Rome is calling, will you answer? The Return of Rome DLC is now available for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition on PC and console! This DLC offers an incredible 17 civilizations, 3 new campaigns, a new game mode, plus an additional civilization (the Romans) added to the base game.
Inspired by the 1998 expansion for Age of Empires “The Rise of Rome”, the new Return of Rome expansion delivers familiar and brand-new content for both established and new players.
What Is Included in Return of Rome?
Return of Rome is a completely new type of DLC for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, bringing classic Age of Empires gameplay, style and key experiences as a brand-new self-contained experience. When launching Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, simply select the Return of Rome icon on the Main Menu to transition your game into the Return of Rome DLC.
Purchasing Return of Rome will also grant you access to the bonus Romans civilization while playing in Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition mode. The Romans will begin as a civilization for single player and unranked lobbies, then graduate to ranked play in the near future.
New Civilization, New Campaigns, and New Game Mode
Included in Return of Rome are all 16 original Age of Empires civilizations from the Assyrians to the Yamato, allowing players to get to grips with the civilizations that started the Age of Empires journey.
Joining the ranks as the newest ancient civilization will be the Lac Viet. The Lac Viet is a fast-paced archer civilization from ancient Southeast Asia that will be exclusive to Return of Rome.
We’re also introducing 3 brand new campaigns created specifically for Return of Rome: Sargon of Akkad (Sumerians), Pyrrhus of Epirus (Macedonians) and Trajan (Romans). With new missions to tackle and stories told through the familiar AoE II: DE style, you’ll be able to live more moments from history.
The D3 Game Mode will challenge players with a new way to play. D3 is an homage to a fan favorite rule set, made popular in the Age Vietnamese professional scene, that is now fully integrated into the game. This rule set reduces rush tactics and allows players to start their early game more robustly, only allowing fighting with a single unit until entering the Bronze Age, ensuring players reach later Ages for equal battles. This rule set also bans walls and towers, making for exciting match ups later in the game.
New Achievements List!
| Name | Description |
| The God of War | Complete the Sargon campaign. |
| Not Cutting Corners | Subdue both Sippar and Borsippa in “The Chosen One”. |
| Expedited Delivery | Bring the Artifact to each city-state before 30 minutes have elapsed in “Divine Will”. |
| Ur Out of Here | Destroy Ur’s Wonder before it is completed in “The Prophecy”. |
| Back to Square One | Complete the Pyrrhus campaign. |
| What Would Alexander Have Done? | Win with all allied Town Centers remaining in “A Second Alexander”. |
| Greece’d Lightning | Win before Demetrius arrives in “The Many Kings of Macedon”. |
| The Best Defense… | Defeat all enemies in “Sisyphus”. |
| Optimus Princeps | Complete the Trajan campaign. |
| Are You Not Entertained? | Win “Legates and Legions” in less than 10 minutes. |
| I Am Legion | Defeat the Dacian Army in “Heads Will Roll”. |
| You Have No Power Here! | Lose less than 5 units to conversion in “An Old Enemy”. |
| Roman Victory | Win a game as the Romans. |
| Assyrian Victory | Win a game as the Assyrians in Return of Rome. |
| Babylonian Victory | Win a game as the Babylonians in Return of Rome. |
| Carthaginian Victory | Win a game as the Carthaginians in Return of Rome. |
| Choson Victory | Win a game as the Choson in Return of Rome. |
| Egyptian Victory | Win a game as the Egyptians in Return of Rome. |
| Greek Victory | Win a game as the Greeks in Return of Rome. |
| Hittite Victory | Win a game as the Hittites in Return of Rome. |
| Lac Viet Victory | Win a game as the Lac Viet in Return of Rome |
| Macedonian Victory | Win a game as the Macedonians in Return of Rome. |
| Minoan Victory | Win a game as the Minoans in Return of Rome. |
| Palmyran Victory | Win a game as the Palmyrans in Return of Rome. |
| Persian Victory | Win a game as the Persians in Return of Rome. |
| Phoenician Victory | Win a game as the Phoenicians in Return of Rome. |
| Roman Victory | Win a game as the Romans in Return of Rome. |
| Shang Victory | Win a game as the Shang in Return of Rome. |
| Sumerian Victory | Win a game as the Sumerians in Return of Rome. |
| Yamato Victory | Win a game as the Yamato in Return of Rome. |
| Ride for Ruin! | Kill 15 units with Scouts in the Tool Age in Return of Rome. |
| Calm, Cool, and Collected | Win 3 games in a row in Return of Rome. |
| Agile as a Sparrow | Win a game without losing a single unit in Return of Rome. |
| I Wonder Why I Did That? | Win a game by constructing a Wonder in Return of Rome. |
| Forged in Iron | Reach the Iron Age before 20 minutes of game time have elapsed in Return of Rome. |
| Chariotable Numbers | Train 60 Chariot Archers in Return of Rome. |
Explore Creator Content
There’s so much to explore, enjoy, and play in Return of Rome! We’re grateful to our community for the continued support, our players who helped us shape this innovative DLC and our Creator Community who’ve been showcasing the exciting additions that Return of Rome brings via our Creator Preview.
Available Now!
Return of Rome is available now on Windows Store, Xbox or Steam. Remember, you must own or have Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition via Game Pass to play.
For those loyal Age of Empires players, we have a special bundle that we created just for you which includes Age of Empires II: DE and the Return of Rome DLC at a discounted price.
Want More?
Want to further expand your Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition experience? Check out the other available DLC’s that will add further civilizations and campaigns to your game.