UPDATE:
⚠️ The Age of Empires IV Public Update Preview (PUP) has been extended through January 26th at 10 a.m. PT (1800 UTC)! Following this extension will be a small update the week of January 23rd that improves stability issues encountered in PUP.
The Age of Empires IV Season Four Public Update Preview (PUP) is LIVE now! Through January 23rd, owners of Age IV on Steam will have their first opportunity to try their hand at all the amazing content, updates, and changes coming with Season Four. Read on for more information!
This PUP session provides a hands-on look at what’s coming to Age of Empires IV in our Season Four update.
What To Expect
Our Age of Empires Public Update Previews (PUPs) present an opportunity for our incredible players to get hands-on experience with exciting changes ahead of major updates. They also provide an opportunity to give feedback and help us prepare for upcoming major releases.
Among the future content available in this PUP is a new game mode that many of you will remember from Age of Empires II—Nomad! This new mode sees players begin with three randomly placed Villagers. Choose the ideal location to build your first Town Center and begin your rise through the Ages.
In addition to Nomad mode, this Season Four Public Update Preview includes:
- Three New Maps (Four Lakes, Continental, Marshland)
- AI changes and updates, in conjunction with making the Hardest AI more of a challenge—please note that the changes to Hardest AI are not specifically related to the Season Four PUP and will be released prior to the official Season Four update as part of a minor patch.
- Mini-map size can now be toggled between Normal, 125%, and 150%
- Significant improvements to the Mod Browser experience with a focus on improved discoverability
- Landmark balance improvements – less-used Landmarks will now be present more viable strategies or have unique features to stand out as a compelling choice
- …and a whole lot of bug fixes & balance changes
Get Ready for PUP
Check out the Release Notes to read all about the available content and spectacular changes that are afoot for Age IV in an upcoming update!
⚠️Please note that you will need to be logged in with a Steam account that owns Age of Empires IV to view.
Finally, note that this is a preview build of an upcoming update to Age of Empires IV. Some features in this preview are not yet final.
Don’t miss any news about this or any other Public Update Preview—sign up as an Age Insider.
How to Access the PUP
To get started with the PUP build, owners on Steam can download the Age IV PUP by following the instructions below:
- Navigate to your Steam library and right click on Age of Empires IV.
- Select Properties… at the bottom of the menu.
- Select the BETAS tab on the left.
- In the Select the beta… dropdown menu, select future_live.
- The build will begin downloading—once complete, you are ready to play!
🎞️Replays in the PUP build are not compatible with the retail version.
🫱🏻🫲🏽Players in the PUP version will only be able to match with those also on the PUP build.
⚠️To revert back to retail, simply change your beta branch (step 4 above) back to “None.”
We hope you join us for this fun-filled experience, and we can’t wait to hear back from you!