It’s been a while since we’ve given you an update on what’s happening with the team behind the Age of Empires franchise as a whole, so we decided to sit down and give you the scoop!
First of all, Age of Empires has two excellent new captains at the helm (although neither is new to the franchise): Ben Brooks and Matt Lesnak. I’ll let them take it away!
Ben “dariakus” Brooks—Lead Producer
After being in the games industry for 15 years, it’s a pleasure and a privilege to be expanding my role in the Age of Empires franchise. I’ve been a fan of Age for years, and was the lead producer on Age of Empires: Castle Siege, where I got to work alongside several series veterans. I’m looking forward to where the future takes us!Matt “Circi0” Lesnak—Program Manager
Having worked on Age of Empires my entire professional career, I’m excited for the opportunity to work more directly with the community. Some of you may recognize me from the Age II and Myth Steam launches, but I’ve also spent a great deal of time in the shadows as a producer on Castle Siege and Age Online. Ben and I already have plans to help improve all of the existing Age titles, and I’m looking forward to sharing more with you in the coming weeks!
Secondly, Kieffer Bryant, our awesome Community Coordinator, is stepping away to take the reins elsewhere, and he will be missed dearly! His very large shoes will be filled by yours truly, Joe “Plus2Joe” Homes. I’ve been working in and around online gaming communities for years, and am really grateful and excited to be heading up such an awesome community!
Finally, we have some long-awaited news for the Age III community. We know the servers have been, shall we say, less than reliable. While we’ll continue to do what we can with the existing servers to keep them up and running, it’s time to bring these 10-year-old servers up to modern standards. In the coming months, we’ll be looking to transition the ESO service to a new environment that should provide much more stability to the game and prevent the currently all-too-common downtime.
So please join me in welcoming our new leadership, and keep your eyes on the horizon as we keep you up to date on all things Age of Empires!
Have questions or comments? Want to say hi to the new Age of Empires team? Go here to join the discussion!