After being delayed to early 2018 last Fall, Age of Empires: Definitive is finally available today on Windows 10 PCs as a Microsoft Store exclusive. The remaster of the cult-classic RTS game comes with fully remastered 4K-ready graphics, a new orchestral soundtrack as well as support for local and Xbox Live multiplayer.
“We created Age of Empires: Definitive Edition as a homage to all Real Time Strategy (RTS) fans and to PC gamers everywhere, explained explained Adam Isgreen, Creative Director at Microsoft. “The Definitive Edition brings back the original Age of Empires and its Rise of Rome expansion with 16 civilizations to explore 10 campaigns to conquer,” he added.
The game is a $19.99 purchase on the Microsoft Store, which is really affordable for over 40 hours of updated campaign, and many more hours if you plan to play online. Unfortunately, the team has acknowledged some issues with the game crashing on startup in certain circumstances. You can try deleting and reinstalling as a workaround, and be aware that the team is already working on a fix for all affected users.
Some folks are having trouble with Age DE crashing on startup. If this is you: please UNINSTALL and REINSTALL the game! This has solved the issue for many affected users. If this doesn't resolve your problem, please follow the steps at https://t.co/JqmOIefcEy
— Age of Empires (@AgeOfEmpires) February 20, 2018
It’s still not clear if Age of Empires: Definitive Edition could eventually join Age of Empires II on Steam, but it seems that Microsoft is at least open to the idea. “I fully recognise that some people have issues with the Windows 10 Store,” Isgreen told PCGamesN today, adding that the team still needs time to “figure out if we go somewhere else from there or not.”
