The Age of Empires series is finally coming to Xbox consoles and cloud gaming

World’s Edge, the Xbox studio that’s overseeing Age of Empires these days, held an event to mark the franchise’s 25th anniversary. With it came some major news about the future of the series, including its debut on consoles. Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition will be available on Xbox consoles and Xbox Cloud Gaming on January 31st. 

The most recent game in the real-time strategy series, 2021’s Age of Empires IV, will arrive on consoles and Xbox Cloud Gaming later in 2023. Naturally, both titles will be available on Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. This is a big shift for a series that, until now, has only been available on PC. 

There will be crossplay support for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, so you can play with friends whether you’re on Xbox, PC or accessing it via the cloud. What’s more, the game will support keyboard and mouse inputs on console. In case you’d rather use a gamepad, World’s Edge has designed a new controller tutorial, along with a revamped onboarding experience for newcomers to the game. On top of that, the team has added an AI system that’s designed to make resource management more efficient and intuitive.

Elsewhere, World’s Edge announced a new definitive edition of 2002’s Age of Mythology, featuring “beautiful graphics, updated gameplay” and other features. Expect more details in the coming months. And, as is the way of things in the modern era, Age of Empires Mobile is in development, so you’ll be able to get your AoE fix wherever you are without having to stream a game from the cloud. That game is coming soon, according to a teaser.