Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings is a real-time strategy computer game set in the Middle Ages. It was released in 1999, and is the second main title of the Age of Empires series developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft. Due to its commercial success, an expansion pack was released; Age of Empires II: The Conquerors, followed by a Gold Edition, which bundled the two games together along with a bonus map and game matches recorded by Microsoft strategy experts.
In 2013, Age of Empires II: HD Edition was announced and given a release date of April 9, 2013 on the Steam digital distribution platform for Windows operating systems only. The HD Edition includes both the original game and the expansion The Conquerors, as well as updated graphics for high-resolution displays. It also supports user-generated content through the Steam Workshop and multiplayer games provided through the Steam servers. After more than a decade another expansion pack was released, Age of Empires II HD: The Forgotten. It had more bug fixes, advanced AIs and balancing. It required the HD Edition to be installed first. Later, in 2015, a new expansion Age of Empires II HD: The African Kingdoms was added, reaching a total of 27 civilizations. The following year in 2016, Age of Empires II HD: Rise of the Rajas was released on the 19th of December, bringing the total number of civilizations to 31.
Victors and Vanquished, the sixth expansion to Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, was released. This expansion comprises only individual battle scenarios, and does not feature any new civilization.
October 31, 2023
The Mountain Royals, the fifth expansion to Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, was released.
May 16, 2023
Return of Rome, a port of Age of Empires to Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and the second and fourth expansion to those games respectively, was released.
January 31, 2023
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and all its then existing expansions were released on Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Xbox Game Pass. Future expansions would be released on PC and Console concurrently.
April 28, 2022
Dynasties of India, the third expansion to Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, was released.
Age of Empires II trailer
Age of Empires 2 Official Trailer (2000, Ensemble Microsoft)
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