The developers of Age of Empires IV have announced a closed preview beta for the highly anticipated real-time strategy game, running between 5 and 16 August. Thousands of players will be able to try out an early version of the game in the largest preview event to date.
Players who already signed up to the Age of Empires Insider programme will be eligible for the beta. If you haven’t signed up, it’s probably worth your while if you’d like to be considered for future previews.
What’s included in the AOE 4 beta?
Age of Empires IV
Image Credit: Xbox Game Studios
In multiplayer and AI skirmishes, players will be able to try out four of the eight launch civilizations: the Mongol, English, Delhi Sultanate and Chinese civilizations. Up to eight players can participate in matches, and the preview includes a handful of customizable map types.
The preview event also includes a tutorial mission called Mission Zero. This will introduce players to developing an early town and getting to grips with the economics and combat.
Getting hands on
Age of Empires IV
Image Credit: Xbox Game Studios
The feedback accrued during this preview stage will help developers Relic and World’s Edge to fine-tune and balance the game’s units and systems. They also mention collecting ideas to inform post-launch Age of Empires IV content.
The announcement page makes mention of the recommended system specs to run the closed beta preview, and they look quite forgiving:
- OS: Windows 10
- Processor: 1.7-2.7GHz (turbo) 4 core: Intel Core i5-4460T (35w) / AMD FX-6300 or better
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 760 / AMD Radeon R7 260X or better with at least 2 GB of VRAM
