand for Xbox Insider Preview, and clarifies that this is the first time Microsoft has used those letters alongside Cardinal. As always, every rumor or leak should be taken with a grain of salt, but it should come as no surprise to seeAge of Empires 4eventually make it to Xbox consoles.
While previously only available on PC,Microsoft Flight Simulatordid release on Xbox Series Xin July, and it may encourage Microsoft to do the same with theAge of Empirestitles. However,Age of Empires4 is a completely different type of game, and porting it to consoles may require major design changes.
While fans can always plug in a mouse and keyboard to their consoles to playAge of Empires 4, it will still have to be designed around a controller before being released on Xbox consoles. There aren’t manyRTS games available on consoles, withHalo Warsand its sequel perhaps being the most noteworthy titles in this list. However,Halo Warswas fully designed with a controller in mind, and it will be interesting to see how Relic Entertainment, or any other developer, approaches this port.
Age of Empires 4is considered to be one ofthe best multiplayer games of 2021, and it will be a great addition to the software lineup of Xbox Series X. Last year was one of the best in recent times for Microsoft’s first-party games, and fans can hope that the trend continues in 2022.
