AGE OF EMPIRES 4 2022 ROADMAP RANKED SEASONS MOD SUPPORT, BALANCE CHANGES
After Age of Empires 4’s launch, the dust has settled. Developers World’s Edge, and Relic Entertainment, have shared the 2021-2022 road map of real-time strategy game, outlining the updates and changes that players can expect, including mod support and ranked season.
The first Age of Empires 4 roadmap was released shortly after the first post-launch patch went online. It introduced a smaller list of fixes for Xbox Account linking and an issue regarding Mongol Town Centers that cannot be built next to any opponent’s Town Center. The 2022 version was released in March.
Age of Empires IV Winter 2021 update
The Winter 2021 update was first on the Age of Empires IV 2020-2022 roadmap. It included “hundreds of balanced changes” and allowed players to enable in-game player score “on-a-case basis,” both in custom lobby multiplayer or skirmish matches.
This update also moved the Chinese Dynasty icon to the lower-left corner of the screen. Players can view the map once a match is over.
Age of Empires IV’s Winter 2021 Update brought additional refinements to its minimap. These included reducing the size of the icons, matching the Wonder icon on the HUD, and changing the colors of some resources.
Balance-wise, the French Hull became less dangerous, while the Chinese Repeater crossbow was significantly cheaper.
Age of Empires 4 Season One Update
The 2022 Age of Empires IV roadmap was updated in March with more insight into how developers approached things and details on what we can expect.
First, updates won’t be named after the four temperate seasons to serve the global community better and will be linked to the ranked seasonal ladder refreshes.
Seasons will last “approximately three months,” the new seasonal ladder starting at least one week after its accompanying update. This gives players time to adjust to their balance changes.
Seasons will be themed. “Contain Something for Everyone,” which includes new stuff to improve the competitive experience, quality, life, bug fixes, etc.
Between the more significant content drops, monthly patches will bring additional balance changes and bug fixes.
The Season One update marks a significant step in the Age of Empires IV’s 2022 roadmap. It introduces the following:
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- Age of Empires IV Content editor (Beta) & mods: This editor allows users to create their content for AoE IV. It will also be accompanied by “In-house Mods and Tutorials to Get You All Started.”
- 1v1 Ranked ladder
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- Hotkey improvements: More categories, including rebinding hotkeys for mouse buttons 3, 4, 5, and 5, and binding other commands to Alt and Shift keys. There are also new global hotkeys that can help you cycle through structures and find idle villagers.
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- Quality of life improvements: The Patrol move, the Global build queue, and a civ randomizer selection in the lobby. Also, full post-match map reveal.
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- MegaRandom, new Art of War challenge and difficulty tuning
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- Balance changes for Abbasid Dynasty and Chinese civilizations.
The article linked above provides more information about Season One.
Age of Empires Season Two Update
Release Date: June/July
Age of Empires IV’s Second Season Two Update is not as well-defined, but it contains a few welcome additions.
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- Ranked Season Two
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- Fully remappable inputs
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- Map Vote System
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- Player Color Picker
Age of Empires IV’s 2022 roadmap is looking very promising so far. These are just a few of the many changes and additions we can expect throughout this year. Cheats may soon be added to the game.
