Age of Empires 4 adds two free civilizations this October

Gamescom 2022 - Age of Empires 4
(Image credit: Relic)

Two new civilizations are heading to Age of Empires 4 in a free update on October 25.

Announced at Gamescom 2022, the Age of Empires 4 anniversary update will add the Malians and the Ottomans as playable factions. The Malians are suited to swiftly outmaneuvering opponents, flanking enemies and leveraging the element of surprise.

The Ottomans, meanwhile, are a more aggressive bunch whose powerful siege weaponry works best in head-on attacks. Their ability to rally large formations makes their frontlines strong. You’ll need to keep up the attack to break enemy defenses under the weight of your forces.

Watch the trailer below.

Released last year, Age of Empires 4 rebooted the classic RTS series to much fanfare. The Malians and Ottomans will mark the first new civilizations to be added to the game since launch, bringing its number of playable factions up to 10.

The game's also on Xbox Game Pass, so any subscribers to Microsoft's subscription platform can check out the anniversary update for free.

Callum Bains
Gaming News Writer

Callum is TechRadar Gaming’s News Writer. You’ll find him whipping up stories about all the latest happenings in the gaming world, as well as penning the odd feature and review. Before coming to TechRadar, he wrote freelance for various sites, including Clash, The Telegraph, and Gamesindustry.biz, and worked as a Staff Writer at Wargamer. Strategy games and RPGs are his bread and butter, but he’ll eat anything that spins a captivating narrative. He also loves tabletop games, and will happily chew your ear off about TTRPGs and board games. 

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