Age of Empires IV beta gameplay video leaked

A 90-minute plus gameplay video taken from the Age of Empires IV closed beta has found its way onto social media and video-sharing platforms. In the long clip, the player has chosen the Chinese empire, starting from the Tang Dynasty, and the video is long enough to show progress throughout four ages. The Age of Empires IV session starts with a humble town center and a handful of workers and ends with the gamer having explored the map, engaging in various conflicts, and being in possession of a huge walled and heavily guarded city.

It’s typical Age of Empires stuff, and any fan of one of the most famous RTS series ever put together will instantly recognize the gameplay and overall look. However, trailers and teasers for Age of Empires IV have constantly faced criticism specifically about the graphics. Whether it’s riders on horses “gliding” over the landscape like its covered in a sheet of ice or weapons being massively out of scale, there have been plenty voicing their concerns over how Age of Empires IV looks.

However, it’s worth having another look at Age of Empires III to see just how number 4 has been refined and improved. The UI looks much sharper and more befitting the powerful gaming PCs of 2021 rather than the now very dated machines of 2005, when Age of Empires III first hit the shelves. Good RTS titles don’t shy away from having well-constructed graphics but it is always gameplay that should be king. Subjectively speaking, it’s hard to imagine too many will be disappointed by the visuals on display in Age of Empires IV, at least based on the leaked clip.

The closed beta for the game started on August 5, with the release date for Age of Empires IV set for October 28. The game is available for pre-order and will be released for the Microsoft Windows and Xbox Cloud Gaming platforms. According to the official Twitter account for Age of Empires, over 100,000 invitations were sent out to gamers for the closed beta, so clearly there is huge interest in this long-awaited AoE installment.

Buy Age of Empires III: Complete Collection for the PC on Amazon